Zane Carter Architects wins Silver A’ Design Award in Lake Como, Italy
Ripple House A’ Design Award recognition marks an international milestone for Zane Carter Architects, with Ripple House winning the 2025 Silver A’ Design Award in the Architecture, Building and Structure Design category.
We’re proud to share that Ripple House has been recognised on an international stage. In addition, the award presentation took place in Lake Como, Italy, where designers from around the world gathered to celebrate architecture, interiors, product design and the built environment.
Designed by Sam Alawie, Ripple House reflects our approach to creating homes that feel carefully resolved, deeply liveable and shaped by light, movement and material detail. As a result, the project feels both personal and internationally relevant.
You can view the official Ripple House A’ Design Award winner page.
The A’ Design Award celebrates international projects that show innovation, quality and strong execution. Therefore, the Silver award places Ripple House within a global design context.
Ripple House received the Silver A’ Design Award for its response to a compact residential site. The home uses a custom ripple screen, curved forms and a central double-height void to bring natural light deep into the plan.
As a result, the residence creates privacy, softness and a strong sense of connection within a constrained attached dwelling format.
The project feels calm and immersive. Rather than treating light, water and materiality as separate ideas, the design brings them together to shape the atmosphere of the home throughout the day.
At the heart of Ripple House is the idea of movement. The custom screen references the rhythm of water, filtering light across the facade and creating shifting patterns of shadow as the day changes.
Inside, the double-height void opens the home vertically and allows daylight to reach the centre of the plan. This was especially important within the constraints of an attached dwelling, where natural light can be limited.
In addition, curved forms, Venetian plaster and carefully selected finishes give the home a tactile quality. Together, these details soften the transition between spaces and create a stronger relationship between architecture and daily life.
The Silver A’ Design Award affirms Ripple House as a meaningful contribution to contemporary Australian residential design. It also recognises the project’s careful balance of atmosphere, privacy and liveability.
The project shows how a compact footprint can still deliver generosity, privacy, atmosphere and long-term value when design decisions work together.
For us, the recognition is not only about the visual impact of the home. It also reflects the value of architecture that responds to its site, supports the people who live within it and creates moments of calm, connection and beauty in everyday life.
For this reason, Ripple House continues to represent the ideas that guide our work: purposeful design, intelligent planning and human-centred architecture.
You can view the full Ripple House project or explore more of our residential architecture portfolio.
Ultimately, this recognition reinforces the value of designing homes that feel calm, personal and carefully resolved. For more on how design can support long-term value, read our article on Architecture ROI, or book a project review to discuss your next home or development.
