The jury of the International VELUX Award 2024 architecture competition has selected ten regional winners from among 468 entries from 220 architecture schools around the world. In the Eastern Europe and Middle East Region, students from Polish universities were recognized in both award categories.
Aleksandra Cassino of the Warsaw University of Technology
© Velux
In the "Natural Light in Buildings" category in the Europe Region, the winner was the Lightroof project by Aleksandra Cassino of the Warsaw University of Technology. And in the "Research and natural light" category, the winner was the (No) daylight project by a team of four students from the Wrocław University of Technology, consisting of Iwona Kin, Alicja Smoczyk, Agata Czugała and Paweł Mordeja.
Female and male students from Wroclaw University of Technology: Iwona Kin, Alicja Smoczyk, Agata Czugała and Pawel Mordeja
© Velux
The Lightroof project, by Aleksandra Cassino of the Warsaw University of Technology, proposes an innovative roof structure that creates a light-transmitting structure. The system offers a solution to urban agriculture by harnessing natural daylight. The roof covering captures, stores and transmits solar energy directly to the plants underneath. This allows plants to be grown directly under the roof, acting like a covered greenhouse that remains invisible from outside the building. The improvement will also reduce CO2 emissions associated with electricity generation.
Lightroof by Aleksandra Cassino of the Warsaw University of Technology.
© Aleksandra Cassino
The second winning project (No) Daylight, created by students from the Wrocław University of Technology, composed of Iwona Kin, Alicja Smoczyk, Agata Czugała and Paweł Mordeja, focuses on lighting green spaces without using electricity and without contributing to light pollution. The project is formed by a kind of lamp, with a shade covered with luminescent paint, which acquires light during the day and emits a soft glow in the evening. The glass lamp under the shade is filled with water and has a spiral shape that traps light in its contours. Users can place a phone with a flashlight on under the lamp, creating a more moody, diffused beam of light instead of a direct flashlight source.
(No) daylight by a female and male student from Wroclaw University of Technology.
© Iwona Kin, Alicja Smoczyk, Agata Czugała and Pawel Mordeja
Regional winners were selected by a jury consisting of Prof. Ewa Kurylowicz (Poland), Prof. Jenni Reuter, (Finland), Prof. Song Yehao (China), Alberto Vega (Spain), Kent Holm (Denmark).
The International VELUX Award is a great opportunity for us to encourage the next generation of architects to harness the power of daylight from the earliest stages of their professional path. It is inspiring to see imaginative and beautiful proposals from students around the world that respond to contemporary challenges in architecture," said Tina Christensen, director of the International VELUX Award.
The jury was impressed by the overall range of projects that addressed so many different aspects of daylight and the creative ways in which they interpreted the competition's keynote, "The Lights of Tomorrow." In addition, the jury members noted the students' engagement with the key environmental, social, cultural and political issues of our time and the search for appropriate solutions. The students' projects clearly demonstrate that what is important to people is important to architects, and thus underscore the need to work with daylight in architectural practice to provide the best possible light-filled spaces.
The jury made the final evaluation of the projects according to the following criteria: 1) working with daylight as a premise for architecture, 2) the way the project is researched and documented, 3) the way the project addresses contemporary and future challenges, 4) the level of experimentation and innovation, and the overall graphic presentation of the project or the way the project presents itself.
Regional winners will be invited to a 3-day trip to Münster, Germany for the annual conference of the European Association for Architectural Education (EAAE) in late August. During this annual architectural event, students will personally present their projects to a jury.
The quality of the competition entries submitted is excellent. I am pleased that most of them address an environmentally, economically or socially sustainable future. We look forward to meeting the regional winners in August and listening to the presentations to better understand their projects," says Song Yehao, chairman of the jury.
At the EAAE conference, the jury will select the two global winners of the International VELUX Award 2024.
Regional winners in the Natural Light in Buildings category:
Western Europe: Silo of the ambient light
Student: Anniina Rautakoski
University: Metropolia University of Applied Sciences
Teacher: Janne Järvinen
Country: Finland
Americas (America): Lighting up the Rocinha favela
Students: Paulo André Pereira & Mariana Costa do Carmo
University: Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro
Teacher: Eliane Silva Barbosa
Country: Brazil
Asia and Oceania: The light filter
Students: Wan Zilin, Poon Gin Yong & Zang Jiayou
University: Tsinghua University
Teacher: Li Xiaodong
Country: China
Africa: Radiant echoes
Students: Kenza Kettani & Bouchra Rah
University: Rabat International University
Teacher: Yassir Aziz
Country: Morocco
Regional winners in the Natural Light Research category:
Eastern Europe and the Middle East: (No) daylight
Students: Iwona Kin, Alicja Smoczyk, Agata Czugała & Pawel Mordeja
University: Wrocław University of Technology
Tutor: Tomasz Broma
Country: Poland
Western Europe: Solar Sinter
Student: Anders Eugen Lund
School: Royal Danish Academy
Teacher: Runa Johannesen
Country: Denmark
Americas (America): FeatherGuard
Student: Yining Ma
University: University of California, Berkeley
Teacher: Myrna Ayoub
Country: United States
Asia and Oceania: Gaplight Collective
Students: Zehong Zhang, Ruotong Luo, Jiaxun Song, Dasen Li & Xinyue Dong
University: South China University of Technology
Teacher: Zheng Hao
Country: China
Africa: Sparkling souls
Students: Bidzan Pout Fabrice Emmanuel, Abega Ebanga Rosalie Valentine, Tambe Mcwilfried Masoda, Ndibatchou Alexis Junior & Fopa Jerry Karmel
University: École Nationale Supérieure des Travaux
Teacher: Aba Nkasse Alain
Country: Cameroon
The winning regional projects were awarded €1,000 for the student(s) and €250 for the teacher(s).
The International VELUX Award 2024 competition is organized in close cooperation with the International Union of Architects (UIA) and is recognized by the European Association for Architectural Education (EAAE), the Association of Colleges of Architecture (ACSA) and the Consortium of Architectural Research Centers (ARCC).
