Designs of two of the six buildings shortlisted for this most prestigious British award belong to David Chipperfield, who has so far built very little in his homeland. Therefore, both of its buildings, claiming to be the best British building of 2007, are located "on the continent": in Valencia (Pavilion of the America's Cup regatta) and in Marbach near Stuttgart (Museum of Contemporary Literature).
Outside the British Isles, there are also the Jury-selected Rem Koolhaas' House of Music in Port and the renovated Dresden Train Station by Norman Foster.
The list includes the Saville Building, the Great Windsor Park Visitor Center designed by Glenn Howells Architects, and London's Young Vic Theater by Haworth Tompkins.
The fact that four of the six noted buildings are not located in the United Kingdom not only reflects a change in the position of the organizers of the award (before the victory of Richard Rogers last year with his Madrid Barajas airport, there were practically no such precedents), but also the situation in modern British architecture. To realize their projects, many talented architects seek recognition abroad, as it is much easier there. The most striking example is the story of Zaha Hadid, who only in recent years had the opportunity to implement her projects in her homeland. David Chipperfield, whose talent is of a completely different kind, has not yet been able to realize almost anything in England, at the same time, his buildings can be found in provincial American cities, not to mention continental Europe.
Perhaps such a choice by the jury will open the eyes of British developers and government officials to the current situation; after all, looking at the list of finalists for the Sterling Prize, it becomes clear: evolution in British architecture is now taking place outside of it.
