World Architecture Festival 2017 Day One winners announced

It's finally go-time for the World Architecture Festival 2017. Taking place in Berlin for its 10th edition, the competition reeled in a whopping 924 project submissions from architects across the globe, and the shortlist was revealed this past July. The winners of the inaugural WAFX Prize for innovative design concepts were announced last month.

Every year, some 2,000 architects and enthusiasts flock to the global event to watch the live WAF competition unfold before their eyes. Day One just wrapped up with the announcement of the category winners. Have a look at them below. Once the Day Two winners are revealed tomorrow, all the category winners will go on to compete for the overall-winning World Building of the Year 2017 award.

House - Completed Buildings Winner: Vo Trong Nghia Architects, Binh House, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

The house serves as a multigenerational family home and sets a new benchmark for dense urban living. Architecturally the house draws on a strong modernist tradition.

School - Completed Buildings Winner: Andrew Burges Architects, East Sydney Early Learning Centre, Sydney, Australia

East Sydney Early Learning Centre: an adaptive re-use of an existing 1920s industrial building which houses both a childcare and community centre. The judges described the project as an incredibly creative and well resolved rehabilitation building creating a mini city within an existing structure.

Housing - Completed Buildings Winner: Marc Koehler Architects, Superlofts Houthaven, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Engaging residents was a key aspect of this scheme which is a new co-housing concept developed by Mark Koehler Architects creating a global network of local building co-operatives.

Production, Energy & Recycling - Completed Buildings Winner: Slash Architects and Arkizon Architects, The Farm of 38-30, Afyonkarahisar, Turkey

The simple and sophisticated design, detailing and execution was deemed to be “beautifully expressed” by judges, who commended the Turkish project for “public and private experiences that are very well integrated.”

Sport - Completed Buildings Winner: HKS, U.S. Bank Stadium, Minneapolis, United States of America

This project provides a great venue for sporting and cultural events, while also offering plazas, parks and an observation platform connecting with the surrounding urban environment and which can be used all year-round.

Civic & Community - Completed Buildings Winner: Eriksson Furunes + Leandro V. Locsin Partners, Streetlight Tagpuro, Tacloban, Philippines

Alexander Eriksson Furunes was invited back together with his two partners Sudarshan Khadka and Jago Boase to rebuild the NGO Streetlight’s office, orphanage and study center after the original premises were devastated by Typhoon Haiyan in 2013.

Competition Entries - Future Projects Winner: Pilbrow & Partners, New Cyprus Archaeological Museum, Nicosia, Cyprus

The architects conceived the museum as a floating deck set atop a hill offering views and protecting the archeological site below.The elevated deck and concrete veranda enable a dialogue with the archeological remains below and the judges praised the versatility and simplicity of the design.

Culture - Completed Buildings Winner: Heneghan Peng Architects, The Palestinian Museum, Birzeit, Palestine

This limestone clad museum is situated on the campus of Beret University, near Ramallah on the West Bank. The judging panel commended Heneghan Peng for “working with the contours of Palestine. Described as a “fragile terrain”, the architects have made a museum without a collection. Like the place and culture where it is situated, this building will define its purpose over time”.

Office - Future Projects Winner: Vo Trong Nghia Architects, Viettel offsite studio, Hanoi, Vietnam

The Vietnamese Communication Group’s new studio is located on a slight slope between a lake and treelined landscape on the outskirts of Hanoi. The six V-shaped wall-blocks which were freely arranged follow the lay of land and are connected by an open corridor.

Civic - Future Projects Winner: edgeARCH, Consulate Building, Staff Housing & School Complex, Karachi, Pakistan

Judges praised the practice for the project’s “clear conceptual logic and civic presence”, commenting that it “will hopefully act as a paradigm for a new and more enlightened consular typology.”

Infrastructure - Future Projects Winner: Sanjay Puri Architects, The Bridge, Ras, India

Judges were impressed with the approach to local tradition of brick making, expressed in this project in a very contemporary way. 

Office - Completed Buildings Winner: Nikken Sekkei, Co Op Kyosai Plaza, Tokyo, Japan

Located in Tokyo, judges said the building “demonstrates many exemplary innovations. Motivated by climate change and environmental responsibility, the building represents a holistic response from planning down to final details.”

New & Old - Completed Buildings Winner: The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Post-earthquake reconstruction/demonstration project of Guangming Village, Zhaotong, China

The judges were impressed by the project’s huge ambition to offer extraordinary hope and promise to disaster communities. 

Experimental - Future Projects Winner: 3deluxe Transdisciplinary Design, Sharjah Observatory, Mleiha National Park, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates

Located on the edge of Mleiha National Desert Park in the UAE, this project was designed to withstand extreme weather conditions and reinterprets the geometry of a local rock.

Leisure Led Development - Future Projects Winner: Tabanlioglu Architects, Bodrum Loft, Bodrum, Turkey

The judges commended the architects’ understanding of the challenging site and historical context. The design minimises the building’s footprint through the careful arrangement of social and private spaces. 

Health - Future Projects Winner: Magi Design Studio, Desa Semesta, Bogor, Indonesia

Desa Semester is a philanthropic rehabilitation center focusing on the final stage of full mental health recovery. According to the judges, the architecture of Indonesian practice Magi Design Studio shows a strong sense of social and environmental responsibility, with the existing terrain and trees being preserved without compromising the architecture. The center is accessible via a perforated bridge.

cover image: Display - Completed Buildings Winner: Alison Brooks Architects, The Smile, London, United Kingdom

Designed as a temporary installation for the London Design Festival, the judges described The Smile as a small build with a big impact, a simple and powerful concept which overcomes big technical challenges to deliver a delightful installation.

All images courtesy World Architecture Festival 2017.