Vertical Zoo in Puerto Madero Competition

Sponsor: Arquitectum

Type: open, international, 1-stage

Language: English

Eligibility: students (under the direction of an architect) and professionals, individuals and teams of 6 members at most

Registration fee:
$100 – August 10 -31
$150 – September 1 – October 5
$200 – October 6 – November 2

Awards:
1st Prize – $3,000
2nd Prize – $1,000

Timetable:
7 October, 2009 – final day for receipt of queries
2 November, 2009 – registration and submission deadline
24 November, 2009 – winners announced

Jury:
Clorindo Testa, architect
Marcelo Vila, architect
Oscar Soler, architect
Tomas Dagnino, architect

Design Challenge:
This innovative zoological park will be located at the Costanera Sur Ecological Reserve behind the center of Puerto Madero and just a few blocks from the Government House (Casa Rosada). The project should take the form of an identifiable vertical element which seeks to establish itself as a landmark, imposing its presence within the context of the horizontal horizon of the reserve and observable to those who use the river, in the same way that the high residential tower blocks feature on the city’s edge but, as a consequence of the project’s function, in a natural and organic manner. This vertical element at least 100 meters high should be versatile enough to house a number of distinct functions related to education and recreation, as well as functioning as a home for the animals and the administrative services associated with the running of a zoo. However, competitors remain free to produce totally experimental projects which address extremes as diverse as the subordination of architecture to the urban and natural profile or the creation of a new model designed to serve as a way of redefining the idea of what is “monumental” in the context of the debate between the urban and the scenic.

For more information, go to: http://www.arquitectum.com/index.php