Press Release
Resurgence Church by Zehua Zhang Wins the Bronze A' Design Award in Architecture, Building and Structure Design
Zehua Zhang acknowledged for architecture, building and structure design by the international grand jury of the 2025 - 2026 A' Design Award & Competition
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COMO, Italy, April 18, 2026 /DesignNewswire/ A' Design Award & Competition has announced that Resurgence Church by Zehua Zhang has been granted the Bronze A' Design Award in the Architecture, Building and Structure Design category. The award was conferred within the 2025 - 2026 A' Design Award & Competition and was determined through blind peer review by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members, who assessed anonymized entries against predetermined criteria.
The Bronze A' Design Award Explained
The Bronze A' Design Award is given to outstanding designs that showcase a high degree of creativity and practicality. It recognizes the dedication and skill of designers who produce work that stands out for its thoughtful development and innovative use of materials and technology. These designs are acknowledged for their professional execution and potential to influence industry standards positively. Winning this award highlights the designer's ability to blend form and function effectively, offering solutions that enhance people's lives and wellbeing.
More About Resurgence Church
Resurgence is a new church in Altadena responding to post wildfire reconstruction needs. The design references the surrounding mountains through vertical, sculpted forms. Concrete, glass, and landscaped courtyards define the interior spaces, bringing daylight and creating calm environments. The project combines worship areas with community facilities, providing spaces for both spiritual practice and social interaction. It reflects local context while accommodating diverse community activities.
About Zehua Zhang
I am a designer and thinker who bridges creativity and purpose. My work shapes experiences, connecting people, space, and ideas with clarity and impact. I have led complex projects, received professional recognition, and contributed to competitions and juries, reflecting both skill and leadership. Beyond practice, I aim to create inclusive, meaningful spaces that enrich society. What makes me interesting is my balance of logic and intuition, precision and imagination, using design and art to explore, inspire, and transform the world around us.
Award Record
This recognition makes Zehua Zhang a winner of 3 A' Design Awards. All of the awards belong to the 2025 - 2026 edition of the A' Design Award & Competition.
About the A' Architecture, Building and Structure Design Award
The A' Architecture Design Award is an international architectural design competition recognizing good architectural designs by best architects worldwide. The competition is organized within the A' Design Award & Competition and is open to architectural design studios, building contractors, structural engineering firms and architecture and design consultants from all countries. Entries typically include skyscrapers, museums, residential buildings, commercial complexes, educational institutions and religious structures. Awarded architectural projects are published at https://dezigners.org/design-category/architecture
About A' Design Award & Competition
A' Design Award & Competition is an international, juried design accolade organized annually since 2008. The competition is open to entries from all countries. The A' Design Award has a philanthropic mission to advance society through good design by recognizing and promoting superior products, projects and services that benefit society, and by creating a global awareness and appreciation for good design practices and principles. Entries are peer reviewed and anonymously evaluated by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members against predetermined criteria such as functionality, ergonomics, engineering, presentation, innovation, usability, sustainability and technology, with score normalization applied to remove biases. Awards are conferred at Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze and Iron levels. The A' Design Prize granted to eligible laureates includes the award trophy, the certificate of design excellence, the hardcover yearbook, a lifetime license to use the A' Design Award winner logo, exhibition of awarded works, an invitation to the gala night and award ceremony in Italy, inclusion in the World Design Rankings and Designer Rankings, and public relations and publicity services. Registration, the upload of a work and the preliminary score are free of charge, and Professional and Digital Edition laureates are not contractually obliged to pay further fees to claim the A' Design Prize. Further information is available at https://competition.adesignaward.com
Press Resources
- Winner Page: https://dezigners.org/180908
- A' Design Award Page: https://competition.adesignaward.com/180908
- Media Showcase: https://www.designnewsroom.com/!180908
- Laureate Profile: https://dezigners.org/d/368120
Media Contact
Giulia Ferrari, Press Office
Designers.Org
Via Leone Leoni 32, 22100 Como, Italy
press@designers.org
+39 031 4491953
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Fact Sheet
The Work
- Project
- Resurgence Church
- Function
- Church
- Category
- Architecture, Building and Structure Design
- Discipline
- Spatial Design
- Industry
- Architecture
- Colors
- Black, Light Slate Gray, Dark Slate Gray, Dark Olive Green and Silver
- Images
- 5
The Recognition
- Laureate
- Zehua Zhang
- Country
- United States of America
- Recognition
- Bronze A' Design Award
- Edition
- 2025 - 2026
- Design ID
- #180908
Design Details
- Unique Properties
- Resurgence is a contemporary church in Altadena, conceived as a spiritual and cultural catalyst after the wildfire. Inspired by surrounding mountain ridges, its sculpted concrete form rises vertically toward light-filled skylights, expressing renewal. A skylight atrium and courtyard weave nature, light, and community together, uniting sacred worship and civic life in a resilient beacon of collective healing and hope.
- Inspiration
- The design was inspired by Altadena’s post-wildfire recovery and the site’s mountainous landscape. I studied topography, light behavior, and community rebuilding models to shape a form that abstracts surrounding ridges into a vertical, light-filled sanctuary. Research into trauma-informed spaces and passive daylighting informed the atrium, courtyard, and concrete massing, creating a resilient structure that fosters healing, unity, and spiritual renewal.
- Research
- Type of Research: Applied architectural and social research. Objectives: Explore architecture’s role in post-wildfire community renewal. Methodology: Community engagement, iterative modeling. Tools: Site analysis, surveys, models, 3D simulations. Participants: Residents, church leaders, community groups. Results and Insights: Mountain-inspired forms, light, and open spaces foster spiritual and social connection. Impact: Strengthens cohesion, cultural life, and human-centered design practices.
- Challenge
- The project faced the challenge of balancing spiritual, social, and cultural needs after wildfire loss. Internally, it required understanding Altadena’s history, community trauma, and collective memory. Externally, constraints included building codes, material limits, daylighting technology, and construction feasibility. Overcoming these involved iterative modeling, community feedback, and innovative use of concrete and glass to create a resilient, meaningful, and functional design.
- Realization and Technology
- Materiality and light shape the design. Concrete as the primary material, conveys weight and dignity while its smooth surfaces create a clean, harmonious space. A skylight courtyard and meditation garden establish a quiet dialogue between architecture and nature. Glass curtain walls guide daylight into the interior, forming a sacred, serene atmosphere. As light moves through the vertical spaces, it brings a continuous sense of ceremony and spiritual tension.
- Operation and Interaction
- This project operates through spatial flow and light manipulation. Its atrium and skylights transform daylight into dynamic patterns, guiding movement and fostering contemplation. Interaction occurs as visitors move between worship, community, and meditation spaces, experiencing shifts in scale, light, and material. Key frames include entrance, atrium, courtyard, and sanctuary. By harmonizing architecture, light, and landscape, it enhances spiritual and social engagement.
- Project Duration and Location
- The project started in August 2025 and was completed in December 2025
- Specifications
- Single story building with overall dimensions of 45 meters in width, 45 meters in depth, and 18 meters in height.
- Keywords
- Community renewal, cultural architecture, fluid form, concrete and light interplay, atrium with skylight, courtyard garden
