Between October 2021 and February 2022, the Mies Memorial Library Architecture Student Competition was held. With 430 students from around the world participating, 105 projects were submitted to envision a building on the IIT campus in south Chicago that could preserve the history and celebrate the life, work, and legacy of one of the fathers of modern architecture, Mies van der Rohe.
The jury—composed of Alicia Casals and Karl Nyqvist of NOMO Studio, Eugenia Soto and Iñaki Volante of Baukunst Academy, and Cristina Gastón—decided to award three prizes and seven honorable mentions. Discover the winners below:
First Place: Invisible Inheritance
Authors: Huu Tri Tran, Duy Tan Tran, Thai Son Au
University: Hanoi University of Civil Engineering
The building seeks to create an interactive space for both students and the campus landscapes, under the concept of bringing people into Mies's world by thinking about future spaces through his architectural philosophy. Instead of a conventional library, the proposal suggests using the space as a lounge area or pavilion for the school's students.
The core idea is for the small volume to appear to float within the green space without damaging the surrounding landscape or the lounge area, placing the program's more enclosed functions below ground level to limit the impact on the landscape. This creates two contrasting spatial layers: the upper level as a welcoming shelter for future generations of IIT students, and the lower level to commemorate Mies van der Rohe's contribution to the design and creation of the IIT campus.
In the words of the jury, the project successfully provided appropriate solutions for different issues and scales, creating high-quality outdoor spaces. By reducing the memorial building's footprint on the ground and juxtaposing the volume with the void of the auditorium entrance, the park is modulated, dividing the different areas to accommodate multiple activities. Additionally, the decision to submerge the heavier program allows the project to achieve a light and transparent volume above ground, fitting for a memorial. This creates a welcoming space for studying or reading, while the use of innovative materials such as carbon fiber or structural glass evokes Mies, who was also dedicated to experimenting with the avant-garde of his time.
The jury highlighted the project's scope, which went a step further by designing a Mies-inspired modular system to divide the interior spaces, allowing different activities to take place within the same open plan.
Second Place: Digging
Author: Josep Eixerés Ros
University: School of Architecture: UPV
Sitting down to read a book outdoors, meeting classmates under the trees, and learning while immersed in a Miesian atmosphere is what the proposal for the new Mies Square suggests. The project is organized into two distinct areas, creating an open, central gathering space that interacts with existing structures and the new Library. A series of lanterns emerge from the ground, designed to capture fresh air and natural light and direct them into the library below.
The jury highlighted the presentation of this project, which was drawn entirely by hand with precise details and clear focus throughout. While a good presentation does not guarantee a good project, the proposal successfully met the jury's expectations, who valued the clarity of the concept and its design as an addition to Crown Hall and the Galvin Library through an underground connection.
As the jury noted, despite a lack of visual connection to the outdoors and potential safety concerns, the repetition of the lanterns on the surface creates a strong daytime presence, suitable for a memorial and delivering a highly impactful image.
Third Place: Mies Memorial
Authors: Guilherme Fernando Pinto, Estevão Diniz Trevisan, Gabriel Mori de Oliveira, Gustavo Maravieski, Charlles Junior Furtado da Silva, João Guilherme Humeniuk Lopes
University: Federal University of Technology – Paraná (UTFPR)
The project seeks to enhance dematerialization, a concept Mies developed in his work by joining construction elements as loose planes and lines. This contemporary proposal acts as a bridge to Mies's earlier works, aiming to set it apart from other buildings on campus and in the surrounding area.
Born from a dichotomy between the new and the classic, the site plan of the Mies Memorial follows the original campus layout, acting as a nod to the past embedded within an established landscape. It seeks to strengthen the visual axis between the new building and Crown Hall, offering a fresh perspective on Mies's work through the new entrance. The architectural program is distributed to showcase the architect's collection of work.
The jury appreciated the study and application of Mies's key architectural concepts in the project, which establishes an interesting dialogue with Crown Hall and the surrounding buildings—at times through imitation and at others through contrast, such as the choice of a white structure.
Demonstrating the intent to create a building that acts as a connector between existing structures, the jury noted that the space between the structural columns and the glass facade is well-suited for a library. This buffer zone protects the facade from direct sunlight to some extent while separating quiet indoor activities from the outdoor activities in the adjacent park.
Honorable Mentions
- Mies Memorial Library by AMS Team (Alcides Montenegro, Sthefanny Ríos – University of Panama)
- Way to Mies by AxA (Shadchneva Alyona Ruslanovna, Podlesnova Anastasia Sergeevnna – Samara State Technical University)
- Monument of Transparency by BUAU (Ahmed Bader, Hiba Algumati, Almuntaha Alsheiky – Berenice University of Architecture and Urbanism)
- Mies Memorial Library by G6 (Simona Di Costanzo, Maria Vittoria Grillo - Politecnico di Milano)
- Mies Memorial Library by MMJ (Javiera Paz Salazar Quezada, Martina Sofía Rocha Pastene, María Jesús Farías Cabello - University of Chile)
- Missing Piece by Septem Arch (Meritxell Ariadna Izquierdo Urbizu, Andrea Arilla Hernández, Inés Arellano Alfaro, Johana Valdivieso de las Heras, Ana Etayo Miralpeix, Aitana Cascante Severiano, Leire Gómez Olagüe - University of Navarra)
- Stairway to Mies Memorial Library by SPA (Andrey Khodotov, Sadovnikov Nikita Yurievich – Samara State Technical University)
This article was written by Agustina Iñiguez. The translation is powered by AI.
