STARH

STARH is a Bulgarian architectural practice founded in 2012 in Varna by architect Svetoslav Stanislavov. The studio has designed numerous projects across Bulgaria, including A3 Advanced Architecture Apartments, Umani Hotel, and LH, which have received many national and international awards. STARH is described on its official website as the most internationally awarded Bulgarian architectural studio. In 2023, STARH won the Popular Choice Winner award for Umani Hotel in the Architecture + Environment category at the 11th Architizer A+ Awards — the studio's first Architizer award and the first such award for architecture in Bulgaria. In the same year, the studio team received the collective "Varna" award in the field of architecture, recognizing its contribution to promoting contemporary architecture of the city of Varna at both national and international levels. In 2024, with its projects LH and NAMA, the studio reached the finals of the World Architecture Festival, becoming the first Bulgarian architectural office to achieve such recognition. As of 2025, STARH has 11 published projects on ArchDaily — one of the most popular and visited architecture websites in the world — and 12 nominations for the annual ArchDaily Building of the Year Awards. The studio demonstrates an affinity for using innovative technologies and materials. The use of polymer marble in the facade cladding of Varna Wave made the project pioneering, as it was the first time this material was used in Bulgaria and the Balkan region. This laid the foundations for future, more ambitious projects such as BGA and B73, which also incorporate Solid Surface technology. B73 is one of the few buildings in Bulgaria to use this material and thermoforming technology to achieve complex 3D shapes. STARH operates as a private limited liability company (ЕООД) under Bulgarian law, owned by its founder. Its work spans residential, hospitality, and mixed-use architecture, with a strong emphasis on material innovation and digital fabrication. The studio's projects have been widely published and recognized, establishing it as a prominent voice in contemporary Bulgarian architecture.

STARH was founded in Varna by architect Svetoslav Stanislavov in 2012. In 2013, STARH was selected to design "Varna City Park" following an architectural competition, and three years later it worked on its much more ambitious continuation — "Varna City Park South." It became the largest residential project in Varna in the previous 30 years. In 2014, the studio won a competition organized by Sofbuild and created A3 Advanced Architecture Apartments — a residential building located on Bulgaria Boulevard in Sofia. This project was STARH's first large-scale realization and won six national and international awards. Key to the project is the facade cladding made of the innovative material FibreC by Rieder, used for the first time in Bulgaria. Entirely prefabricated with computer precision according to the building's design parameters, the panels ensure the execution of the complex smooth geometry of the volumes. A number of realizations of varying scale and function followed, the more significant of which are Varna Wave (2018), EOS (2019), B73 (2021), Umani Hotel (2022), and LH (2023). STARH demonstrates an affinity for using innovative technologies and materials. The use of polymer marble in the facade cladding of Varna Wave made the project pioneering, as it was the first time this material was used in Bulgaria and the Balkan region. This laid the foundations for future, more ambitious projects such as BGA and B73, which also incorporate Solid Surface technology. B73 is one of the few buildings in Bulgaria to use this material and thermoforming technology to achieve complex 3D shapes. The studio was honored at the 11th Architizer A+ Awards in 2023, in which over 600 prominent architects and professionals from around the world participated. Umani Hotel became the Popular Choice Winner in the Architecture + Environment category — the first award for the studio from Architizer and the first such award for architecture in Bulgaria. In 2024, STARH reached the finals of the 17th World Architecture Festival (WAF), held from November 6 to 8, 2024, at Marina Bay Sands in Singapore. The studio participated with two projects — LH in the Completed Buildings category, Retrofit subcategory, and Nama in the Future Projects category, Leisure Led Development subcategory. This placed STARH in the list of finalists alongside global architectural practices such as Zaha Hadid Architects, MVRDV, Tadao Ando Architect & Associates, and Foster + Partners. In the same year (2024), the studio published its architectural monograph STARH Architecture, collecting in one edition 14 realized projects completed over 12 years and tracing the studio's path from its founding to the present.

• 2024

  Reached finals of World Architecture Festival with LH and NAMA; published monograph 'STARH Architecture'.

• 2023

  Completed LH; won Popular Choice Winner at Architizer A+ Awards for Umani Hotel; received collective 'Varna' award in architecture.

• 2022

  Completed Umani Hotel.

• 2021

  Completed B73, using Solid Surface technology and thermoforming for complex 3D shapes.

• 2019

  Completed EOS project.

• 2018

  Completed Varna Wave, first use of polymer marble in facade cladding in Bulgaria and the Balkans.

• 2016

  Worked on Varna City Park South, the largest residential project in Varna in 30 years.

• 2014

  Won Sofbuild competition and created A3 Advanced Architecture Apartments in Sofia.

• 2013

  Selected to design Varna City Park after an architectural competition.

• 2012

  STARH founded in Varna by architect Svetoslav Stanislavov.

Innovative, award-winning architectural studio focused on material innovation and contemporary design.

• A3 Advanced Architecture Apartments

  Residential building in Sofia, first large-scale realization for STARH, won six national and international awards. Features FibreC facade cladding by Rieder, used for the first time in Bulgaria.

• Varna Wave

  Completed in 2018. First use of polymer marble in facade cladding in Bulgaria and the Balkan region.

• EOS

  Completed in 2019.

• B73

  Completed in 2021. One of the few buildings in Bulgaria using Solid Surface material and thermoforming technology for complex 3D shapes.

• Umani Hotel

  Completed in 2022. Won Popular Choice Winner in Architecture + Environment at the 11th Architizer A+ Awards in 2023.

• LH

  Completed in 2023. Finalist at the 2024 World Architecture Festival in the Completed Buildings, Retrofit subcategory.

• NAMA

  Finalist at the 2024 World Architecture Festival in the Future Projects, Leisure Led Development subcategory.

1. 1STARH – архитектурни проектиstarh.bg
2. 2STARH – Wikidatawikidata.org
3. 3STARH – Wikipedia (Bulgarian)bg.wikipedia.org