Guy Ailion from the University of the Witwatersrand has emerged as the regional winner of the 2009 Corobrik Architectural
Student of the Year Awards, held at the university on 13 November.
He scooped the top accolade with his project, 'Everywhere is here - Architecture and a Developing Information Society', which is an Open Information Campus in Kliptown, Soweto.
Ailion says, “Bit by bit our society is moving through an information age characterised by a global shift towards an increased need for information. In an instantaneous age of digital information, the ability to access the world’s knowledge from anywhere and by anyone is a new reality, but one not yet true for communities on the other side of a digital divide. While architecture has always imbued a relationship with technology; when designing architecture for developing an information society an understanding of context and cultures becomes paramount to achieve spaces that encourage participation and buildings that break the stigma of information technology. The new information platform is given an opportunity to rethink the traditional spaces of knowledge previously limited to the archetypal library.”
Speaking at the awards ceremony, Professor Alan Mabin, Head of the Wits School of Architecture, noted that the external examiners had made special note of the progressive improvement in the standards of the final year projects and theses submitted.
This is the 23
rd year that Corobrik has sponsored this prestigious competition, which was initiated to promote quality design and to acknowledge talent among architectural students.
Thesis students from Universities and qualifying Institutes of Technology throughout South Africa are invited to submit entries for one of the seven regional competitions.
Each regional winner receives a prize of R6 000 and is entered into the national finals, where they will compete for top honours and a prize of R40 000 in March 2010.
The runner-up, Dana Fayman was awarded R4 000 for her project, entitled 'Between Jewel and City - the role of threshold architecture as a catalyst for cultural and economic exchange'
The project aims to assist to stimulate the jewellery manufacturing quarter in Johannesburg's Inner City; one which reinvigorates a vanishing local mining heritage; and one which serves as a catalyst for long term economic development and cultural exchange. In third place was Andrew Bell, who received R3 000 for his entry entitled [psyche] which is a redesign of the psychiatric facility at Chris Hani Baragwanath hospital, one of the largest hospitals in the world.
This year, the emphasis is on sustainability and this element will feature prominently throughout the awards, reflecting Corobrik’s commitment to reducing its carbon footprint and overall environmental impact.
Corobrik has invested significantly in technology that reduces the carbon emissions in its manufacturing processes and, with effective thermal properties, clay face bricks as an external skin go a long way in reducing the energy consumption throughout a building’s lifespan.
In addition, there is a prize for the best use of clay brick and this has been awarded to Gary van Lieshout who receives a bonus prize of
R3 000 for his project entitled "Building Social Justice.” Gary’s project is architecture's contribution to positive rural development and is a rural church village.
Chris Dickinson, Sales Director Corobrik, observed that the general standard of the projects was high and that the majority of all the final year student projects analysed existing urban-social needs within the city of Johannesburg and proposed aesthetically pleasing and functional solutions.
“To build, operate and maintain buildings consumes some 40% of the worlds energy output.”
“Hence the critical need for proper design to minimise heating and cooling requirements, selection of materials which yield optimal energy efficiency and energy management to realise the full benefits.”
“This is the challenge to all of the graduates entering the architectural profession here tonight, to design and shape a sustainable future built environment.”