Ethiopia’s Africa Hall wins Modernist conservation award

The World Monuments Fund and Knoll have awarded the 2026 World Monuments Fund/Knoll Modernism Prize to the Australia-based architecture firm Architectus for its conservation of Africa Hall in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The building, completed in 1961 and designed by Italian architect Arturo Mezzedimi, serves as the headquarters of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa and was commissioned by Emperor Haile Selassie. The decade-long, $57 million restoration project, completed in October 2024, involved local experts, restored original furniture and stained-glass windows by artist Afewerk Tekle, and modernized the structure while preserving its modernist vision. The jury also awarded its first Stewardship Award for Modernist Homes to the Umbrella House in Sarasota, Florida, designed by Paul Rudolph.