<Cena za architekturu> aims to showcase quality, yet lesser-known buildings

Prague - The Czech Chamber of Architects announced today the second year of the Czech Architecture Award competition. Authors of buildings constructed in the Czech Republic in the last five years can apply. The five-year period allows for a broader and more detailed overview of Czech architectural production, according to the chairman of the CCA, Ivan Plicka. The competition conditions also favor works that are still "maturing" since their inception, Plicka told reporters today. In the first year of the competition, which saw 475 works submitted, a whole third were from 2015, the last possible year.

"We want to showcase not only media-famous buildings but also those that may seem less significant but are locally important. We want to demonstrate how diverse architecture is," he stated. "The ambition of the competition was for it to be loved by professionals and also for it to be appreciated by the broader public, those interested in architecture," he added, noting that the first year of the competition met the chamber's expectations.

According to the CCA, the award should also dispel myths associated with architecture - for instance, that buildings created with the involvement of an architect do not need to be exclusive, that the architect is not the one who spends money. The first year brought examples of buildings that demonstrate that quality homes can be built at lower costs.

The chamber's spokesperson, Zuzana Hošková, stated that besides the public, the competition aimed to reach public procurement clients. The chamber has long called for state administration and local government to utilize architectural competitions as the most transparent means for the creation of new buildings with public funds.

Out of nearly five hundred buildings submitted in the first year of the award, only 13 were created based on an architectural competition. However, according to Hošková, the trend is positive, and 2016 can be dubbed the year of architectural competitions. "The chamber granted regularity status to 54 competitions; it was the highest number of competitions in the chamber's history; the year before, there were only 25," she stated.

The main award in the first year went to the house and studio Zen-Houses by Liberec architect Petr Stolin. Among other exceptional achievements in architecture, the authors of the Prague building regulations were also honored.

Each year of the competition will have a new jury. It is not excluded that some works may be submitted again in light of the five-year cycle; we want them to be judged by a new jury, Plicka said. This year's jury includes Slovenian architect Matija Bevk, Dutch landscape architect Eelco Hooftman, Dutch architect Marianne Loof, Czech architect Jura Oplatek working in Switzerland, Swiss architect Doris Wälchliová, Slovak architect Lubomír Závodný, and Polish architect Jakub Szczesny, known for his Keret House in Warsaw.

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