Marieanne Khoury-Vogt, representing Alys Beach’s Town Architect team with husband and partner Erik Vogt, has been acknowledged by the Urban Guild as this year’s recipient of the Barranco Award. The Urban Guild recognizes excellent architectural design within the context of good urbanism, with the Barranco Award going to “individuals who not only distinguished themselves in design but who also demonstrate a gift for building relationships beyond architecture, and inspiring coalitions for transformative change in the lives of families and communities.”

The award announcement also recognizes a modesty in impacting the architectural landscape without a demand for personal credit and recognition, which speaks to the team that Alys Beach is honored to call their Town Architects.

With Vogt and Khoury Vogt at the helm, shepherding a design code that responds to a dynamic climate, Alys Beach moves into its twentieth year of diligent pursuit of the master planned, New Urbanist vision. It is tremendously gratifying to see the talents of our Town Architects recognized in this way. In the words of the Barranco Awards Committee: Marieanne’s work (in Alys Beach) with her partner, Erik Vogt, has been pivotal in the recovery of the living tradition process, and (Alys Beach) is the best example of a living tradition we have seen in our lifetimes. A living tradition builds on what makes sense for sustainability and resilience in its location. The fact that Marieanne and Erik were producing stunning buildings without blemish and leading others to do the same, backed by a development team committed to making that happen was and is key because, to anyone setting foot in Alys Beach for the first time, such rare excellence opens the mind to possibilities heretofore considered unthinkable.

The birth of a living tradition requires many hands, and Marieanne and the design team selected arguably the best talent assembled in our time for the Urban Guild charrette where the first architecture of Alys Beach was designed twenty years ago. But it didn’t end there, and Urban Guild members have had a great impact at Alys Beach ever since under Marieanne’s guidance. Originally based on seeds from Bermuda and Antigua Guatemala, Alys Beach architecture in the years that followed has embraced architecture from sources as diverse as ancient Middle Eastern traditions and Art Deco. Under her skillful guidance and the shared wisdom of a true living tradition, the results have been seamless and stunning.

Please join the Alys Beach team in congratulating Marieanne Khoury-Vogt for this recognition as the recipient of this year’s Urban Guild Barranco Award. The community is celebrating the accomplishments of both Vogt and Khoury- Vogt, and the commitment behind the realization of Alys Beach as a place of beauty and architectural excellence.

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