The Royal Institute of British Architects has awarded the 2018 RIBA President’s Medal for Research to Chris Hildrey of Hildrey Studio for ProxyAddress: Using Location Data to Reconnect Those Facing Homelessness with Support Services. Hildrey’s project addresses one of the main causes of homelessness in the UK: the end of an ‘assured short-hold tenancy’, where a landlord is legally entitled to issue a possession order. ProxyAddress tackles this issue through collaborative research and real-world application.
ProxyAddress creates a database of long-term empty properties, which serve as ‘proxy’ addresses to be used throughout periods of instability. By giving homeless people a consistent address, they are able to retain access to vital support services, which may otherwise be lost. ProxyAddress was selected as the Medal winner from other recipients of the 2018 RIBA President’s Awards for Research. The RIBA President’s Awards for Research were given in four categories: Cities and Community; Design and Technical; History and Theory; and this year’s theme: Ethics and Sustainable Development.
Cities and Community:
Chris Hildrey, Hildrey Studio
ProxyAddress: Using Location Data to Reconnect Those Facing Homelessness with Support Services
Design and Technical:
Dr Kostas Grigoriadis, Architectural Association School of Architecture
Computational Blends: The Epistemology of Designing with Functionally Graded Materials
History and Theory:
Prof Jane Rendell, Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL
May Mo(u)rn: transitional spaces in architecture and psychoanalysis – a site-writing.
Ethics and Sustainable Development
Roland Karthaus, Anthony Hu & Lucy Block, Matter Architecture
Redesigning Prison - the Architecture and Ethics of Rehabilitation
RIBA President Ben Derbyshire said:
“Congratulations to all our research winners – I am inspired to see the range of inquiry and interrogation, which is vital to the development of our profession. I think it is particularly important to highlight those Practices winning our top awards. Hildrey Studio and Matter Architecture are both small, young Practices, who despite their size are tackling serious social issues and working with government to influence policy. The RIBA Research Medal is the latest in a number of accolades that Chris Hildrey’s project to address the devastation of homelessness has deservedly received. This work is representative of a trend in research submissions that are people focused: generating knowledge and ideas that seek to improve our way of living in the built environment. I look forward to seeing Chris’s project progress.”
