Central Mosque of PrishtinaClient: Islamic Community of Kosovo Type: open, one-stage, international Location: Prishtina, Kosovo Language: English Fee: 100 EUROS Eligibility: Architects licensed in their country of origin Timetable: 28 December 2012 – Registration deadline 4 January 2013 – Q&A period ends 8 March 2013 – Submission deadline Awards: 1st prize – EUR 25,000 2nd prize – EUR 15,000 3rd prize – EUR 10,000 Jury: TBD Design Challenge: According to the design brief: “1. Distance factor – the area coverage radius. The distance of the residence to the mosque. The radius of the distance of 500 meters has been considered as a rule resulted from Islamic rulings. In case of Prishtina a very large area is uncovered by mosques which shows that the first condition is not fulfilled. 2.The factor of the needed prayer space in the mosque. In Prishtina the overall prayer space of all the mosques in the city is 8064.7 square meters sufficient for 10,189 persons. The municipality of Prishtina having 200 000 inhabitants and assuming a number of 170 000 without the inhabitants of the villages around, we get these results: 16.7 inhabitants per praying place in a mosque. This is disregarding the high frequency of people of other places in the city during the working days. This analysis shows that the city of Prishtina is in an emergent need of constructing new mosques in all the neighborhoods required. A central mosque is also a great need considering the city’s growth which leads to the natural requisite of a new central dominating mosque proportional to the expansion of the city. Project Goals: – The ambition is to aim for building a landmark in the city of Prishtina and an architecture that stands the test of time. – It should be representative on a level worthy of a Central Mosque of the city. – Symbolic expression of Islamic identity and local tradition of the people of Kosovo and expression of the significance by holding the main role. – The building should have a monumental mass and be warm, inviting and attractive at the same time, an open place for all the society. – It should be a place of socialization and education and a place for manifesting the Islamic festivals. – The mosque should be distantly visible based on the fact that mosques belong to the type of central buildings and that the visibility serves for orientation to it. – The mosque should be incorporated into the urban context considering the surrounding built environment. However it should dominate the atmosphere proportionally to its significance as a monumental type of building and its importance in the hierarchy of mosques in the city. – Orientation of the mosque towards the kiblah direction in a quite inappropriate situation where the kiblah wall forms the façade to the boulevard. The mosques entrance should be on the opposite of kiblah wall so the solution for this should be turned into an architectural quality. For more information: Kryesia e Bashkësisë Islame të Republikës së Kosovës BIRK Bajram Kelmendi street, No.84 10 000 Prishtinë, Republic of Kosovo Telephone: +381 38 245 700 Fax: +381 38 245 700 Promoters web page: www.bislame.net Competition web page: www.cmprcompetition.com |
Completed IMEX by Tuck Hinton Architects. Photo courtesy Anecdote
It is not often that we look back to a competition that occurred three decades ago that was also covered in detail by COMPETITIONS (Vol. 4, #4; pp. 14-27). What made the Chattanooga IMAX different back in 1994 was that the article covering that competition was authored by Prof. Marleen Davis, then Dean of the University of Tennessee’s School of Architecture and a member of the jury panel. This was not just a short article, covering the high points of the competition with a few talking points about the winning design. This 4,000+ word document also described in detail the jury’s observations about all the finalists, including the honorable mentions—one of the few times we have gained such a detailed glimpse in this country from the inside of the competition process. Read more… Preparation and Organization of Design Competitions 
[phase 1] Benjamin Hossbach / Christian Lehmhaus / Christine Eichelmann
210 × 230 mm, 192 pp.
over 600 images
softcover
ISBN 978-3-86922-316-2 (English)
ISBN 978-3-86922-240-0 (German)
Dom Publishers
€48 in EU (For price abroad, see below)
Founded in 1998 in Berlin, Phase 1 has been a principal player in the organization and facilitation of design competitions, not only in Germany, but abroad as well. The accomplishments of the firm have been well documented in three volumes—The Architecture of Competitions—beginning in 2i006. Whereas these books mainly focused on the results of the competitions they have administered, the present work, Fundamentals of Competition Management, takes one from the very beginnings of the competition process to its conclusion. The authors envisioned the publication as “three three books in one: one „blue book“ with example projects, one „yellow book“ with statements and the „white book“ with the actual guideline to competition management.”
Although there have been a number of handbooks covering the administration of designcompetitions a study covering the entire process in such detail is a welcome addition to the the literature in this field. As a contribution to this important democratic process that has yielded exceptional design for decades, this volume is not only valid for Europe, but a current overview of the process for those globally who wish to raise the level of design by virtue of a design competition. -Ed Foreign institutions wishing to obtain a copy of the book will recieve a discount to cover the cost of foreign shipping.
To obtain a copy for that offer, go to: [email protected] 
Winning entry by Luca Poian Forms Image ©Filippo Bolognese images
Good design seldom happens in a vacuum. And so it was with an international competition for a new mosque in Preston, U.K. A mid-sized city of 95,000, and located in Lancashire near the west coast and almost equally distant from London and Glasgow, Preston has a storied past, going all the way back to the Romans and the late Middle Ages, where it was the site of significant battles. During the Industrial Revolution, the city prospered, and it was not until after World War II that Preston experienced the British version of the U.S. Rust Belt. In the meantime, the city has experienced an upswing in economic activity, with an unemployment rate of only 3%. Aside from the appearance of new industries, the city has benefitted from the establishment of Central Lancashire University (CLU), which employs over 3,000 faculty and staff, and, as such, is one of the regions major employers. Any new university requires new facilities, and one of the most outstanding examples of this at CLU was the new Student Centre and Plaza, a result of a 2016 RIBA-sponsored competition won by Hawkins/Brown
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 Changdong Station winner – image ©D & B Partners Architects
Whereas international competitions for real projects have become a rarity lately, Korea is a welcome exception. Among the plethora of competition announcements we receive almost weekly, several have ended with foreign firms as winners. But the history of welcoming international participants does go back several years. One notable early example was the Incheon Airport competition, won by Fentress Bradburn Architects (1962-70).
Among the more recent successes of foreign firms was the Busan Opera House competition, won by Snøhetta (2013-) and the Sejong Museum Gardens competition, won by Office OU, Toronto (2016-2023).
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1st Place: Zaha Hadid Architects – night view from river – Render by Negativ
Arriving to board a ferry boat or cruise ship used to be a rather mundane experience. If you had luggage, you might be able to drop it off upon boarding, assuming that the boarding operation was sophisticated enough. In any case, the arrival experience was nothing to look forward to. I recall boarding the SS United States for a trip to Europe in the late 1950s. Arriving at the pier in New York, the only thought any traveler had was to board that ocean liner as soon as possible, find one’s cabin, and start exploring. If you were in New York City and arriving early, a nearby restaurant or cafe would be your best bet while passing time before boarding. Read more… 
Helsinki Central Library, by ALA Architects (2012-2018)
The world has experienced a limited number of open competitions over the past three decades, but even with diminishing numbers, some stand out among projects in their categories that can’t be ignored for the high quality and degree of creativity they revealed. Included among those are several invited competitions that were extraordinary in their efforts to explore new avenues of institutional and museum design. Some might ask why the Vietnam Memorial is not mentioned here. Only included in our list are competitions that were covered by us, beginning in 1990 with COMPETITIONS magazine to the present day. As for what category a project under construction (Science Island), might belong to or fundraising still in progress (San Jose’s Urban Confluence or the Cold War Memorial competition, Wisconsin), we would classify the former as “built” and wait and see what happens with the latter—keeping our fingers crossed for a positive outcome. Read More… 
2023 Teaching and Innovation Farm Lab Graduate Student Honor Award by USC (aerial view)
Architecture at Zero competitions, which focus on the theme, Design Competition for Decarbonization, Equity and Resilience in California, have been supported by numerous California utilities such as Southern California Edison, PG&E, SoCAl Gas, etc., who have recognized the need for better climate solutions in that state as well as globally. Until recently, most of these competitions were based on an ideas only format, with few expectations that any of the winning designs would actually be realized. The anticipated realization of the 2022 and 2023 competitions suggests that some clients are taking these ideas seriously enough to go ahead with realization. Read more… |
