Design a coffee shop at the base of an Icelandic volcano. Iceland Volcano Coffee Shop competition is launched!

Hverfjall in northern Iceland is what’s known as a “tuff ring” volcano or a tephra cone volcano. Located east of the volcanic Lake Mývatn, Hverfjall’s volcanic explosion crater is 1 km wide and approximately 140 meters deep. It is a popular hiking destination where visitors can easily access many parts of the crater via public hiking trails which can reach up to 200 meters in height.

Believed to have been created during a volcano eruption, Hverfjall is almost perfectly symmetrical, with a slight variation at the site of a landslide which took place several years ago. Its dark, captivating colours make it a popular tourist attraction and photography spot, and the site is protected, meaning visitors can only use the two approved hiking trails to access the crater, with all other areas restricted.

For the Iceland Volcano Coffee Shop competition, Bee Breeders architecture competition organisers have partnered with Landeigendur Voga ehf (Landowners of Vogar farmland) as part of a series of competitions based in Iceland. For this competition, architects and architecture enthusiasts are called to submit designs for a coffee shop that would be located at the base of the Hverfjall volcano. The new coffee shop will replace an existing visitors centre and would need to include facilities for a new visitor centre and a small exhibition room that would give visitors information about the volcano’s history.

Winning designs will be put forward for construction, so they should strike a balance of practical ideas and creative design that is sustainable, unique, and in keeping with the landscape. 

PRIZES

3 winning proposals, 3 special award recipients and 6 honourable mentions will be selected. Bee Breeders will award a total of 10,000 € in prize money to competition winners as follows:

1st Prize - 5,000 €
2nd Prize - 2,000 €
3rd Prize - 1,000 €

Landeigendur Voga ehf Favorite Award - 1,000 €

ARCHHIVE Student Award - 500 € + 50 € gift card at ARCHHIVE BOOKS
AAPPAREL Sustainability Award - 500 € + 50 € AAPPAREL.com Gift Card

+ 6 honourable mentions

Left – Aerial view of Hverfjall crater. Right – Northern Lights, Mývatn, Iceland

Hverfjall volcano crater is almost perfectly symmetrical

Iceland Volcano Coffee Shop competition site

COMPETITION SCHEDULE

Early Bird Registration:  NOVEMBER 15 - DECEMBER 7
Advance Registration: DECEMBER 8 – JANUARY 26
Last Minute Registration: JANUARY 27 – APRIL 20

Final registration deadline: APRIL 20, 2022
Closing date for submission: MAY 25, 2022 (11:59 p.m. GMT)
Announcement of the winners: JULY 6, 2022

More: architecturecompetitions.com/volcanocoffeeshop/