It was the first time that the architecture prize has been shared by three people –  all partners in RCR Arquitectes, a firm based in Spain's Catalonia region.

“Their works range from public and private spaces to cultural venues and educational institutions, and their ability to intensely relate the environment specific to each site is a testament to their process and deep
integrity,” said Tom Pritzker, chairman of the foundation that sponsors the prize.

The choice was seen as a move away from the celebrity architects that have dominated the field in favour of a trio of professionals who have worked together for 30 years in their hometown of Olot in Catalonia.

Nestled deep in the countryside of Spain's northeast, Olot is surrounded by beech trees, marshes and volcanoes — a dramatic natural landscape that has long inspired their work.

In a globalised world, the prize announcement said, people increasingly fear “we will lose our local values, our local art, and our local customs”.

“Rafael Aranda, Carme Pigem and Ramon Vilalta tell us that it may be possible to have both… our roots firmly in place and our arms outstretched to the rest of the world,” it said.

Among their most celebrated buildings are the La Lira Theatre public space in Spain and the Soulages Museum in Rodez in southwestern France.

“Their vocabulary is metal,” especially weathered Cor-Ten steel, which has been deployed at some of their best-known works, said Francis Rambert, who directs the French Architecture Institute at the Chaillot museum in Paris.

But light also plays a fundamental role in their creations, Rambert said, referring in particular to Les Cols, a restaurant in Olot where the rooms have glass walls on all sides, while still providing a sense of intimacy.

“You feel as if you are alone,” he said.

It is only the second time that the Pritzker Prize has gone to Spanish architects, and the first time that it has been shared by a trio. 

“It is a great joy and a great responsibility. We are thrilled that this year, three professionals, who work closely together in everything we do, are recognised,” Pigem said.

“Sometimes, it feels as if you have to choose between the local and the global. With us, everyone can understand that you can be closely tied to the local while being open to the world.”

Inspired by home nature

The winners' firm, RCR Arquitectes, has completed projects in Belgium, France and as far as Dubai, but the bulk of their work has been in Spain, much of it in Catalonia, a fiercely autonomous region where many want independence.

“Their works range from public and private spaces to cultural venues and educational institutions, and their ability to intensely relate the environment specific to each site is a testament to their process and deep integrity,” said Tom Pritzker, chairman of the Hyatt Foundation, which sponsors the prize.

Pigem and Vilalta, who are a couple, graduated from the Valles School of Architecture near Barcelona in 1987. They partnered with Aranda – who was also just out of university – to set up shop in Olot.

“Olot, it's our little world,” Vilalta told AFP in 2014 when the Soulages Museum was inaugurated.

Influenced by the modern Barcelona designs that burst into the limelight  during the 1992 Olympic Games, they also cite painters like Mark Rothko and Pierre Soulages, and Spanish sculptor Eduardo Chillida as sources of inspiration.

Japan's traditional architecture has also influenced their work.

Their buildings reflect the simplicity and colours of their region, such as the omnipresent dark steel in their work that calls to mind volcanic rocks.

The prize will be awarded to the three Spaniards in Tokyo on May 20th.