Staircase: The Latest Architecture and News

UPDATE: The shortlisted entries have been announced and public voting is open until February 15^th! Cast your vote here.

International staircase design specialist, EeStairs - has launched the second edition of its Staircase Design Competition. Open to anyone who wishes to participate - the entries will be shortlisted by a panel of expert judges before the winners are decided by public vote in February 2016. In March, two cash prizes of £2,000 each, will be awarded at a prize giving ceremony.

EeStairs is on the hunt for individuals who will look beyond staircases and balustrades as functional components of architecture, but instead combine practicality and artistic imagination to create truly outstanding designs.

Exhibited at the BSA Space as part of the Boston Design Biennial in 2013, Matter Design's Helix is a concrete spiral staircase that is full of surprises. Chief among these is its size - the stair was built at half-size to address the practical issues of weight, liability and access - but more important are the details of its assembly. While the steps of most spiral staircases are supported from either the stair's perimeter or a central column, Helix transfers loads directly through the steps below to its base which, rather than resting on the floor as it appears, is in fact suspended from a beam in the ceiling.

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On this day of love, we bring you a compilation of eye candy capable of meeting or exceeding the specifications of any architect. These seductive staircases demand a double take. From curvaceous to straightforward or no-strings-attached (literally), we’ve got something for everyone. 

They're yours to gaze at after the break. 

Inspired by the spine of a whale, the Vertebrae Staircase is not simply mimicry of organic form but an exploration in shaping structure. Much of the design work went into refining the single component, or vertebra, that mate with each other creating a unified spine running from floor plate to floor plate. These interlocking vertebrae create a rigid and self-supporting structure. 

More on Andrew McConnell's 'Vertebrae Staircase' after the break.