Henrik Frode Obel was only ever an amateur enthusiast of architecture, but he has come to have an outsize impact on the field. Born into a prominent and wealthy Danish family, he preferred to go abroad to make his fortune, rather than stay at home and inherit. The venture gave him financial freedom and—as a seasoned traveler, a bon vivant with a keen eye for aesthetics and a friend of the architect and Sydney Opera House designer, Jørn Utzon—an enduring love of architecture. 

When he died in 2014, Obel left his fortune to the foundation that bears his name, with the goal of promoting architecture as a force for change, most notably through the annual OBEL Award.

“It was very important to him that architecture was not just seen as an aesthetic object, but as something of value for future generations,” explains Jamiee Touveneau Williams, head of Projects and Partnerships at OBEL. “He wanted to reward and recognize the potential of architecture not only as a social construct or shaper, but also as something that preserves culture and heritage.”

Unlike most prizes, the OBEL Award is not application-based. Instead, it relies on a network of around 50 anonymous scouts—architects, academics and climatologists, among others—who are spread across 30 countries. Each year, they are asked by OBEL’s executive director, Jesper Eis Eriksen, to nominate projects or practices in line with a theme chosen by the jury. “We try to unfold what architecture is and understand its plurality,” explains Monique Schröder, head of Brand and Communications. “Architecture is not just the design of a building. It can be an idea, an innovation, a process. We’ve never awarded simply a building or an architect.”