The 2026 Praemium Imperiale announced today its laureates, naming architect Daniel Libeskind as the recipient in the Architecture category. The ceremony will take place under the honorary patronage of His Imperial Highness Prince Hitachi, younger brother of Japan’s former emperor, and will run from 13 to 8 September 2026 in Tokyo.
Full roster of this year’s honorees
In addition to Libeskind, the awardees include Australian actress Cate Blanchett for Theatre/Film, American-Swedish conductor Herbert Blomstedt for Music, British sculptor Andy Goldsworthy for Sculpture, and American conceptual artist Jenny Holzer for Painting. Each of these creators has been recognized for a body of work that reaches beyond national boundaries and influences global cultural conversations.
Blanchett, currently starring in Benedict Andrews’ new play Electra/Persona at the National Theatre until 10 October, is an internationally acclaimed actress and producer. Winner of two Academy Awards, four BAFTAs, four Golden Globes, and three SAG Awards, her diverse film credits have included roles in Elizabeth (1998), The Aviator (2004), I’m Not There (2007), Blue Jasmine (2013), Carol (2015), and Tár (2022). Beyond acting, Blanchett is the co-founder and principal of Dirty Films, a production company that supports diverse storytelling. She is also a Global Goodwill Ambassador for UNHCR and has launched the Displacement Film Fund, which empowers refugee and displaced filmmakers, alongside the Proof-of-Concept programme, which amplifies the voices of women, trans, and non-binary creators.
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Blomstedt, at 99, remains one of the most respected conductors of our time. Born in Springfield, Massachusetts, to Swedish parents, he trained in Stockholm, Uppsala, New York, Basel, and Tanglewood, studying under influential figures like Igor Markevitch, Leonard Bernstein, and Paul Sacher. His Seventh-day Adventist faith deeply informs his approach to music-making, blending intellectual rigor with emotional warmth. He has held major appointments with orchestras including the Oslo Philharmonic, the Swedish Radio Symphony, and the Staatskapelle Dresden.
Goldsworthy, born in Cheshire in 1956, is one of the most prominent land artists of our time. His work spans sculptures, installations, photographs, and films, exploring themes of time, human connection to nature, and regeneration. His most recent major exhibition, Andy Goldsworthy: Fifty Years, was held in 2025 at the Royal Scottish Academy, organized by the National Galleries of Scotland. Currently, he is completing Hanging Stones, a six-mile walking route in Northern Yorkshire linking ten rebuilt houses as a single artwork, which he describes as “the most important work of my life.”
Holzer, born in Gallipolis, Ohio, has redefined public art through her text-based works. Her practice centers on writing, with 16 text series and three collaborative texts to date. Recent projects include silk-screened declassified government documents exposing prisoner abuse and a 65-foot-wide wall of light at the World Trade Centre. For her upcoming exhibition J’ai vu at the Musée d’Orsay, opening 20 October, she will present text fragments from the museum’s archives across monumental installations, projections, engravings, and luminous displays.
Patronage and prize details
The ceremony is held under the honorary patronage of Prince Hitachi, younger brother of Japan’s former emperor. Every laureate receives an honorarium of 15 million yen (approximately £70,000), intended to support continued artistic activity. The recipient of the Grant for Young Artists, awarded this year to the French organization La Source Garouste, receives 5 million yen (approximately £23,000).
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Established in 1989, the prize fills gaps left by the Nobel system, recognizing achievements in five artistic fields. Candidates are proposed by six International Advisors, who are instructed to look beyond national borders for artists with a major global impact. Together, their work celebrates the beauty and transformative power of art for individuals and society.”
Libeskind, born in Łódź, Poland, now based in New York, first gained worldwide attention when his design for the Jewish Museum Berlin won the competition in 2001. The building’s angular forms and voids were intended to evoke memory and loss, and critics praised the way the structure confronts history while offering a contemporary spatial experience. A photograph from May 2026 shows Libeskind on-site with sketches for the museum, capturing the evolution of his vision.
Since that breakthrough, his firm has overseen projects ranging from museums and concert halls to university campuses. In 2003, the studio moved its headquarters to New York after being appointed master planner for the World Trade Center redevelopment, a role that placed the practice at the center of one of the most symbolic urban renewal efforts of the early twenty-first century. The firm’s portfolio includes the Bundeswehr Museum of Military History in Dresden, the Kö-Bogen in Düsseldorf, and the Sapphire development in Berlin.
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Beyond the Berlin museum, the portfolio features the Ogden Centre for Fundamental Physics in Durham, completed in 2016, and the Atrium at Sumner, finalized in 2024.
The award also highlights a Grant for Young Artists, awarded this year to the French organization La Source Garouste, which runs creative workshops for disadvantaged children across ten centers in France. Founded in 1991 by contemporary artist Gérard Garouste and interior designer Élizabeth Garouste, the organization empowers nearly 10,000 children annually through immersive workshops led by professional artists and educational experts. The grant will support their 370 annual projects targeting children aged 6 to 18 during school vacations.
Libeskind’s latest undertaking, the Albert Einstein Discovery Center in Ulm, is slated for completion in the next two years. The project will celebrate Einstein’s scientific legacy and pacifist ideals, incorporating interactive exhibits to make complex concepts accessible. The center’s design reflects Libeskind’s ability to merge historical resonance with contemporary innovation.