Bustler's Top 10 Architecture & Design Competitions of 2023

Rounding out our look back at the highlights of 2023 on Archinect and Bustler, we have compiled a countdown of the year's most popular competitions.

From the hundreds of architecture and design contests listed here, these were the top 10 competitions based on reader popularity.

1. Iceland Beer Spa

"The Iceland Beer Spa architecture competition presents a unique opportunity for architects and designers to showcase their creativity and innovation in the breathtaking Myvatn lake area of Iceland. Sel Hotel, a family-run establishment with a rich history, is situated right next to the legendary Skútustaðagígar craters, offering a prime location for a groundbreaking multi-purpose facility. The competition seeks to create a landmark destination that reflects the spirit of the region and provides an unforgettable experience for both tourists and locals alike."

2. House of the Future

"For the House of the Future competition, participants are tasked with designing a template for a new-age home for Emirati citizens in Dubai. Run in partnership with The Dubai Government, the jury is searching for innovative projects that use design to refresh the current offerings to locals, bringing them more up-to-date with the architectural aesthetic of the country and its people. Winning entries will be put forward for consideration for construction by Dubai Government, as well as receiving a share of the 250,000 € prize fund."

3. Winter Stations 2024

"Winter Stations is a single-stage international design competition held annually in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Participants are tasked with designing temporary winter art installations which incorporate existing lifeguard towers spaced strategically across the city’s Kew and Woodbine beaches. The structures (not in use in the wintertime) are considered visual anchor points for the installations. As in previous years, Winter Stations intends to build 4-6 winning proposals for a six-week exhibition along the waterfront, funding permitted."

4. JANUS et CIE 2024 Global Student Design Competition

"JANUS et Cie announces its second Global Student Design Competition, celebrating budding talent in the design industry. Collaborating with international design collective RIOS to develop the brief and foundational platform, the goal of the 2024 competition is to create versatile products centered around placemaking, with particular emphasis on the dynamic relationship between pieces—how they cluster, group, and fit together to establish a place for dialogue and community."

5. 2023 Dokdo Guesthouse Design International Competition

"Understand and consider the environment, history and social context of Dokdo, in order to preserve and develop eco-friendly, sustainable designs should be searched and the construction of zero energy smart green home suitable for harsh natural environments to human lives should be designed. This contest intends to find the concept of space for sustainable construction with ecological environment while preserving the natural and ecological environments without damage."

6. Show Garden Competition for Seoul International Garden Show 2024

"The Show Garden Competition for Seoul International Garden Show 2024 is Seoul Metropolitan City’s premier venue for spreading garden culture, introducing new garden design trends, and discovering creative garden designs. We look forward to receiving submissions by garden designers of great calibre."

7. 2024 Lyceum Fellowship - Re-forming The Anthropocene: A Center For Regenerative Building

"The 2024 Lyceum Competition explores the potentially regenerative symbiosis between the inevitable growth of human settlement—our buildings and infrastructure, our towns and cities—and the essential health of our terrestrial ecosystem. The program calls for a new, hybrid building type, a 'maker space' that functions as an essential component of a regional economic and ecological metabolism. The building itself will serve as a model of regenerative design and construction."

8. High School Design for Kharkiv, Ukraine

"The NPO Asian Institute of Low Carbon Design (AILCD) is pleased to invite students and young architects aged under 35 from all over the world to take part in the 13th AILCD International Architecture Design Competition. The theme of this year is 'High School Design for Kharkiv, Ukraine.' The competition addresses the problem of post-war Ukrainian urban planning in Kharkiv, Ukraine. The competition asks the students and young architects to re-design a destroyed educational building and its surrounding area in Kharkiv."

9. International VELUX Award 2024

"The International VELUX Award challenges students to explore ways to harness daylight for the well-being of people who live and work in buildings. The competition encourages thinking ‘outside the box,’ a trait that students tend to excel at. They are offered the opportunity to rethink daylighting design and develop ideas for healthy buildings that decrease energy consumption and increase indoor comfort."

10. Generative Futures: An AI + Architecture Storytelling Challenge

"This competition invites entrants to submit a story comprising text and images responding to one of the following four themes, in any way you may interpret them: 1) The AI-infused city; 2) The AI-infused architecture studio; 3) The AI-infused construction site; 4) Open Category: entrants may define their own theme as it relates to AI and architecture. The setting, plot, tone, and message of this story are up to you. Is it an allegory? A love story? A horror story? A diary entry? A data-driven prediction? This is your chance to reflect on the relationship between bits and atoms, the artificial and natural, the machine and human, and propagate a scenario that can serve as an invitation for your fellow creatives and the general public to ponder: What should the future relationship be between artificial intelligence and the built environment?"

Would you like to contribute competitions, award programs, or calls for submissions that aren't listed on Bustler yet? Send them directly to our team to review. We may include them in our next roundup.

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