New York-based architect Annabelle Selldorf and Chinese architect Ma Yansong have been named as the world's most influential architects in TIME 100 Most Influential People List. 

Releasing its 100 Most Influential People each year, the TIME listed Selldorf Architects founder Annabelle Selldorf and MAD founder Ma Yansong as the most influential  architects. 

Selldorf was named among other world renowned Artists, including American actress and singer Scarlett Johansson, American actor Daniel Dae Kim, and American actress and singer Kristen Bell.

Yansong was named among other world renowned Innovators, including American rapper Snoop Dogg, CEO of BlackRock Larry Fink, British-American entrepreneur Tim Cadogan, and scientist Ismahane Elouafi.

"Reimagining monumental architecture"

Called "for reimagining monumental architecture" in her citation, Annabelle Selldorf was praised for her transformative expansion of the Frick Collection on Manhattan’s Upper East Side.

"Annabelle is known for reimagining monumental architecture, most recently the Frick, opening in April, and the Sainsbury Wing of London’s National Gallery, which opens in May. As we walked along the rocky shore, she was preoccupied with the sky, with the color of the clouds. She was thinking about how to paint the ceiling of the Frick’s new auditorium," wrote photographer Annie Leibovitz.

"Annabelle’s mission is to make art accessible to the widest range of visitors possible. The spaces she creates are meant to accommodate large numbers of people, but they are not overpowering. They are sensitively and deftly restrained. The entrance to the Frick is no longer hard to find. Everyone can walk in through the same front door. Visitors can explore the museum at their own pace. “I get lost and feel the better for it,” she says. And the DNA of the beautiful rooms is intact. Her work embodies the values she holds dear. Art and life are not separate," Leibovitz stated.

"Yansong is at the forefront of a massive change in architecture that will transform our structures for generations"

Chinese architect Ma Yansong, who recently completed the Fenix, the first art museum dedicated to exploring migration as its central theme will open to the public on 16 May, was praised for "being at the forefront of a massive change in architecture that will transform our structures for generations."

Ma Yansong's achievements have also been praised for his work on the One River North (ORN) residential tower in Denver, the Fenix Museum, and the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art.

In his citation by George Lucas, an Oscar-nominated filmmaker and philanthropist, Lucas wrote that "I have been a fan of architect Ma Yansong from his earliest works. His designs never cease to amaze and inspire me." 

"This year, he has unveiled projects that include a striking building in Denver that takes inspiration from canyons, and Fenix, a spiraling new art museum in the Netherlands that explores human migration. Like his mentor, the great Zaha Hadid, he has been at the forefront of a massive change in architecture that will transform our structures for generations," wrote George Lucas. 

"It’s why I was so excited to collaborate with him on the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, which opens next year. I believe visitors will come not just for the collection, but also the building—it’s a work of art in and of itself. Ma is a great and willing partner in the creation process. It is a joy working with him," Lucas stated.

In 2024, architects Lesley Lokko and Marina Tabassum were featured in TIME 100 Most Influential People List. 

The top image in the article (left to right): Annabelle Selldorf (image © Stephen Kent Johnson, courtesy of Selldorf Architects) and Chinese architect Ma Yansong (image © Greg Mei).

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Annabelle Selldorf Ma Yansong The TIME TIME 100