GALENA, IL.- The prestigious award organized by The Chicago Athenaeum: Museum of Architecture and Design and The European Centre for Architecture Art Design and Urban Studies chose 65 of the year’s best projects, judged by a panel of the world’s most respected architects, designers, and architecture journalists and critics. The winners of the award span 26 nations, with only three of the 65 projects designed for the Middle East region, GM Architects is proud to be included in order to represent the innovative architectural development of Lebanon where the firm has its headquarters.

As a result of the award The Museum of Civilizations will be included in the exhibition entitled, ‘The City and the World’ at the 3rd Chicago Architecture Biennial this November which combines the The International Architecture Awards 2015 with The American Architecture Awards 2015. Following this, the exhibition is scheduled to travel in Europe, opening at The European Centre's Contemporary Space Athens in Athens, Greece in 2016.

The Museum of Civilizations, is envisioned as half-way between a museum and an archaeological dig as it would cut underground through layers of rock to expose the different periods in the city’s geological heritage, whilst also exploring its political history; Byzantine, Roman, French etc. contemplating the multicultural origins of Lebanese identity.

Since its unveiling at the 14th International Biennale of Architecture in Venice, this is the project’s third award nomination, previously winning of the Cultural Regeneration Category of the 2015 Architectural Review MIPIM Future Projects Awards and also becoming a finalist for the World Architecture Festival Awards 2014. This praise has attracted a number of proposals from potential backers and the firm has been in talks with archaeologists, historians and regional government about making the project a reality.

Founded in 1996 by French-LLebanese architect Galal Mahmoud, GM Architects employs 40 professionals including architects and interior designers with offices in Beirut and Abu Dhabi. Its partners include Randa Chahine, Anwar Haij and Elie Waked. The firm’s completed projectscan be seen in France, North Africa, the Middle East and throughout the Mediterranean region.