Photo: Younes Bounhar

Brigitte Shim, professor in the John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design, and A. Howard Sutcliffe, founding co-partners of Shim-Sutcliffe Architects, have been recognized with the Lifetime Design Achievement Award by the Ontario Association of Architects (OAA). 

The award, presented biennially by the independent regulator of the architectural profession in Ontario, honours architects for a career dedicated to excellence and innovation in architectural design, recognizing a legacy of outstanding work.

A faculty member at U of T since 1988, Shim leads core design studios, advanced design studios and elective courses for the architecture program. She is a Fellow of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC), an Honorary Fellow of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and an elected member of the Royal Canadian Academy (RCA). 

Shim and Sutcliffe co-founded their practice in 1994 and have completed many significant projects for non-profits and public and private clients, including the Robertson Davies Library and St. Catherine’s Chapel at Massey College, U of T; the Wong Dai Sin Temple in Markham; and Integral House, a ravine residence in Toronto’s Rosedale neighbourhood with a two-storey living room designed to accommodate musical performances.

Among many other honours, Shim and Sutcliffe are recipients of 14 Governor General’s Medals for Architecture, the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada Gold Medal (2021) and an American Institute of Architects National Honor Award. In 2013, they were both appointed to the Order of Canada.

“Brigitte and Howard’s work reflects a lifelong commitment to design excellence, grounded in a deep understanding of place, research, and innovation,” says Robert Levit, acting dean of Daniels. “Their contributions have shaped both architectural practice and education at the highest level, leaving a lasting impact in Canada and beyond. The Daniels community congratulates them on this achievement and celebrates the continued evolution of their remarkable contributions.”

From the forthcoming OAA 2026 Awards Book: 

As partners in life and practice, Brigitte Shim and Howard Sutcliffe are among the few Canadian architects who have gained international recognition for the excellence of their buildings and landscapes. Since establishing Shim-Sutcliffe Architects in 1994, they have excelled at every stage of their careers, receiving 14 Governor General’s Medals and Awards for architecture, as well as an American Institute of Architects (AIA) National Honor Award and many other accolades. Shim and Sutcliffe have demonstrated to their peers and to the world at large that contemporary modernism can be not only highly sophisticated but also intimate, welcoming, and warm.

Jury’s Comments

“Their legacy is unparalleled. They reached a pinnacle few architects can achieve in creating places that are poetic, thoroughly considered, perfectly tuned to human habitation.”

“The quality of design speaks to their ability to understand context and vernacular. Their partnership combines the precision of a technician and the insight of a teacher.”

“Even their simplest and most modest projects are always elegant, still great architecture. This is the true test of the architect—creating beauty for modest means.”