There is no talk of changing trends. In the competition for the Architectural Award of the Wielkopolska Region, single-family houses and interiors still have the upper hand. Among the nominations, there is little in the way of good housing and common spaces. Surprisingly good, however, are the proposals in the "export work" category .
The fourth edition of the NAWW competition, organized by the Poznań SARP in cooperation with the Wielkopolska Regional Chamber of Architects, is underway. The jury, headed by Błażej Janik (SARP Katowice), has just announced a list of 21 nominees in seven categories. In this year's edition, just under eighty projects were submitted. A slightly smaller number, but similar to last year's. The level of architecture - also similar, although rather with an indication of a slight downward trend. However, there are significantly fewer nominations(last year: 30). Wojciech Krawczuk, president of the Poznan branch of the Association of Polish Architects, comments:
The number of submissions probably reflects the economic situation and the slowdown in investments. I know of many projects that are delayed and probably for this reason did not have a chance to appear in this year's edition of the competition.
home, interior, privacy
So what will compete for awards in the various categories and for the Grand Prix? As usual, the "Single-family home" and "Interior" categories are quite solidly represented. In these areas set firmly in privacy, one can see not only the artistry of designers, but the growing architectural awareness of wealthier investors. In the first category, half of the four nominations went to the houses of the PL.Architekci studio, which has been awarded many times before - both for the single-family houses in which the studio specializes, and for public buildings (the railway station in Wolsztyn). And, it seems, they have a good chance for an award this time as well, for the Multifamily House near Poznań, which stands out in the set of nominations.
Multifamily House, proj. PL.Architekci - nomination in the NAWW competition in the "Single-family house" category.
Source: PL.Architekci
As many as five nominations can be found under the banner of "Interiors", which always enjoys great popularity, inversely proportional to the importance of this category. What is noticeable in the selected projects, besides the high quality of the designs, is the stylistic repetitiveness.
Port Sołacz, Poznań; authors: EV Architects Ewelina Jankowska - nomination in the NAWW competition in the "Interior" category.
photo by Przemyslaw Turlej
Among the proposals that deviate a bit in style from the average beige-gray scenery, one should notice the minimalist design of the Reumedika medical clinic in Poznań, enlivened with more vivid colors (design: Koper Studio Magda Piotrowska architect, Olga Hausmann).
Reumedika medical clinic in Poznan, proj.: Koper Studio Magda Piotrowska architect, Olga Hausmann - nomination in the category "Interior".
photo: Creative Studio Katarzyna Seliga-Wróblewska
public not so numerous
Let's note theaverage level and smaller number of nominations in the "Public Building" category. Included is an interesting transfer center in Rokietnica near Poznań (designed by LAB3 Architekci), another PL.Architekci realization (dual-function house in Skórzewo near Poznań) using brick on the facades in an interesting way, and a correct Tarastika commercial and office building in Wysogotowo (designed by KLUJ Studio).
Interchange center in Rokietnica, proj. LAB3 Architects - nomination in the NAWW competition in the "Public building" category.
© photo: Dominik Banaszak
The biggest crises can be seen in the next two categories. The first is invariably multifamily construction. As in previous years, the large number of completed buildings of this type contrasts strongly with only three nominations. The court will therefore choose between investments from Poznań(Słowackiego 3, proj. Insomia), Kalisz (Między Mostami, proj. MODO Architektura) and Września (Września Terraces, proj. Studio MTS Pracownia architektoniczna).
Między Mostami, Kalisz, proj.: MODO Architektura - nomination in the NAWW competition in the "Multi-family residential building" category.
photo: MODO Architektura
We recently described the project of Insomia, which holds a consistently high standard. It seems to distance its competitors, but not so much so that - upon closer inspection - the competition's chapter could not point to another realization.
Multi-family residential building with service function on the first floor, Poznań, design: INSOMIA - nomination in the NAWW competition in the category "Multi-family residential building".
photo by Dominika Ufnal
The greatest poverty affected the "Common Space" category: only two nominations! The first, very distinctive and important from the point of view of a small town, is the Education Stop in Wielen in northern Wielkopolska (proj. Neostudio Architects). The second case is again the work of Insomia - this time it's about appreciating the space around the Globis office building in Poznan with the help of spatial modules, seats and pots. Both projects are of a good standard, but it is clear that EU money for public spaces has probably already been spent, and a rash of further realizations of this type awaits us only in the next EU handout.
Cultural Services Square - "Przystanek Edukacja", Wieleń, authors: Neostudio Architekci, architects: Bartosz Dawid Jarosz, Paweł Świerkowski, Tomasz Sołtysiak - nomination in the NAWW competition in the "Common Space" category
Photo: Pawel Swierkowski
export horse
The black horse of this year's NAWW, on the other hand, is the "Export Work" category, honoring realizations by Wielkopolska architects made outside the province. It has always been quite average in this compartment. This time, however, we have three nominations and three cymes, including two foreign ones. The Polish specimen is the very successful modernization and expansion of the Silesian Planetarium in Chorzow (proj.: Joanna and Michal Kapturczak Architects).
Silesian Science Park modernization and expansion of the Silesian Planetarium in Chorzow, proj.: Joanna and Michal Kapturczak Architects - nomination in the NAWW competition in the "Export Work" category.
photo: Tomasz Zakrzewski Planetarium
The second nomination is for an intimate and well-conceived kindergarten building in Dilbeek, Belgium, designed by Poznan-based Atelier Starzak Strebicki in cooperation with Carton123 architecten and Natural Born Architects.
Kindergarten in Dilbeek authors: TV TEAM BEGIJNENBORRE (Atelier Starzak Strebicki/Carton123 architecten/Natural Born Architects) - nomination in the NAWW competition in the "Export Work" category.
Photo: Stijn Bollaert
The third building is also about education, this time all the way in Africa. It's an exceptionally interestingly designed school of the WAYAir Foundation in the Ulyankulu refugee camp in Tanzania, tailored to local realities, designed by architects: Iwo Borkowicz (JEJU.studio), Adam Siemaszkiewicz (JEJU.studio) and Lukasz Rawecki (Arh+).
WAYAir Foundation school in Ulyankulu refugee camp in Tanzania, proj: Iwo Borkowicz (JEJU.studio), Adam Siemaszkiewicz (JEJU.studio), Lukasz Rawecki (Arh+) - nomination in NAWW competition in "Export Work" category.
© photo: Iwo Borkowicz
The competition jury may have a hard time choosing just one project in the latter category. It will probably have less difficulty selecting a Young Artist. This year there are only two nominees: Wojciech Kowalczyk (Todos Architekci) and Mateusz Waszak (JMMW). Now that the number of entries has been trimmed down to a list of nominees, the judges will get to know almost every building in the field during away sessions, and the results will be announced in November.
