Glenn Murcutt, the first and only Australian Pritzker Prize Laureate following his win in 2002, has been announced as the new chairman of its prestigious selection jury. The Pritzker Prize’s independent judging panel comprises up to nine members, including esteemed architects and thought leaders from a diverse range of industries.

Murcutt’s predecessor, Lord Peter Palumbo, leaves the role after 11 years at the helm of architecture’s highest international honour.

The announcement appointing Murcutt was made at an event awarding Venice Biennale architectural director, Chilean architect Alejandro Aravena this year’s Pritzker prize. Aravena receives $US100,000 and a Pritzker medallion.

In 2015, Glenn Murcutt AO became the recipient of the inaugural Seidler Chair in the Practice of Architecture at UNSW. Murcutt’s highly influential residential and institutional works are spread across Australia, and includes the Arthur and Yvonne Boyd Education Centre, where he conducts an annual international master class.