New Central Urban Waterfront Space and Main Library (MEDIASPACE)New Central Urban Waterfront Space and Main Library (MEDIASPACE) Open, international, RfP Aarhus, Denmark The contest including negotiated procedure is expected to run from March 2008 to November 2008 SPONSORS: The Municipality of Aarhus TYPE: Open, international, RfP LOCATION: Aarhus, Denmark LANGUAGE: English, Danish TIMETABLE: The contest including negotiated procedure is expected to run from March 2008 to November 2008, the planning stage running from January 2009 to June 2012, and the construction stage from March 2011 and until the opening of MEDIASPACE in December 2014. ELIGIBILITY: Architects, engineers, planners worldwide JURY: Not Announced AWARDS: 5 to 6 participants will be shortlisted. The construction costs of sections 1 + 2 are estimated at approx. EUR 180 million excl. VAT, but including various design costs, while the costs of section 3 are estimated at approx. EUR 20 million excl. VAT, but including various design costs. FEE: None THE COMPETITION: The Municipality of Aarhus launches an international architectural design contest for an integrated design solution for a new urban waterfront space and MEDIASPACE – the new main library of Aarhus, Citizens’ Services and more – a new icon communicating Aarhus as a city of knowledge. It is essential for the Municipality of Aarhus that the designer in all phases of the design process focuses on involvement processes, e.g. involvement of Aarhus City Council, client, citizens, users, employees, building authorities, business community and future tenants. The total overall project comprises three separate design sections: 1. Building design of an 18,000 sqm. MEDIASPACE – Aarhus’ new main library, citizens’ services etc. including 10,000 sqm. of optional area on a future harbour bastion. New urban spaces should be designed on the bastion around MEDIASPACE, while car parking, local trains, arrivals centre etc. should be established in the bastion or in connection hereto. 2. Uncovering of the last part of Aarhus River and modification of the Europaplads (existing town square) as an integrated solution with design of the bastion and MEDIASPACE. 3. Design of an approx. 500 m new urban waterfront that opens the city towards the sea and creates a new urban area for public activity and recreation. The design contest comprises all three project sections (sections 1 + 2, and section 3), however the jury reserves the right to award separate winners of sections 1 + 2 and section 3. The winner(s) will subsequently be invited to participate in a negotiated procedure without prior publication of a contract notice on the conditions stated in Article 31, para 3 of the Directive. If separate winners are awarded for sections 1+2 and section 3, a separate negotiated procedure will be carried out for sections 1+2 as well as for section 3. The entire project is subject to the Aarhus City Council approving the commencement of the contest, the contest result, and the costs of the project. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: http://www.multimediehuset.dk |
Vilnius Railway Station and Public Square Competition 
Vilnius Station competition Image: ©Zaha Hadid Architects
How do you find a common thread that can connect an eclectic collection of buildings, visually as well as physically, all located within a one-block site, located just across from Canada’s Parliament building in Ottawa. To identify this common thread that could tie everything together, the client turned to a design competition for answers. With the aid of consultants, [phase eins] from Berlin and experts from Canada’s’ own Université de Montréal’s School of Architecture, the client turned to an invited international format to finally settle on six teams that could rethink the site. Read More… Ottawa Parliamentary Precinct Renewal Competition 
Culminating in a year’s long process, the winner of the Ottawa Parliamentary Precinct was David Chipperfield Architects, one of the six shortlisted firms designated to participate in the competition. An April 10th viewing of the public presentation of the six finalists was viewed by scores on Facebook. From the impressions gained from that event, it was apparent that Chipperfield and Behnisch were the probable frontrunners. Chipperfield’s presentation emphasized the materiality of their design as a design strategy intended to embrace the architectural context of the precinct. Together with a very straightforward circulation plan, in the end, this had to be a major factor in the jury’s decision. Read more… 
After narrowing the field to three finalists and reviewing their presentations via ZOOM, the competition jury gave the nod to KUTONOTUK of Charlottesville, VA as the winner. The winning team is led by principals, Leena Cho and Matthew Jull, faculty members at the University of Virginia’s School of Architecture. Second place went to FORMA from New York City, and third place was awarded to Lewis Williams with Hudson Architects from Norwich, England. Presentations of all three finalists can be seen here:
https://competitions.org/2022/03/atlantic-beach-nc-boardwalk-design-competition/ Young Architects in Competitions When Competitions and a New Generation of Ideas Elevate Architectural Quality 
by Jean-Pierre Chupin and G. Stanley Collyer
published by Potential Architecture Books, Montreal, Canada 2020
271 illustrations in color and black & white
Available in PDF and eBook formats
ISBN 9781988962047
What do the Vietnam Memorial, the St. Louis Arch, and the Sydney Opera House have in common? These world renowned landmarks were all designed by architects under the age of 40, and in each case they were selected through open competitions. At their best, design competitions can provide a singular opportunity for young and unknown architects to make their mark on the built environment and launch productive, fruitful careers. But what happens when design competitions are engineered to favor the established and experienced practitioners from the very outset? This comprehensive new book written by Jean-Pierre Chupin (Canadian Competitions Catalogue) and Stanley Collyer (COMPETITIONS) highlights for the crucial role competitions have played in fostering the careers of young architects, and makes an argument against the trend of invited competitions and RFQs. The authors take an in-depth look at past competitions won by young architects and planners, and survey the state of competitions through the world on a region by region basis. The end result is a compelling argument for an inclusive approach to conducting international design competitions. Download Young Architects in Competitions for free at the following link: https://crc.umontreal.ca/en/publications-libre-acces/ AL_A Prevails over a Star-studded Cast 
After over a year of planning, the choice of a site, and the establishment of criteria for the staging an international competition for a new concert hall, the process recently culminated in the choice of an architect for the design of the new Philharmonic in Belgrade, Serbia. Once a rather drab, nondescript city under the Tito regime, Belgrade has been reimagining itself to take its place as a major European city, including cultural attractions one might attach to such a claim. Read more… 
Boardwalk photo: Courtesy Atlantic Beach
Boardwalks, especially on oceanfront locations, have a pretty universal look. But how they fit into their local context is another matter. Topography, real estate and commerce all play a role in their function, and to some extent, design. In the case of Miami Beach, it’s primarily a promenade; Brooklyn’s 2.7 mile Coney Island boardwalk stretching all the way to Brighton Beach is a mixture of promenade and commerce, with the latter at both ends. In the case of Atlantic City, it’s mostly about retail.
Read more… 
Winning entry – Hyunjoon Min Architects Office
National Library of Korea Data Preservation Center Competition
Retrofitting existing buildings is nothing new. The abandonment of old factory structures, especially in the northeast of the U.S., has been occurring at a rapid pace ever since those businesses ceased to be profitable in the face of foreign competition. However, in North America, retrofitting those structures has seldom been the subject of a design competition. In Korea, the recent plethora of design competitions for all types of projects has also included several for providing a new life for abandoned buildings. Read more… Countryside Dilemmas – New Rural Planning 
1st Place – ©Tianjin University Team
Planning used to be at the bottom of Chinese students’ lists of design priorities. One western architect, whose firm was at the forefront in the design and implementation of numerous planning projects in China, surmised that planning was an area that received little attention in the university curricula. So when planning for a major metropolitan area has occurred, the Chinese have almost always turned to outside international firms for ideas and implementation. Read more… |
