On October 30, in Vienna, the winners of the International VELUX Award (IVA) -2014 were announced, held once every two years at the initiative of the largest manufacturer of roof windows - VELUX. The competition among architecture students has been held regularly since 2004. Any student or a team of students of an architecture university can take part in it with the support of their teacher.
This year the Prize celebrated its tenth anniversary, and the best gift was a huge and growing interest in the event from numerous participants, the professional community and the press. In addition, 2015 has been declared the International Year of Light, with VELUX as a partner. Over the ten years of its existence, the Prize has accumulated more than 4,000 of the most diverse and amazing projects. This year alone, about 800 participants from all over the world applied for participation. More than 90 contestants from Russia also presented their concepts.
The theme of the competition announced this year sounded like "The Light of Tomorrow". Initially, the Prize saw it as its main task to draw the attention of future architects to the active use of sunlight in architecture in the broadest sense - in terms of aesthetics, functionality, sustainability, as well as the correct interaction of the building with the environment. This time, the topic touched not only on the importance of natural lighting for the development of architecture in the future, but also on real political and social issues. That is why many students in their projects paid attention to such world problems as political and armed conflicts, cramped living conditions, sustainable construction in large metropolitan areas with incredibly dense high-rise buildings, where very little sunlight penetrates. And everywhere daylight was used as one of the main tools for improving the quality of life of people. Summing up the results, the jury members admitted that they were amazed at the creative experiments and innovations in the use of light, solar energy and the most modern technologies that the contestants demonstrated this year.
There were twelve winners. The main award and a cash prize of 10 thousand euros were presented to a team of students from China representing Tsinghua University, one of the leading universities in Beijing. The second place was taken by the project of students from Korea Jaebong Jeon and Keunyoung Lim. And the third went to the Bulgarian team from the Sofia University of Architecture, Construction and Geodesy. Two special prizes and seven honorable mentions were also awarded. The total prize fund was 30 thousand euros. All winners were invited to the award ceremony in Vienna, and their projects were published in detail on the pages of professional magazines and on the official website of the competition.
We present all the projects of the winners: First place. Project "Light, Revitalization". Authors: Du Dikang, Li Le, Zhou Yujing, Ma Yao. Teachers: Xin Zhang, Zhou Rong. Tsinghua University, China
The winning project explores the urban development of Beijing, and in particular the Hutongs - areas that have preserved the architecture of ancient China, but are currently undergoing a major transformation, becoming more technological and gradually losing touch with nature. Students emphasize the importance of daylight for modern metropolitan life. It is equally important to return the now lost concept and sense of time, inextricably linked with sunlight. The authors propose to create a system of unusual canopies that protect from intense sunlight from May to August. Their interesting design creates a mesmerizing play of light and shadow on the walls of buildings, which will help to revitalize and fill dull urban areas with light. In narrow corridors of streets, awnings are made in the form of movable gratings. At different times of the day, a slight change in the position of the gratings along with the movement of the sun will create a variety of patterns of light and dark stripes, which throughout the day will report the time, and exactly at noon they will converge into one large luminous ball - like the sun that has penetrated directly into the heart Chinese city.
Second place. Morning Gloria for Korea Unification Project Authors: Jaebong Jeon, Keunyoung Lim. Teacher: Heejune Whang. Hongik University, Hanyang University, South Korea
South Korean students raised the issue of dividing the Korean people into two separate states. Daylight, in their opinion, can become a tool for uniting the nation. The border that runs across the Korean Peninsula, the buffer zone between North and South Korea, now separated by barbed wire, they propose to turn into a string of air clouds. The image is inspired by a rare meteorological event called "morning gloria". It is a special kind of fluffy storm collar-like cloud seen annually in the spring in the Gulf of Carpentaria in northern Australia. "Collar" can reach 1000 km in length and 2 km in height. Something similar, but on a smaller scale, the students proposed to create on the border of the two countries in the hope that the clouds will someday dissipate. To implement this idea, it is proposed to use solar energy. Every day the sun radiates heat, heating the air in special modules. Thanks to this, the so-called "clouds" rise high in the sky during the day, precisely marking the border between the two countries, and at night, illuminating with a soft light, sink closer to the ground.
Third place. Project "Light as Hope" Authors: Snezhina Aleksieva, Zhenya Yancheva, Tsvetomira Ivanova, Pavel Tsochev. Teacher: Plamen Bratkov. University of Architecture, Construction and Geodesy, Bulgaria
The project addresses the problem of refugees with the aim of improving their living conditions in camps in a foreign country. At least 35 million people were forced to leave their home country due to military conflicts, most of them women and children. To arrange the places of their temporary settlement, the authors propose to use an unlimited natural resource - sunlight. With the help of a special luminescent grid stretched over the camp for collecting and storing solar energy, it will be possible to protect people from intense ultraviolet rays during the day, and at night to use the accumulated energy to illuminate the camp area.
Special Prize. The Dance of Light project
Authors: Zhengyu Cheng, Jackie Leong Shong Yong, Zhaoqi Ge, He Huang. Teacher: Gong Dong. Tsinghua University, China
Special Prize. Project "Colors of the Sun"
Authors: Sun Erqi, Yu Xiao, Han Shilin. Teachers: Zheng Ying, Zhang Xinnan, Hu Yike. Tianjin University, China
Honorable Mention
Authors: Huang Haiyang, Bai Jiachen, Min Jiajian. Teacher: Hui Wang. Tsinghua University, China
Honorable Mention
Authors: Vladimir Krastev, Stoicho Stoyev. Teacher: Tsvetomir Germanov. University of Architecture, Construction and Geodesy, Bulgaria
Honorable Mention
Authors: Ping Zhou, Yepeng Zhang, Qianyi Zhang, Tingying Lu, Bonan Zhang. Teachers: Xinnan Zhang. Tianjin University, China
Honorable Mention
Author: Lea Olsson. Teachers: Frans Drewniak, Ingela Larsson, Kennth Warnke. School of Architecture, Denmark
Honorable Mention
Author: Cristiana Brindisi. Teacher: Francesco Leccese. University of Pisa, Italy
Honorable Mention
Authors: Yan Xia, Sijia Li, Wei Meng. Teacher: Yang Yong. Heilongjiang University of Science and Technology, China
Honorable Mention
Authors: Jeremy Upward, Katherine Morawietz, Jessica Lam, Samantha Clark, Suvik Patel. Instructor: Tammy Gaber. Laurentian University, Canada
