by Ya’el Santopinto
Catapulted suddenly into the public eye, Griffintown has become one of Montreal’s most contentious urban treasures. Once an unknown industrial district, the past five years have seen Griffintown evolve into the subject of a media frenzy. This motley fabric of row houses and ruins, warehouses and empty lots, in situ art and ghost ... Read more...by LeeAviv
Over the last century, architects have aimed at incorporating spirituality into the economical advantages of using steel as a structural material in building. From the patterned ornamentation of structural members in the work of Louis Sullivan to the poetic expression of technological advance in the work of Mies van der Rohe to the tectonic ... Read more...by Stanley Collyer

Image: ©Reiser+Umemoto RUR with Fei & Cheng Associates' winning design (model perspective)
Many buildings in close proximity to bodies of water seem to have that joie de vivre about them. Whether it is Sea Ranch, The Bilbao Guggenheim, Oslo Opera House or summer residences in the Hamptons, the proximity of water somehow manages to stimulate designers to produce excitement in a relaxed atmosphere. From the Greek temples to Spas in England, construction of major structures on oceans and rivers was always more likely to reflect modern trends in architecture, rather than simply replicating a style from the past. Recent waterfront projects such as the Yokohama International Port Terminal—a competition won by Foreign Office Architects—and Canada Place in Vancouver are examples of cities recognizing the need to push the envelope when redesigning port terminal facilities. So it was with the results of the Kaohsiung Port and Cruise Service Center competition .
Not only is Kaohsiung a major port facility on the island, it is seen as a major terminal for future water transit to the Chinese mainland. The goal of the competition was to identify a design that will enhance the travel experience of passengers, make it a principal departure destination for cruise ships, and provide recreational opportunities for the local populace. Moreover, it is understood that the new facility should add to the urban vitality of the immediate vicinity.

Aerial view of site
The Site
The entire Harbor site consists of an area measuring 6+ hectares, of which only 2.6 hectares was designated as the competition site for the project’s first phase. As might be expected, the site included two berths for ocean liners. Since the program was quite extensive, the major challenge was to design a facility which would fit well into a rather limited site, but present a friendly face both to the city and from the water.
Similar to many recent international competitions in Taiwan administered by competition adviser, Barry Cheng, this one was conducted in two stages, with five finalists advancing to the second stage for the ultimate prize—an $80M commission. The seven-member jury did have an international flavor, most notably Maximiliano Fuksas (Italy), Hisao Kohyama (Japan), and Hitoshi Abe (USA). During stage two, only six jurors provided comments, as Maximiliano Fuksas could not attend the final session. The five premiated finalists chosen by the first-stage panel and their final rankings after the second stage were:
• First Prize
Reiser+Umemoto RUR Architecture PC, New York, NY
with Fei & Cheng Associates/Philip T.C. Fei, Taiwan
• Second Prize
Asymptote Architecture, New York, NY
with Artech Architects/Kris Yao, Taiwan
• Third Prize
Ricky Liu & Associates Architects+Planners, Taiwan
with Takenaka Corporation/Masahiro Morita, Japan
• Honorable Mention-1
JET Architecture Inc./Edward Kim. Canada
with CXT Architects Inc./Dan Teh, Canada and Archasia Design Group/Sao-You, Taiwan
• Honorable Mention-2
HMC Group Inc. / Raymond Pan, Los Angeles, California
with HOY Architects & Associates/Charles Hsueh, Taiwan
Read more...
St. Francis High School Louisville, KY
(volume 10, number 1 — Spring 2000)
click image to enlarge
click image to enlarge
click image to enlarge
Winning Entry submitted by:
Jon Witte (WW) Cambridge, MA
Bartner, Burdick, Bauer-Nilson
Lexington, KY
click to view larger image
click to view larger image
This finalist entry submitted by:
James Cheng/KZF
Cincinnati, OH
click to view larger image
This finalist entry submitted ... Read more...Wheeling Millennium Plaza Competition
(volume 10, number 1 — Spring 2000)
click to view larger image
1st Prize
Fabian Llonch
with Gisela Vidalle
Manuel Lamboy
Thasitt Ruangeck
click to view larger image
2nd Prize
Lisa Diane Tejeda
Carlos Tejeda
Vincente Garcia Etchegaray
click to view larger image
3rd Prize
Tomasz M. Rybak
Eric Kiellar
Robert Puzio
Yvonne Debski
Read more...Salt Lake City Library Competition
(volume 10, number 2 — Summer 2000)
click here to view larger image
Winning Entry
Moshe Safdie and Associates
with Valentiner Crane
Brunjes Onyon Architects
Somerville, Massachusetts/
Salt Lake City
click here to view larger image
Finalist
Moore Ruble Yudell with Gruen Associates
Eaton Mahoney Associates
Santa Monica, California/
Los Angeles/
Salt Lake City
click ... Read more...San Francisco State University Gateway Competition
(volume 10, number 2 — Summer 2000)
click to view larger image
1st Prize
Julio Cristian Rocha
Portland, Oregon
click to view larger image
2nd Prize
Roberto Gomez
New York, New York
click to view larger image
Honorable Mention
Hugh Hynes
New York, New York
click to view larger image
Honorable Mention
Romano Nickerson
Marcus Webb
Faribault, Minnesota
click to view larger image
Honorable Mention
Michael Eichorn
Riverwoods, Illinois
click to view ... Read more...United Nations World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) – Geneva, Switzerland
(volume 10, number 2 — Summer 2000)
Click here to view larger image
1st Place
Behnisch, Behnisch & Partners
Stuttgart, Germany
Click here to view larger image
2nd Place
Massimiliano Fuksas Architecte
Rome, Italy
Click here to view larger image
3rd Place
Bernard Tschumi Architects
New York, NY
Read more...Denver Civic Center Competition
(volume 10, number 3– Fall 2000)
click to view larger image
1st Place
John Owen Tryba
RNL Design
Denver, Colorado
click to view larger image
Finalist
Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg
Humphries-Poli
Toronto/Denver
click to view larger image
Finalist
Gwathmey Siegel Associates
Gensler
New York/Denver
Read more...Central California History Museum – Fresno, California
(volume 10, number 3– Fall 2000)
click to view larger image
Winning Design
Predock Frane Architects
Venice, California
click to view larger image
Finalists
Stewart Binger Dhaddey
San Francisco, California
click to view larger image
Finalists
Studio E
Atelier 23
San Diego/Paris
click to view larger image
Finalists
MBT Architecture
San Francisco, California
click to view larger image
Finalists
Design Collaborative
Ithaca, New York
Read more...
|

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
Read More
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).
Read more…

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…
|