The Winners!
OFF THE GRID
First Prize Winners
Alexandra and Derrick Bavière, Lou Jeuris
France
Matière à is an architecture studio acting in durable construction since 15 years. Her founder, Alexandra Bavière, thinks that creativity in architecture comes both from observation of the landscape and natural materials, and from sharing ideas with many different people. So this time we crossed our minds with Derrick Bavière, witch is about to open a manufacture of tiny house, wondering together about the goal of those very little constructions, and three young architects present during the summer, all of them coming to re insure the involvement on making their work with kindness for people and environment.
When and how were you first introduced to architecture?
Alexandra Bavière : I first met space in my normal life, living, making sport, Walking into the territories. I met architecture below representations of spaces, and my first wanting was about drawing, spending time at drawing...not only to create but to capture the existent spaces and the moments.
What is your design philosophy?
Alexandra Bavière : I use to cross two things : human needs and nature needs, and I try to make them live together, to create links. For me architecture is about giving the landscape to be lived, seen and touched, while being comfortable.
What does architecture mean to you?
Alexandra Bavière : Architecture has two sides. One is about materials, details, structure, a kind of anatomy. The other is about meaning, purpose. Architecture gets meaning when it comes to tell a story to people without talking, when the details become poetics and touch you directly. Then it can be strong enough to support life.
Briefly explain your design process and your perspective on the role of sustainable architecture.
Alexandra Bavière : We first spend a lot of time on the sites, getting to know their structure, colors, strength, and specificity, most often with a landscaper. Then we talk collectively about what we would like to explore in the project, il can be with specialists, or with inhabitants, to get the Ame of the project. Then we make a study scale model of the site, and look for local bio-based materials yet used, new or recycled. At the end of this kind of workshop, we propose an implantation, witch is often the central idea, as it traduces the going together of architecture and landscape. When it is done, we look for right volumes, taking care about bio-climatic reasons and local architecture. Then a second dialogue is coming with a heating engineer, to size precisely the envelop of the project. Then we could say everything is done even if it is only the outline project, as everything next is only about details, but the initial strength is born.
Second Prize Winners
Samuel Bernier-Lavigne, Antoine-Étienne Gélinas-Michel & Maurane Paradis
Canada
Samuel Bernier-Lavigne, professor, and director of the xFab, a research group on digital architecture and fabrication at Laval UniversitySchool of Architecture, in Québec, Canada.
Antoine-Étienne Gélinas-Michel, M.Arch + M.Sc student atLaval UniversitySchool of Architecture, and member of the xFab research group.
Maurane Paradis, M.Arch + M.Sc student at Laval UniversitySchool of Architecture, and member of the xFab research group.
When and how were you first introduced to architecture?
Without talking about a precise moment, we think that architecture is something that shapes the human experience from childhood. Sometimes, it seems difficult to dissociate constructs and imaginary. Architecture is essentially an unconscious experience in the sense that it induces a lot of images and reminiscence of the past.
We are of those who believe that we are made of the people we meet. Whether with teachers or mentors and friends at school, our conscious experiences have awoken our curiosity and sensibility to architecture. It is through these discussions that our personal vision of architecture evolves.
What is your design philosophy?
Our design philosophy revolves around new technologies, and their potential to change our approach to the design and fabrication of architecture.
We are interested in seeing how, for example, digital concepts and tools - ranging from parametric design to artificial intelligence - can help us explore new approaches to the design of architectural spaces, as well as allowing us to materialize these experiments by expanding the usual methods of construction with digital fabrication.
At the same time, we realize that these concepts allow us to return to some fundamental questions about architecture, and thus create a dialogue with its history.We try to find a common ground between these two poles in order togenerate innovation in architecture.
What does architecture mean to you?
Architecture is not just the art of construction; it is also an intellectual discipline, a world of curiosity. It does not mean the end, but the beginning of something while having the power to ask questions.
Architecture is creating a place, whether real, virtual or latent. It is an opportunity to meet. Space at the time of multiple realities and evanescent forms.
Briefly explain your design process
The project explores the architectural potential of an “off the grid” home, with less than 37 square-meter of inhabitable space. We are locating the project in an abandoned white granite quarry in the center of Vermont, in Graniteville. The generative process of the project is inspired by the way granite blocks are extracted from the cliffs and then split in pieces for export. Thus, we divided the dwelling into different rooms, each corresponding to an essential function of the house, aiming to develop spaces that can offer a rich architectural and spatial experience. By positioning the small rooms on the site, we aimed to take possession of the quarry’s territory and generate by this idea many exterior spaces, counterbalancing the area limitation imposed on the interior. The organization of functions is articulated around the concept of heat, positioning the main fire of the kitchen as an anchor to the project. Our project thus proposes a post-anthropocene vision, by committing to bring life back to an industrial place of the past.
The idea for the material process of the project resides in an ecological approach of reusing what is abundantly available in the quarry. Thus, we use the white granite waste, crushing it to make a cement paste similar to concrete. This paste is then conveyed by a pump to a robotic arm - the only element related to the construction brought by man on the site - which allows us to 3d print at large scale the different fragments of the project. For the assembly, a crane is already available on the site, which was used in the past to move the rocks in the quarry. The fragments are placed one on top of the other to concretize the inhabitable spaces, bringing the experience of the stratum – highly present in the quarry - to the scale of the materiality of the project.
In addition to the domestic spaces, we designed water retention basins, gardens, a green wall and relaxation spaces, oriented along the main axis of the project, generating variations in the progressive sequence of the project.
Third Prize Winners
Kavya Ramakrishnan & Prerana Mohanty
India
Kavya Ramakrishnan:
My name is Kavya Ramakrishnan. I am doing my Bachelor’s in Architecture at Vivekanand Education Society, College of Architecture. I am currently in my second year of the degree course.
Prerana Mohanty:
My name is Prerana Mohanty. I am doing my Bachelor’s in Architecture in Vivekanand Education Society, College of Architecture. I am currently in my second year of the degree course.
What is your design philosophy?
Our design philosophy revolves around creating spaces after understanding cultural sensibilities. Our main focus is on creating structures that are sustainable in material aspects and that respect the contexts and the history of the place.
When and how were you first introduced to architecture?
KR: I was introduced to Architecture before starting my Bachelor’s. I was interested in how the different scales and forms interacted with the environment around them.
PM: I was introduced to Architecture only after starting my Bachelors. But I think I had the general idea of what it would be only in terms of aesthetics.
What does architecture mean to you?
KR: Architecture for me is like an emotional containment. It has the potential to influence our mood and perceptions through light, geometry, and the materials used.
PM: Architecture is a means of service for me. Only when we understand the user’s needs and wants can we create a good structure.
Briefly explain your design process and your perspective on the role of sustainable architecture.
From the start, we were inclined to use sustainability as a way of communicating through our design. As we were complete beginners to design, we went for a simple and organic form that blends with the contours in the site.
We wanted to maximize the use of every space in our design, so we decided to make the roof as the main highlight of the design by making it a semi-private space to walk on.
The design of this house was about a family’s search for a house that would allow them to use it in today’s world, to feel free and rooted in the land.
Special mention
Honorable mention
Hsiang Ting Huang
Aparupa Saha & Kirti Dvivedi
Aditi Raj, Tapan Kumar Sabar & Sparsh Ruhela
Hsiang Ting Huang
United States
Aparupa Saha & Kirti Dvivedi
India
Aditi Raj, Tapan Kumar Sabar & Sparsh Ruhela
India
