Public space is sometimes underestimated — prestigious prizes in architecture are most often awarded for the realization of spectacular buildings, yet life also, or perhaps above all, takes place between them. Fortunately, there are also competitions that recognize urban spaces — leading among them is the biennial European Prize for Urban Public Space.
Presented since 2000, the honorary prize was initiated by the Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona. As the organizers emphasize, it is not the creator of a given space that is most important, but its relational and social character. Although it is, of course, the architect who receives the award, and with him — the institution or body responsible for the implementation of the project.
So far, the award has been given to 19 spaces, one of which is the Szczecin "Przełomy" Dialogue Center by KWK Promes. This year another Polish realization has a chance to win the title — the park under the Warsaw Uprising Mound, the "Storm" Action Park designed by teams from the Archigrest and topoScape studios.
The "Storm" Action Park in Warsaw (design: Archigrest, topoScape)
© Archigrest, topoScape | Illustrations provided courtesy of the competition organizers.
This year's edition was open to interventions in public space completed between 2022 and 2023. In the first stage, the jury selected 25 projects (including 21 from Poland) out of 297 submitted (this list included the project for the PLATO Contemporary Art Gallery in Ostrava by KWK Promes), and later — from this pool — selected five finalists.
Boca de la Mina in Reus, Spain (design: Batlleiroig)
© Del Rio Bani | Illustrations courtesy of the contest organizers.
In addition to the Warsaw park, the finals included a series of interventions in Switzerland's Castel San Pietro (studioser Architects ETH OTIA SIA), CHAPEX in Belgium's Charleroi (AjdvivgwA : AM architecten jan de vylder inge vinck — AgwA), the Boca de la Mina promenade in Reus, Spain (Batlleiroig) and an urban forest in Tbilisi, Georgia (Ruderal).
An urban forest in Tbilisi, Georgia (design: Ruderal)
© Luka Tavzarashvili | Illustrations courtesy of the competition organizers.
The projects will be judged by an international jury chaired by Spanish urban planner and landscape designer Beth Galí and composed of: Sonia Curnier (architect from Switzerland), Fabrizio Gallanti (architect and curator from France), Žaklina Gligorijević (architect and urban planner fromSerbia), Beate Hølmebakk (architect from Norway), Manon Mollard (editor and architect from the UK) and Francesco Musco (architect and urban planner from Italy).
CHAPEX in Charleroi, Belgium (design: AjdvivgwA : AM architecten jan de vylder inge vinck - AgwA)
© Filip Dujardin | Illustrations courtesy of the competition organizers
observatory of good practices
According to the contest organizers, public spaces play a key role in European cities, and the right design takes into account and enables a variety of social activities within them. The purpose of the award observing the quality of these spaces is therefore to draw attention to and reflect on the quality of life of residents and the democratic quality of European cities. Aware of the dynamic transformations, the impact of the climate crisis, scarcity, inequality, mobility, migration and other challenges facing cities today, the organizers of the competition aim to create an observatory of good practices that will collect possible valuable solutions.
A series of interventions in Castel San Pietro, Switzerland - before and after the intervention (design: studioser Architects ETH OTIA SIA)
© studioser - Sven Högger | Illustrations provided courtesy of the competition organizers.
In evaluating the realizations, the jury will pay attention to, among other things, the ability to strengthen the resilience of cities to climate change, the promotion of harmonious relations with the immediate natural environment, the elimination of physical barriers, concern for the preservation of historical memory and the multidisciplinary nature of the design team.
The park under the Warsaw Uprising Mound, or "Storm" Action Park, fits perfectly into these criteria. The park's development in Warsaw's Mokotów district, recently awarded in the Landezine International Landscape Award competition, draws on the city's history — during a walk one can see the exposed ruins of Warsaw buildings, and the summit topped by the Fighting Poland monument is led by ravines built of rubble-concrete from which the mound was built. The educational character is emphasized by two paths — a nature trail and a story about the ruins.
"Storm" Action Park in Warsaw (design: Archigrest, topoScape)
© Archigrest, topoScape | Illustrations provided courtesy of the contest organizers.
In parallel with the award for the best urban public spaces, a competition is underway honoring projects for transforming, reclaiming and creating waterfronts. This category includes projects from the last five years. Qualifying for the finals are the waterfront boulevard in Delfzijl, the Netherlands (LAOS Landschaps Architectur), the redevelopment of the baths in Dún Laoghaire, Dublin, Ireland (DLR Architects Dept. + A2 Architects), the walking path in Palamós, Spain (Ardevol Consultors Associats, Estudi Martí Franch Arquitectura del Paisatge SL), a beachfront and harbor redevelopment in Spain's Porto do Son (RVR arquitectos, CREUSeCARRASCO) and a marine park in Rimini, Italy (Benedetta Tagliabue — EMBT Architects).
The results of the 12th edition of the competition will be announced on October 29 this year.
