Architecture on the podium at RIBA.Every year since 1848, the RIBA RIBA Royal Institute of British Architects has presented The Royal Gold Medal The Royal Gold Medal for architecture is awarded annually by the Royal Institute of British Architects on behalf of the British monarch, in recognition of an individual's or group's substantial contribution to international architecture. . Instituted by Her Majesty Queen Victoria, over the past 158 years its recipients have been many and varied, with the first being awarded to the brilliant Charles Robert Cockerell Charles Robert Cockerell (1788–1863) was an English architect, archaeologist, and writer. Early in his life, he trained in the architectural practice of his father, Samuel Pepys Cockerell. ; a genius classical revivalist whose work still inspires today. With Robert Smirke (architect of the British Museum) following in 1853, Viollet-le-Duc in 1864 and William Butterfield in 1884, the annual award has only been suspended twice: first in 1901 following Victoria's death, and again in 1924 when it was declined by the nominee. With subsequent British Sovereigns taking over the role (as the Medal still requires royal approval), many more familiar names have also received the honour: Edwin Lutyens in 1921, Giles Gilbert Scott Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, OM, FRIBA (November 9 1880 – February 8 1960) was an English architect known for his work on such buildings as Liverpool Cathedral and Battersea Power Station. He came from a family of architects. He was the son of George Gilbert Scott, Jr. in 1925, Frank Lloyd Wright in 1942, Eliel Saarinen in 1950, Le Corbusier in 1953, and Mies van der Rohe Van Der Ro·he See Ludwig Mies Van Der Rohe. in 1959. Groups and non-architects have also won the award, with Archigram being jointly recognised in 2002, three years before the award was given to a place: the City of Barcelona, that was heralded as an exemplary model of architecture and urban regeneration. This year the award went to Toyo Ito. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The work of the Korean born, Tokyo-based architect, has clear sympathies with this year's judges--Professor Peter Cook, Ian Ritchie, Chris Wilkinson, and Odile Decq--and Ito was an extremely popular choice. Another popular decision was the RIBA's move to raise the profile of the Gold Medal's student counterpart: the President's Silver and Bronze Medals. Remarkably for the first time since their inception in 1984, all three of the medallists were finally able to share the podium, with Yew Choong Chan awarded the Silver Medal for his University of Westminster The University of Westminster is a university in London, England, formed in 1992 as a result of the Further and Higher Education Act, 1992, which allowed the London Polytechnic (Polytechnic of Central London or PCL) to rename itself as a university. postgraduate thesis project, and Luke Pearson, for his final undergraduate project submitted in his third year at UCL's Bartlett School of Architecture. Alongside these two design awards, Jess Hrivnak from the University of Cambridge was awarded the President's dissertation prize. With these awards, the real treat for the students was not simply the photo opportunity that celebrated architectural talent, present and future. It was the super-crit that gave all four the opportunity to re-present and discuss their work. In an intimate forum, observed by a small number of invited academics, teachers and critics, all three students presented their work to Ito, and his long-term collaborator, the engineer Cecil Balmond. Jess Hrivnak was the first to face the formidable panel, with a difficult task: to present her 10 000+ word dissertation, entitled, "Is Relative Sustainability Relevant'? By studying Michael Hopkins' restaurant pavilion in St James's Park
St James's Park , she tackled some of the broader issues of sustainability, looking beyond the new catchphrase Noun 1. catchphrase - a phrase that has become a catchword catch phrase phrase - an expression consisting of one or more words forming a grammatical constituent of a sentence to ask how we can quantify what a sustainable building is, and how we can measure a building's impact? Bronze medallist Luke Pearson followed, presenting the rich narrative that accompanied Collingwood's Vessel, his nautical retirement home for elderly fishermen. And Yew Choong Chan wrapped things up, with his distopian vision for London's Lower Lea Valley The Lower Lea Valley is the area surrounding the River Lea (or Lee), which runs along the boundary of the London Boroughs of Tower Hamlets, Waltham Forest and Newham and into the River Thames. (the City's Olympic Village site), where he proposed the world's first Broccoli Power Plant, VEN Ven: see Landskrona, Sweden. (vertical energy). It is hoped that this forum will be repeated in coming years. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] www.presidentsmedals.com |
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