The Holcim Award winners for Europe were recently announced in Milan for sustainable place making and materials innovation. The Holcim Awards Gold 2011 for Europe and USD 100,000 was awarded to German architects realities united for a project on the UNESCO World Heritage site of Museuminsel in the heart of Berlin. The Flussbad urban plan will remediate an area rich in cultural heritage by transforming an under-utilized arm of the River Spree into a natural 745m-long “swimming pool”. The project will form a swimming zone equivalent to 17 Olympic-sized pools – and directly improve the quality of urban life and the ecology of the waterway. More information on the awards after the break.
Holcim Awards Silver went to a project that converts a former factory into a new City Hall and Civic Center for the city of Oostkamp in Belgium by not only recycling the main structure and materials but also re-using the space itself and its technical infrastructure. Holcim Awards Bronze was presented to a smart transformation plan for a viaduct on a bypassed section of an expressway into vertical homes, using an existing structure for a completely different use that brings new economic potency to Southern Italy.
Holcim Awards Bronze 2011 – USD 25,000 Lifestyle apartments and infrastructure recycled from former freeway viaducts, near Scilla, Italy Main author: Philippe Rizzotti, Philippe Rizzotti Architects, France Further authors: Samuel Nageotte, Samuel Nageotte Architecture, France; Tanguy Vermet and Manal Rachdi, Off Architecture, France
Four Acknowledgement prizes were shared between projects in Finland, Germany, the Netherlands and Switzerland. The top prize in the “Next Generation” (student category) was awarded to a concept in the United Kingdom and a further two prizes went to project visions in Spain.
Holcim Awards “Next Generation” 1st prize 2011 – USD 25,000 Efficient fabrication system for geometrically complex building elements, London, United Kingdom Main author: Povilas Cepaitis, AA School of Architecture, United Kingdom Further authors: Luis Enrique, Diego Ordoñez and Carlos Piles, AA School of Architecture, United Kingdom
Holcim Awards “Next Generation” 2nd prize 2011 – USD 15,000 Materials reuse and regional transformation scheme, Gijón / Xixón, Spain Author: Elisa de los Reyes Garcia, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Spain
Holcim Awards “Next Generation” 3rd prize 2011 – USD 10,000 Bioluminescent devices for zero-electricity lighting, Seville, Spain Author: Eduardo Mayoral, Universidad de Sevilla, Spain
For more details on the award winners, please visit here.
