Portugal represented in the Saint-Gobain International Student Architecture Competition
Portugal represented in Saint-Gobain International Student Architecture Competition by FAUP students
The event “Saint-Gobain Architecture Student Contest” took place in Lisbon City Hall – Paços do Concelho, where the winners of the national phase of the initiative were determined. Mariana Sousa and Rafael Gonçalves, students at the Faculty of Architecture of the University of Porto, will represent Portugal in the international phase of the 18th edition of the “International Saint-Gobain Architecture Student Contest”, which will take place in June, in the city of Lisbon.
The initiative promoted by the French multinational Saint-Gobain proposes to its competitors – architecture students from all over the world – the realization of an architectural project based on sustainability and circular economy, conceived for a piece of land belonging to the municipality, included in the Detailed Plan of Boavista Landfill. Seven projects by Portuguese architecture students were presented at the event, and one winning project was selected by the jury and another by the public.
“It was a great pleasure to have the collaboration of the Lisbon City Hall in a case that is as real as possible. The sustainable construction is the vision that Saint-Gobain wants to transpose to this initiative, allied to the user’s well-being and the energy efficiency” underlines Vasco Pereira, Director of Saint-Gobain Academy. He also adds that: “the students had a huge challenge: rehabilitate a building, design a new one and develop the public space with environmental and sustainable awareness”.
The winning project entitled “The Contemporary Pombalina House”, by Mariana Sousa and Rafael Gonçalves, was based on the model of a Pombaline house, using Saint-Gobain materials with low CO2 emissions to meet the required sustainability criteria. In addition to national representation in the International Phase of the Competition, the winning team was awarded a trip to Paris which includes a visit to the Saint-Gobain Tower, headquarters of the Group and the Cité de l’architecture et du patrimoine Museum, as well as the publication of the project in an architectural media. This year, the project “Oasis in Lisbon” by Joana Teles, student of the Architecture School of the University of Minho, was also selected by the public. This project foresaw the creation of several green spaces in the territory, with the concern of maintaining local commerce in the public space.
The panel of judges, composed of experts in the areas covered by the initiative, included the participation of architect João Santa-Rita, from Atelier Santa-Rita e Associados, biologist Tiago Carrilho, from the Business Council for Sustainable Development, architect Gil Silva, Passive House Designer, and architect Jéssica Barreto, from Saint-Gobain Portugal.
Winner of the international competition elected in June, in Lisbon
The winner of the 18th edition will be determined on 28 June, at an event in Lisbon attended by Saint-Gobain’s CEO, Benoit Bazin, as well as architecture students from all over the world, international journalists, associations and other stakeholders.
The winning proposal will receive a monetary prize and publication in specialised architectural media. The winning team will be selected by an international jury, as well as other secondary prizes, for which the participating finalist students will also contribute. All the prize winners will receive ample exposure in the Saint-Gobain Group’s own media.