Commonwealth Association of Architects student competition.The Commonwealth Association of Architects triennial tri·en·ni·al adj. 1. Occurring every third year. 2. Lasting three years. n. 1. A third anniversary. 2. A ceremony or celebration occurring every three years. student competition was judged earlier this year in Bloemfontein, South Africa South Africa, Afrikaans Suid-Afrika, officially Republic of South Africa, republic (2005 est. pop. 44,344,000), 471,442 sq mi (1,221,037 sq km), S Africa. . A record of 222 entires from all over the British Commonwealth offered great range and variety. Jury chairman Peter Davey reports. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The jury (*) was impressed by the range and variety of the 222 submissions from all over the world which were entered for the competition to design a house for a writer. The number of entries was a record. Most students had thought very carefully about site and climatic conditions, local culture and principles of sustainability. Almost all entrants had carefully considered the needs and character of the author for whom they had decided to work, and most showed an interest in literature unusual in a notoriously ill-read profession. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] As a jury, we were (in the end) unanimous in our choice of the first, second and third prizes, and in selection of the best submission from a student in the first or second years. Honorary mentions have been made of entries to which we were unable to give a prize, though they were impressive and often inventive. All prize-winning and mentioned projects are, in very different ways, examples of placemaking and attempts to live in harmony with the planet. Shown here are all the premiated schemes with the jury's comments. * Phillip Kungu (Commonwealth Association of Architects President, Kenya) Patrick Stanigar (architect, Jamaica) Mira Fassler-Kamstra (architect, South Africa) Peter Davey (jury chairman and Editor of The Architectural Review The Architectural Review is a monthly international architectural magazine published in London since 1896. Articles cover the built environment which includes landscape, building design, interior design and urbanism as well as theory of these subjects. , United Kingdom) First prize ([pounds sterling]1200): Henry Williams
The project is executed with great simplicity and clarity. It has an extraordinary sensitive relationship to its site, rolling downland A downland is an area of open chalk hills. This term is especially used to describe the chalk countryside in southern England. Areas of downland are often referred to as Downs. studded with tress. Sensuous links between writer and the surrounding grassland grassland see grazing (2), pasture. were very carefully considered, with the house partly dug into the slope, so that desk and grass seem to grow together. It would undoubtedly be a calm and tranquil place to work in. The work is very well detailed and beautifully drawn, so the textures and almost the smell of the materials are forcibly projected from the boards. It is always difficult to present the spatial, lummous and tectonic qualities of a minimalist design on paper in two dimensions yet the entrant has managed to do so admirably. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Second prize ([pounds sterling]500) and group work prize ([pounds sterling]200): Ujjval Panchal + Sachin Soni, fifth year, School of Architecture CEPT CEPT - Comite Europeen des Postes et Telecommunications Ahmedabad, India In contrast to the rural setting of the first prize winning project (and indeed the majority of entries), the authors of the second prize winning scheme chose to reinterpret re·in·ter·pret tr.v. re·in·ter·pret·ed, re·in·ter·pret·ing, re·in·ter·prets To interpret again or anew. re the dense texture of old Ahmedabad. The scheme takes its form from the traditional tenement A comprehensive legal term for any type of property of a permanent nature—including land, houses, and other buildings as well as rights attaching thereto, such as the right to collect rent. , Illuminated and ventilated ven·ti·late tr.v. ven·ti·lat·ed, ven·ti·lat·ing, ven·ti·lates 1. To admit fresh air into (a mine, for example) to replace stale or noxious air. 2. by chowks, light wells penetrating the mass of the building. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The jury was convinced by the excellent arguments for the design, and by the way in which the chowk In Hindi-Urdu, a chowk is a place where paths intersect.
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Commended scheme Prize for entrant in first or second year ([pounds sterling]200): Stephen Lammas, second year, Unitech School of Architecture, Auckland, New Zealand New Zealand (zē`lənd), island country (2005 est. pop. 4,035,000), 104,454 sq mi (270,534 sq km), in the S Pacific Ocean, over 1,000 mi (1,600 km) SE of Australia. The capital is Wellington; the largest city and leading port is Auckland. The affinity of this project to its magnificent site was thought by the jury to be exceptional. The brief was clearly and economically interpreted. Yet the design is far from minimalist, and it would undoubtedly provide a series of small but very varied and stimulating spaces for an active and fit writer. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Jury members were impressed in general by the number and quality of entries from first and second year students, so this prize was won against stiff competition. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Third prize ([pounds sterling]200): Vongai P. P. Pasirayi, third year, National University of Science and Technology, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe The jury was impressed by the spatial and luminous qualities of the third prize-winning project. It offers both comfort and calm, and a great experiential range within a small compass. Relationships of interior spaces to the beautiful site were particularly well considered. The brief was carefully and inventively interpreted. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] But some jury members had reservations about the external appearance of the house which, they thought, seemed naive and clumsy. Nevertheless, the house would undoubtedly create a real and stimulating sense of place. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] |
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