In the long term, the South Bohemian Philharmonic Orchestra has had to deal with the fact that it does not have a concert hall that would suit the acoustic and social requirements of a philharmonic orchestra. Although a project named Rejnok (Ray Fish) was created in 2008 by the world-famous architect Jan Kaplický, it was never built due to its high price of 2 billion CZK and also to operation costs that were expected to be rather high. In addition to testing modular technology possibilities, the idea competition should also try to find out what a new concert hall of a county town could look like and to reopen discussion on this cultural institution in České Budějovice.
Designs from young architects from all over Europe participating in the architectonic idea competition ModulArch that was opened in mid March by the Vizovice company KOMA Modular could provide an answer whether this is a utopian idea or not.
The competition aims to increase awareness of modular architecture in the long term and to test its boundaries and possibilities. That is why a relatively controversial building focus and location have been selected. The location is Mariánské náměstí in České Budějovice. The estate is owned by the town and its urban function has not yet been resolved – it represents a complicated architectonic task in itself. Mariánské náměstí gained its present appearance through demolitions in the 1950ies. Historically, business routes were passing through here and the square is adjacent to the original town fortification system.
The task of the competitors is to define the square with new buildings including the philharmonic orchestra building. The square should gain new energy through the connection with the cultural function. Unlike in the previous competition years, the whole building does not have to be designed as modular – it is however important to consider sections which would benefit from modular construction and to use the concept there.
Creative attitude and original solutions of the formulated problems will be especially appreciated in the competition.
The competition is sponsored with 5,000 EUR which will be approximately divided into 2,500-1,500 and 1,000 EUR for the first three places – when evaluating the designs, emphasis will be placed on the quality of the architectural-urban solution, on disposition and functional solutions of the presented projects and on their originality. Testing modular technology and its limits, trying to seek answers about what can be done with modular architecture and applying sustainable principles in designing modular buildings are important factors as well.
The competition is organised in cooperation with the South Bohemian Philharmonic Orchestra that has defined its needs and also with the representatives of the town of České Budějovice who have participated in the estate selection. The town's chief architect Jan Němec will be present in the competition's jury. Other jury members include for example a Dutch architect Caroline Bijvoet, an Italian architect Joseph di Pasquale or a Czech violin virtuoso Václav Hudeček.
The competition is intended not only for architecture students, but also for fresh graduates and architectonic teams. The competition will take place in English and it is only an idea competition.
Download the information related to this competition here.
Title
Call for Entries: International Student Competition MODULARCH 2016Type
Competition Announcement (Student Competitions)Organizers
Submission Deadline
May 31, 2016 11:30 PMVenue
Ceske Budejovice, Czech RepublicPrice
Free