SETTING THE COURSE!

What is the role of architectural prizes in shaping the debate on what is good architecture and how does this influence architectural practice?

Cultural Context Essay by Nouha Hansen

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Personal Development – preliminary reflection

The Cultural Context module this semester has offered a great opportunity to explore the meaning and the effect of architecture in different terms - visual, social, political, technological, historical and cultural.

Since I embarked on this journey, I have understood how important the communication of architectural ideas and discussions is both within the profession and to the general public. These discussions and good practice examples that have been put to the forefront by professional and public media have set the course for the architectural profession and are opening the public’s eyes to what good architecture can give their everyday lives and surroundings. This broad engagement of opinions and approaches has the potential to boost a more responsive and meaningful architecture that employs new methods and techniques and that is more able to contribute to better place making while engaging the users/society in an effective way.

Through this essay, I would like to get a closer understanding of the role of architectural prizes and their real significance as they are important forums for communicating and discussing concepts and ideas that are considered by professional bodies and leading architects as best examples on good architecture, and their influence on architectural practice.

I have chosen this subject, which is completely new to me as it would hopefully enrich my understanding of the role of communication in architecture and answer my growing interest in this subject. Adapting my studio’s view of always being encouraged to raise questions to the conventional way of doing and understanding projects and contexts, I wish to study how opinions on architecture are influenced by awards and how they reflect in the practice.

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Setting the course!

What is the role of architectural prizes in shaping the debate of what is good architecture and how does this influence architectural practise?

Until few decades ago, architectural debate and architectural criticism had often taken place within the architectural sphere and the elites without engaging the society at large. Moving towards more communicative approaches and engagement of the public and users in different societal fields since the end of the 1960’ies has prompted an increasing concern within the architectural profession for what good architecture is and how architecture is received by the public.

Architectural awards have been established in this context to demonstrate what good architecture is, and to point to flagships in the profession that can raise both architects’ awareness and public awareness, motivating hereby better practice. The content and the judging criteria of the architectural awards have evolved over time in parallel with new emerging architectural discourses like sustainability in architecture.

This essay explores the extent architectural prizes have influenced architectural discourse and practice, encouraged more innovative and progressive architecture and communicated architecture to the broader society.

The prize-scape

Each year several architectural prizes are awarded worldwide and increasingly to different types of projects ranging from one building to masterplans and revitalisation projects. There are also prizes awarded to architects for their lifetime achievements, nationally or internationally encouraging architects to compete towards better architectural works. Winners are promoted, and awarded works are broadcasted through specialised architectural and non-specialised public media transferring winning architectural ideals to a wide group of society.

To examine the role of architectural prizes more closely we will look at two cases: the USA Pritzker Prize and the Royal Institute of British Architects’ (RIBA) Stirling prize. Both prizes are regarded as very prestigious in the architectural sphere.

Promoting certain aspects of architecture – The Pritzker Prize

The Pritzker Prize is awarded by its giver, the Hyatt Foundation, for lifetime achievement for built work placing focus on the talent of architects, their visions, commitment and contribution to humanity and the built environment. The Chicagoan Pritzker family, owners of the Hyatt businesses, who were inspired by their fast-growing surroundings, recognized and experienced the effect of architecture on human and human behaviour. Therefore, they founded the Pritzker Prize with the same grandeur and model of the Nobel prize to be greatly influential in the field.

The multidisciplinary jury reflects strong interest in targeting a broader perspective on architecture responding to the Pritzker’s wish to expand the audience of architecture. This jury is continuously renewed to include new members recognized

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in their fields among others past Pritzker Prize laureates. About the influence of the prize and the year 2013’s winner, Toyo Ito, jury member, member of US supreme court justice Stephen Breyer said: “Toyo Ito’s architecture has improved the quality of public and private spaces. It has inspired many architects, critics and members of the general public alike.” (Lang, 2013)

With the increasing interest for community-aware work, the humanitarian architectural works of the two recent laureates Toyo Ito (2013) and Shigeru Ban (2014) have been showcased as part of their lifetime achievements. In particular, the works of Toyo Ito on designing shelters for the Philippines, which was hit by a typhoon have been highlighted by the jury as a significant contribution, while Shigeru Ban was mentioned for his great contributions to education. The works of Ito and Ban have raised architects’ and the public awareness of the role of architects and architecture in new areas that had not earlier been considered as prestigious or as “icon architecture”. This includes humanitarian work related to constructing shelters and making first help camps in times of disasters, and the importance of earnestly engaging with the community.

The sincerity of Shigeru Ban’s humanitarian work and the messages he sends out to the world through his new experimenting, egalitarian architecture stand out when materials are used equally experimentally in both the humanitarian projects he has been engaged with and the commissioned projects. For example, Ban explores paper log structures in the shelters in the Philippines and the cardboard cathedral in New Zealand after the original church was destroyed in an earthquake. The results are highly sensible spaces that appeal to senses and that elicit feelings of relief.

The media helped that the significance of these works reached the wider public. The New York Times commented the innovative work of Shigeru Ban which uses simple materials saying “Architecture generally involves creating monuments to permanence from substantial materials like steel and concrete. Yet this year, the discipline’s top award is going to a man who is best known for making temporary housing out of

Ill. 1 The log house, Philippines. Ill. 2 Christchurch, New Zealand.

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transient materials like paper tubes and plastic beer crates.” (Pogrebin, 2014). This has certainly reinforced a new idea within the public, that “good architecture” can be attributed to new types of projects with new contents, targets and materials, and that architects have much to give to society solving problems and making better places at all levels and in all times.

Encouraging innovative architecture, the RIBA Stirling prize

A negative attitude towards modern architecture prevailed in Britain in the post-war period, and British architecture seemed to be stuck until the 1960’ies in the shapes and forms and lessons that dominated three decades before despite advance in other societal and technological fields. The 1970’ies made Britain more aware of the importance of breaking this pattern and to boost the architectural field during a growing economic climate. Therefore, RIBA’s focus on new experimental architecture that can boost the profession in the UK and brand the UK as an innovation leader in the field of architecture was growing (The Brits Who Built the Modern World, current exhibition in RIBA).

This encouraged the RIBA, which has the overview on British architecture to establish the Building of the Year Award. This award was replaced in 1988 by the RIBA Stirling Prize placing more focus on projects that demonstrate innovation, experimentation and excellence regardless architectural styles and that showcase and brand British architecture internationally placing British architecture on the world map. The judging parameters of the Stirling Prize have increasingly focused on sustainability and innovation.

The award is a strong symbol of professional recognition, branding architects, achievements and places. It has a stronger influence than single and spread architectural competitions’ awards as it is awarded on a systematic basis by the RIBA, the highest professional body in Britain, and the organ that have the broader overview of architecture practice and architectural education. Furthermore, the news of awarded projects have a strong outreach through the greatly influential public media that cooperate with the RIBA, like the BBC. The award is a direct incitement to architects with its £20,000 cash prize.

Reaching the public

The RIBA’s efforts for communicating architecture and opening up for an architectural debate with the public have been strengthened through working together with the BBC. This very important media channel has for example broadcasted the Stirling Award Ceremony for nearly a decade up until 2012 and three documentary episodes of “The Brits who Built the Modern World” exhibition, which currently runs in the RIBA.

Not only did the BBC, which is a highly influential public media and international, communicate the winner and the content of the awarded project to the public but it was also a channel that revealed the opinion of the general public. When the BBC set up a poll for the 2013 Stirling Prize on their website, it was a timely coincidence that the winner of the poll ‘The Astley Castle’ was the same winner of

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the award. “It was a very surprising winner but it was one that will appeal both to the public and the profession alike” the deputy editor of The Architect’s Journal Rory Olcayto said (Clark, 2013).

The Astley Castle project by Witherford Watson Mann Architects, which was praised by both RIBA and the public is a renovation of a grade II* listed castle from the 16th century. The renovation integrates the ruins of the castle in the life of the holiday house through a timber structure and continues the old walls with new elegant brick walls. The project was commented by the RIBA to be a template for coming renovation works in the UK.

The year before, in 2012, the Sainsbury Laboratory in University of Cambridge by Stanton Williams won the Stirling prize. The project was specially praised for the relation between the research facilities and the surrounding botanical garden and environmental sustainability and the way the building provides many different informal meeting spaces for the exchange of ideas amongst researchers. The project raises awareness about work environment and introduces a new typography, a laboratory, to the scene of interesting sensitive spaces thus

RIBA’s continuous efforts and the awards, along with other awards, have influenced the debate, the practice and the architectural education in Britain. The awarded projects have also an international influence directly and indirectly through architectural offices in Britain - many of which have overseas projects - transferring Great Britain’s architectural visions, ideas and technical excellence worldwide.

Ill. 3 & 4 The Astley Castle facade and interior. Ill. 5 The Sainsbury Laboratory.

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10 recent RIBA Stirling Prize WinnersFrom top left: Ill. 6 The Gherkin (2004). Ill 7 The Scottish Parliament (2005). Ill. 8 Madrid Barajas Airport (2006). Ill 8 Marbach Museum of Modern Literature (2007). Ill. 9 Accordia (2008). Ill. 10 Maggie’s Centre (2009). Ill. 11 MAXXI National Museum (2010). Ill. 12 Evelyn Grace Academy (2011) and the Sainsbury Laboratory (2011) and Astley Castle (2012).

Let us adventure new products of architecture

The prizes have promoted very important aspects of architecture with regards to aesthetics, sustainability, technology and function. Nevertheless, my analysis of the awarded projects in the last ten years reveals that the shortlisted and winning projects are mostly prestigious, monumental one-building projects that become icons and brands for their places.

There is a wide range of excellent projects that is absent from the award scene. I miss seeing projects that have very intense ideas in relation to user experience and profound sensibility. We need more projects that rethink the brief and question the conventional in order to explore new lifestyles and rethink functions and engage with the community in such a way that they become part of their contexts instead of simply relating to them.

An interesting example that we were presented to in a lecture in our faculty, is Teatro Oficina in São Paulo by the Brazilian architect Lina Bobardi. The theatre, which is a long and narrow building, brings in street elements as scaffolding, tress and found objects. The theatre itself has no hierarchical subdivisions; all functions, including front-of-house and back-of-house, and acting and technical roles exists and are performed in the long narrow theatre space. Thus the project explores a notion

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of architecture as the scene for the performance of everyday life and eliminates the boundary between performance, audience and city life.

Another example is the Soe Ker Tie Hias, (the butterfly houses) in Thailand for Karen refugee orphans, which has been awarded as the social justice winner 2010 by Earth Awards. The houses, which are built with local materials and building techniques, give the young refugees a sense of home and create a strong supportive community environment with a range of different spaces for learning, playing and relaxing. There is especially focus on the playing as it is a necessity for recovering from the trauma the refuges have been through.

While several awards have appeared worldwide rewarding different aspects of architecture including developmental, egalitarian, and community-based, it would be very beneficial if the powerful awards with the widest publicity would award these types of architectural projects as well as to communicate the projects as flagships reaching a broader scope of the profession and encouraging them to get involved in humanitarian architecture and showing how architecture can living standards and lifestyles by design. Taking advantage of the awards’ signal-boost effect, these types of projects would serve as great inspiration for architects when dealing with specific places contributing, therefore, more advantages to local communities. It could also serve as a driving force in creating identities for less branded areas improving their overall quality.

For example, RIBA focussing on awarding certain types of projects reinforce the idea of architecture as monumental buildings. Extending the interest field of the award would meet the RIBA’s goals of architecture being increasingly commissioned, created and owned by the wider community (Althorpe, 2014).

As the built environment of our cities is not the production of a single architect, we will still need to understand and assess how the collective works of architects, those awarded and those who are not, those who built the city over history and those who live today, would all together contribute to better places for

Ill. 13 Teatro Oficina interior. Ill. 14 Teatro Oficina facade. Ill. 15 Butterfly Houses

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work, living and leisure. I do believe, however, that promoting good architecture and communicating ambitious and new architectural ideas would prompt better practice.

Conclusion

Architectural awards inspire new experimental and innovative directions to architecture within the practice, promote examples of good practice, and serve as an incentive for innovation.

The awards are opportunities to open a public debate on architecture, engaging the wider community in brainstorming on the persistent question of what good architecture is. They are good means for promoting new architectural ideas, approaches and methods and for emphasising the important role of architects and architecture.

Therefore, extending awards to new types of projects that look into new areas of experimentation and society engagement is capable of bringing many advantages to the architectural practice and education and to the built environment and society.

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Personal Development – reflective conclusion

The process of writing the essay has been very eye opening. On the one hand, I learned to research open-mindedly seeking new information and different viewpoints, and on the other hand using my research in exploring my question dialectically.

Writing the essay has enhanced my interest in the role of the architect and the necessity of architects being committed to deliver meaningful architecture that can respond to changing lifestyles and needs, and use potentials in the best ways. It has emphasised the importance of communicating good architecture and architectural ideas as well as lessons to learn.

The prizes have certainly influenced education as they are awarded by professional bodies and leading architects. However, through my studies in studio 1, I was introduced to new types of projects that even though not awarded have in terms of contents and response to their surroundings and new thinking a significant value that merits putting them to the forefront. This made me reflect on awarded projects and conclude that awards should include a wider spectrum of experimenting projects. For example they should communicate projects that experiment with new lifestyles, inclusiveness, and the transformation of cities including urban compositions and revitalization and that engage with the public who is the main target.

Bibliography

Aaronson, D., for Architecture for Humanity (2012). Design Like You Give a Damn [2]. New York: Abrams

Althorpe, M., curator (2014). The Brits Who Built the Modern World. Exhibited at 66 Great Portland Place, London (13 February to 27 May). RIBA.

Chapman, T., (2012). Buildings of the year 2012. London: RIBA Publishing.

Clark, N., (2013). Stirling Prize 2013: Astley Castle in Warwickshire wins architecture award. The Independent. [online] Available <http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/architecture/stirling-prize-2013-astley-castle-in-warwickshire-wins-architecture-award-8842275.html> [Accessed 19 April 2014].

Gompertz, W., (2013). Astley Castle wins Riba Stirling Prize for architecture. BBC, entertainment & arts. [online] Available <www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-24287009> [Accessed 19 April 2014].

Lang, D., (2013). Toyo Ito becomes sixth Japanese architect to win Pritzker prize. The Guardian, Architecture. [online] Available <www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2013/mar/18/pritzker-prize-winner-toyo-ito> [Accessed 19 April 2014].

Pogrebin, R., (2014). Pritzker architecture prize goes to Shigeru Ban. New York Times. [online] available <www.nytimes.com/2014/03/25/arts/design/pritzker-architecture-prize-goes-to-shigeru-ban.html?_r=0> [Accessed 19 April].

Sara, R., (2013). Citadels of Freedom. The Architecture of Transgression/Architectural Design. November/December 226, 52-57.

Schenider, T. and Till, J., (2013). Beyond Discourse: Notes on Spatial Agency. Footprint. Spring (4), 97-111.

The Hayatt Foundation, (2014). The Pritzker Architecture Prize. [online] Available from <www.pritzkerprize.com/about/purpose> [Accessed 15 April 2014].

List of illustrations

Ill. 1 – Paper log houseChin, A., (2014). Shigeru Ban paper log house [online image] Available from <www.designboom.com/architecture/shigeru-ban-paper-log-house-philippines-04-24-2014> [Accessed 24 April 2014].

Ill. 2 – Christchurch, New ZealandChin, A., (2013). Cardboard Cathedral, Christchurch, New Zealand, 2013 [online image] Available from <www.pritzkerprize.com/2014/works> [Accessed 24 April 2014].

Ill. 3 - Astley Castle façade.Binet, H., (2013). Astley Castle. [online image] Available from <http://ribastirlingprize.architecture.com/riba-stirling-shortlist-2013-astley-castle-warwickshire> [Accessed 24 April 2014].

Ill. 4 – Astley Castle interiorBinet, H., (2013). Astley Castle. [online image] Available from <http://ribastirlingprize.architecture.com/riba-stirling-shortlist-2013-astley-castle-warwickshire> [Accessed 24 April 2014].

Ill. 5 - The Sainsbury LaboratoryHufton + Crow, (2012). Sainsbury Laboratory, Cambridge. [online image] Available from <http://ribastirlingprize.architecture.com/past-winners-2/stirling-shortlist-2012-sainsbury-laboratory-cambridge/> [Accessed 24 April 2014].

Ill. 6 - The GherkinSmith, G., (2004). The Gherkin, London. [online image] Available from <http://ribastirlingprize.architecture.com/30-st-mary-axe-the-gherkin-london-2004/> [Accessed 24 April 2014].

Ill. 7 - The Scottish ParliamentHunter, K., (2005). The Schottish Parliament. [online image] Available from <http://ribastirlingprize.architecture.com/the-scottish-parliament-edinburgh-2005/> [Accessed 24 April 2014].

Ill. 8 - Madrid Barajas AirportHunter, K., (2006). The Schottish Parliament. [online image] Available from <http://ribastirlingprize.architecture.com/madrid-barajas-airport-spain-2006/> [Accessed 24 April 2014].

Ill. 9 - Marback Museum of Modern LiteratureRichters, C., (2007). Marback Museum of Modern Literature, Germany. [online image] Available from <http://ribastirlingprize.architecture.com/marbach-museum-of-modern-literature-germany-2007/> [Accessed 24 April 2014].

Ill. 10 - AccordiaCrocker, T., (2008). Marback Museum of Modern Literature, Germany. [online image] Available from <http://ribastirlingprize.architecture.com/accordia-cambridge-2008/> [Accessed 24 April 2014].

Ill. 11 - Maggie’s CentreBryant, R., (2009). Maggie’s Centre, London. [online image] Available from <http://ribastirlingprize.architecture.com/maggies-centre-london-2009/> [Accessed 24 April 2014].

Ill. 12 - MAXXI National MuseumHalbe, R., (2010). MAXXI National Museum, Rome. [online image] Available from <http://ribastirlingprize.architecture.com/7566-2/> [Accessed 24 April 2014].

Ill. 13 - Evelyn Grace Academy Hayes, L., (2011). Evelyn Grace Academy, London. [online image] Available from <http://ribastirlingprize.architecture.com/evelyn-grace-academy-london-2011/> [Accessed 24 April 2014].

Ill 13 & 14 - Teatro Oficina interior and facadeSara, R., (2013). Citadels of Freedom. The Architecture of Transgression/Architectural Design. November/December 226, 52-57.

Ill 15 - Butterfly HousesAaronson, D., for Architecture for Humanity (2012). Design Like You Give a Damn [2]. New York: Abrams. (p80).