Archinect - News

Fairy Tales 2020 winners explore real and fictional crises through creative storytelling

2020-04-09T01:17:00-04:00

The seventh edition of the popular 'Fairy Tales' competition just revealed its winning entries.

The dominating themes of this year's most gripping illustrated short stories seemed like ominous reflections of the spirit of this age: environmental collapse, existential crisis, violent realities, and prevailing uncertainty. Submitted from over 65 countries, the competition entries explored current and fictional events through creative storytelling and fascinating illustrations.

The jury, which consisted of seasoned architects, historians, authors, previous Fairy Tales winners, members of the media (including Archinect), and the organizers Blank Space, selected three prize winners and eleven honorable mentions.

1ST PLACE: "The Year Without a Winter" by Tamás Fischer and Carlotta Cominetti

From the winners: "We wrote our story thinking about the moment when the world has to stop and people have to change their habits to avoid the collapse and to protect themselves from an unfamiliar eve...

Calling All Storytellers: Blank Space Launches Seventh Annual Fairy Tales Competition

2019-10-08T19:33:00-04:00

This post is brought to you by Blank Space.

For the last 6 years, the Fairy Tales competition has captured the imagination of designers and architects around the world. Last year's record breaking competition drew entries from over 60 countries, making the competition once again the largest annual architecture competition in the world. For the seventh year of the competition, Blank Space is proud to partner with ArchDaily, Archinect, and Bustler.

“Each year, we run the Fairy Tales competition — the stakes get higher and higher. Although the prompt has always been the same each year, the entries are more and more engaged with current events and the state of our planet,” says Blank Space founder Francesca Giuliani. “Some of the best entries we have received to the competition in previous years have been incredible stories of caution and warning. This year, we are looking for solutions instead of warnings. We know the issues plaguing our planet — now we are looking to you to solve the...

Winners of this year's 2019 Fairy Tales competition use the power of storytelling to address issues on immigration, sustainability, and the future

2019-04-08T13:16:00-04:00

As architects and designers creating narrative through the built environment is what helps create discussion for awareness and change. Since its inception in 2013, the annual Fairy Tales competition challenges architects and designers to drive design innovation through the power of storytelling. Today Blank Space announces the winners of the sixth annual "Fairy Tales" competition. With submissions from over 65 countries, the award-winning entries explore current events and the creative process through wonderfully crafted shot stories and artwork. This year three prize winners were selected as well as 12 honorable mentions.

The competition jury consisted of more than 20 leading architects, designers, and storytellers including Moshe Safdie, Tatiana Bilbao, Jurgen Mayer, Julia Koerner, among many other distinguished judges.

Francesca Giuliani, co-founder of Blank Space shared her thoughts on this year's competition winners, "This year's winners utilize the power of narrative to expl...

Fairy Tale Architecture: The Butterfly Dream

2018-12-20T12:08:00-05:00

Fairy tales have transfixed readers for thousands of years, and for many reasons; one of the most compelling is the promise of a magical home. How many architects, young and old, have been inspired by a hero or heroine who must imagine new realms and new spaces — new ways of being in this strange world? Houses in fairy tales are never just houses; they always contain secrets and dreams.

"The Butterfly Dream" by Bernheimer Architecture is the third and final installment of this year's Fairy Tale Architecture series, curated by writer Kate Bernheimer and architect Andrew Bernheimer. ⠀

The team imagined the butterfly in Zhuangzi's famous parable as a drone, collecting data which can be abstracted to explore the transformation of things. The drawings of this story consist of data from the flight of the drone. These data were converted into a flight path, and then a flight-space. This space was then extruded into shapes and volumes, illustrating both the act of flying as well as the act of (detached, remote) seeing.

Fairy Tale Architecture: Little Red Riding Hood

2018-12-20T11:08:00-05:00

Just as ‘girl, wolf, woods’ signals Little Red Riding Hood, ‘gable, lintel, square cutout, arc’ signals Robert Venturi’s Mother’s House.⠀

In the second installment of our holiday series on fairy tale architecture, Mary English and Xavier Vendrell of Rural Studio present a playful take on Little Red Riding Hood, inspired by Robert Venturi's Mother's House.

"The story has three elements: Little Red Riding Hood, the wolf, and the house. The image of Little Red Riding Hood is iconic; any image of a wolf is iconic; so the house needed to be an iconic house," they explain. "It had to be a house that anyone would recognize as a house. In a way, the Venturi house is a house that a kid can draw, with the roof form and the chimney. And any adult will understand it is a house, but it’s something more, and obviously an architect or a designer will have another level of reading."

Fairy Tale Architecture: The Death of Koschei the Deathless

2018-12-20T10:08:00-05:00

It was the theme of nesting that primarily fascinated us about the Koschei tale, as it corresponded with ideas of sectional nesting that we have exploited as an architectural technique for generating spatial intricacy - LTL Architects.

Our holiday series on fairy tale architecture returns this week with three new features, curated by writer Kate Bernheimer and architect Andrew Bernheimer. ⠀
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First up: in "The Death of Koschei the Deathless," LTL Architects examine the strange habits of a fearful man who sought to escape his death through an obsessive nesting of forms within forms and spaces within spaces. Their beautiful rendering of this very strange tale focuses on Koschei's buried reliquaries and how they function in space and in time. The madness and beauty seen in precise details help us access the hopes and fears encoded in the story. ⠀

Calling All Storytellers: Blank Space Launches Sixth Annual Fairy Tales Competition

2018-09-27T08:00:00-04:00

This post is brought to you by Blank Space.

For the last 5 years, the Fairy Tales competition has captured the imagination of designers and architects around the world. Last year's record breaking competition drew entries from over 60 countries, making the competition once again the largest annual architecture competition in the world. For the sixth year of the competition, Blank Space is proud to partner with ArchDaily, Archinect, Bustler, and the AIAS.

“My personal little theory is that we’re all constantly reworking our childhoods. For me, creativity has a lot to do with recovering lost innocence,” says jury member Jürgen Mayer, “As a society, we’re definitely looking at the future again, but always in terms of responsibilities, cautions, and potential catastrophes. I refer back to this moment in the past where there was this excitement, energy, and risk of discovery.”

To celebrate the launch of the 6th year of the Fairy Tales competition- all Fairy Tales publications, includin...

Win Fairy Tales Architecture Competition Volumes 1-3!

2018-01-05T12:00:00-05:00

Over the last five years, the Fairy Tales Architecture Competition by Blank Space has surely made an impact, welcoming everyone from students to Pritzker Prize laureates to write their very own architecture-themed story. From the pragmatic and poignant to the fantastical and snarky, Fairy Tales Architecture Competition Volumes 1-3 lets you re-read your favorite tales or discover a story you might've missed the first time. In collaboration with Blank Space, Archinect is giving away five sets of Fairy Tales Architecture Competition Volumes 1-3 to our readers!

Designed by Bruce Mau Design, each volume revisits the 2014-16 competitions. Each paperback book features the winning entries and a delightful selection of notable submissions in full-color illustrations.

“A Thousand and One Nights” by Xinran Ma.

“Course of Empire” by Aidan Doyle and Sarah Wan (Wandoy Studio)

“Up Above” by Ariane Merle d’Aubigné & Jean Maleyrat

HOW TO ENTER THE GIVEAWAY:

Want a chance to win Fairy Tales Architecture...

Announcing the winners of the 2017 Fairy Tales Architecture Competition

2017-02-07T03:01:00-05:00

The Fairy Tales Architecture Competition concluded another successful edition Monday evening with the anticipated reveal of its 2017 winners. The competition had its biggest winners announcement yet in front of a live audience at the National Building Museum in Washington D.C.

Like every year, the submissions blur the line between fictional and non-fictional. Narratives are depicted as storybook-friendly illustrations, but refer to themes like real-life current events or evergreen topics like the creative process, mundane everyday activities, and relatable human emotions.

The esteemed jury — which included Marion Weiss, Jing Liu, Stefano Boeri, Michael Maltzan, National Building Museum Executive Director Chase W. Rynd, and Archinect's very own Alexander Walter, among others — selected three prize winners, an American Institute of Architecture Students winner, and 10 honorable mentions.

1ST PRIZE: “Last Day” by Mykhailo Ponomarenko | Ukraine

Synopsis: “The entry utilizes classical painti...

Recounting stories from the Fairy Tales Architecture Competition — 2017 winners to be revealed February 6!

2017-02-03T14:54:00-05:00

Storytelling has the magical ability to influence our perception of the world we live in, and such observations couldn't be more valuable in the field of architecture. The Fairy Tales Architecture Competition captured the imaginations of architects everywhere when Blank Space first launched the 2014 edition. Every year, architects, designers, artists and the like are invited to write and illustrate their very own architectural narrative.

The competition brings up both evergreen topics and timely issues that constantly press on the minds of architects, but the submissions themselves vastly differ from year to year. What kinds of stories will the 2017 edition tell?

The big winners announcement will happen at Washington D.C.'s National Building Museum on February 6 — so be on the lookout for the winning entries right here on Archinect and Bustler on Monday night!

In the meantime, here's a flashback to the winning entries in the previous Fairy Tales competitions.

2016

↓ 1st Prize: "Welcome t...

New Fairy Tale Architecture in Places Journal

2016-12-22T16:46:00-05:00

How many architects, young and old, have been inspired by a hero or heroine who must imagine new realms and new spaces — new ways of being in this strange world? This project presents a line of flight into architecture as a fantastic, literary realm of becoming.

This week, our series on Fairy Tale Architecture returns with four new designs by Snøhetta, Ultramoderne, Smiljan Radić, and Bernheimer Architecture. Each one explores the relationship between the domestic structures of fairy tales and the imaginative realm of architecture. But don’t expect a light escape into fantasy. These fantastical worlds draw their power from engagement with the real.

Tiddalik the Frog, designed by Snøhetta

Flatland, designed by Ultramoderne

Gripho, designed by Smiljan Radić

The Seven Ravens, designed by Bernheimer Architecture

Last Call | Registration deadline for 2017 Fairy Tales Competition

2016-10-25T13:45:00-04:00

This post is brought to you by Blank Space.

Next Wednesday, November 2nd, is the last day for regular registration in the Fairy Tales competition! Don’t miss this unique opportunity to see where your imagination can take you. The beauty of Fairy Tales is that there are absolutely no constraints. We’re excited to see where you will take us.

All participants will be invited to the first annual Night of Fairy Tales event at the National Building Museum in Washington DC. Here you can take a peek into the greatest minds in architecture and design as we announce the winners of this year's Fairy Tale Competition. This night of whimsy will feature performances inspired by the winning entries all staged under the grand canopy of the NBM’s Great Hall.

Entries to this year's competition will be reviewed by a jury of 25 of the most influential architects and designers from around the world. The jury includes: Dan Wood, Jing Liu, Alan Maskin, Gro Bonesmo, Michel Rojkind, Marion Weiss, John Maeda, ...

Fairy Tales 2017: Blank Space launches fourth annual architecture storytelling competition

2016-09-07T03:00:00-04:00

This post is brought to you by Blank Space.

After the record breaking success of last year’s competition which drew over 1,500 participants from 67 countries, Blank Space is excited to announce that the 2017 edition is open for registration. Now in its fourth year, Fairy Tales is the largest annual architectural competition in the world.

Blank Space is proud to partner with the National Building Museum and the American Institute of Architecture Students (AIAS) along with Archinect, Bustler, Archdaily, and DesignMilk. The competition will be capped with a special celebration at the National Building Museum in February 2017 for all winners, participants, jurors and VIPs.

Fairy Tales is open to all, and invites architects, designers, writers, artists, engineers, illustrators, students and creatives to submit their own unique architectural fairy tales. A successful entry crafts a text narrative, along with 5 images, in the most spectacular way possible.

“Every week or two we are approac...

Fairy Tales 2016 winners highlight real architectural issues through fictional storytelling

2016-03-23T13:48:00-04:00

Fantastical fiction and harsh reality aren't so far apart in the winning narratives of the 2016 Fairy Tales Architecture Competition. Living in a time when the inevitable future is constantly on everyone's mind, this year's stories beautifully visualize and perhaps forewarn of what possibly awaits. Created by Blank Space, the international contest invites architects, artists, writers and the creatively inclined to pen their own architectural fairy tale narrative.

Since Blank Space revealed their first set of winners in 2014, the competition's rapid growth can be worthy of its own story. The 2016 edition reeled in more than 1,500 entries from 67 countries — the largest pool of submissions in the competition's history by far. Plus, the level of creativity was as strong as ever, with poignant tales based on recent real-world incidents to thought-provoking critiques on architecture's current state — and future, of course.

Blank Space's "Fairy Tales: Volume 3"

This year's jury also included...

Submit your Fairy Tales 2016 entries by January 16!

2015-12-17T14:31:00-05:00

Here's one last little reminder that the Fairy Tales 2016 submission deadline is January 16, 2016! It still about a month away, but it'll be here in the blink of an eye. Now that it's the Late Registration period, the entry fee is $75.

First launched by Blank Space in 2014, the competition lets participants write their own architectural fairy tale narrative to explore and discuss real-world topics. The 2014 and 2015 editions were a wild success, reeling in hundreds of submissions from around the globe.

The 2016 jury includes a noteworthy list of individuals:

Hans Ulrich Obrist (CoDirector of the Serpentine Galleries)
Elizabeth Diller (Founding Partner of Diller Scofidio + Renfro)
Allison Arieff (Editorial Director of SPUR)
Bradford Shellhammer (Founder and CEO of Bezar)
Daniel Simon (Concept and Car Designer)
Dror Benshetrit (Founder of Dror)
Sylvia Lavin (Director of Critical Studies in Architecture at UCLA)
Cristina Goberna (CoFounder of Fake Industries, Architectural Agonism)
Aaron Betsky (...

Don't forget to register for the Fairy Tales 2016 competition!

2015-12-07T15:10:00-05:00

If you haven't already done so, sign up for the Fairy Tales 2016 competition now! Regular Registration ($55) ends this Wednesday, December 9. Once the Late Registration period starts, the entry fee goes up to $75. Submission deadline is January 16, 2016.

First launched by Blank Space in 2014, the competition lets participants worldwide write their own architectural fairy tale narrative to explore and discuss real-world topics.

The 2016 jury includes a notable list of individuals:

HansUlrich Obrist (CoDirector of the Serpentine Galleries)
Elizabeth Diller (Founding Partner of Diller Scofidio + Renfro)
Allison Arieff (Editorial Director of SPUR)
Bradford Shellhammer (Founder and CEO of Bezar)
Daniel Simon (Concept and Car Designer)
Dror Benshetrit (Founder of Dror)
Sylvia Lavin (Director of Critical Studies in Architecture at UCLA)
Cristina Goberna (CoFounder of Fake Industries, Architectural Agonism)
Aaron Betsky (Dean of the Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture)
Alexander Walter (Editor in...

The Fairy Tales 2016 competition is now open for registration!

2015-10-14T17:37:00-04:00

Brush up on those storytelling skills, the Fairy Tales Architecture Competition 2016 launches today! First started in 2014 by Blank Space, the competition invites the creatively inclined — architects, designers, writers, artists, engineers, illustrators, students, and the like — to pen their own architectural fairy tale. Entrants get to use fictional storytelling as a means to explore architectural possibilities and discuss real-world topics.

The last two competitions were wildly successful, with 2015 reeling in a record-breaking 2,000 stories from participants in 65 countries. Who knows what the 2016 edition will bring?

2015 1st prize winner: “Empty” by Zigeng Wang.

2014 1st prize winner: “Chapter Thirteen” by Kevin (Pang-Hsin) Wang and Nicholas O’Leary.

The scale, location, and program of the submission is up to each entrant. A successful entry crafts a text narrative, along with 5 images, in the most spectacular way possible.

Participants can register for a special early-bird discount...

Two days left to kickstart the full-length comic zine of Fairy Tales 2nd-prize winner "Beautifully Banal"

2015-07-13T19:07:00-04:00

After winning second place in Blank Space's 2015 Fairy Tales Architecture Competition, University of Illinois at Chicago graduate students Alexander Culler and Danny Travis took things one step further to publish their submission, "Beautifully Banal", into a full-length architectural comic zine. The duo initiated a Kickstarter campaign earlier this month that received speedy support, reaching their $1,000 goal in just two days. Now with 52 hours to go, the campaign has garnered $3,578.

Culler and Travis set up the campaign in an effort to bring a light-hearted story that readers both within and outside of the architectural community can appreciate. Derived from the universal notion of finding one's place in the world, the three-part narrative follows Phineas the fly's journey through three major architectural programs: Residential, Commercial, and Industrial.

Readers encounter various architectural drawing conventions at different scales like plans, sections, axonometrics, elevations,...

Fairy Tales 2015 competition winners revealed

2015-03-17T16:50:00-04:00

From endearing and colorful to clandestine and foreboding, Blank Space's annual Fairy Tales Architecture Competition is back a second time with more architectural anecdotes to tell. Blank Space co-founders Matthew Hoffman and Francesca Giuliani started the open competition as one way to showcase how architecture shapes society and vice versa in a multitude of perspectives. Young architects, designers, artists, illustrators, writers and the creatively inclined worldwide put their storytelling skills to the test by creating their own architectural fairy tale narrative. In its inaugural run, the competition attracted over 300 entries from 50 countries. One year later, 1,200 participants based in 65 countries submitted entries.

The jury awarded the $1,500 first prize to Empty by Zigeng Wang, a Masters student at Princeton University. Wang's rich, sci fi-inspired illustrations narrate the ethical and environmental dilemmas of a post-industrial and globalized world. The story attempts to "...

Fear not! You can still register for the Fairy Tales 2015 competition

2015-01-08T10:00:00-05:00

If you still haven't done so, don't forget to register for Blank Space's international Fairy Tales 2015 competition before the final registration and submission deadline on January 23! The registration fee is now $70.

Architects, designers, writers, artists, engineers, illustrators, students, and all creative types are invited to explore the depths of their imaginations and pen their very own architectural narrative. Entries must include a text narrative and 5 images. Other than that, everything from the scale, location, and program of the submission is up to each entrant.

After the inaugural Fairy Tales competition last year was wildly successful with over 300 entries from 50 countries, one can only imagine what kinds of stories the 2015 edition will bring.

To register, click here.

The 2015 jury will feature:

Anish Kapoor (Sculptor)
Paola Antonelli (Senior Curator of Architecture & Design at the MoMA)
Karim Rashid (Designer)
Yves Behar (CEO of Fuseproject)
John Hoke (VP Global Design at Nik...

Architecture for All Ages: The top “youth-inspired” projects of 2014

2014-12-29T13:00:00-05:00

Curiosity is a driving force in architecture, design, and just about every creative field. Whether it was through collaborative projects in grade school, reading comic books, or sitting in a corner doodling away, it's not unusual for creative practitioners to say their interests were formed during their childhood and teenage years, if not somehow reaffirmed later in life.

Below is a loosely threaded list of end-of-the-year picks (in no particular order) of fun and educational projects that focus on youth participation as well as projects that echo childhood nostalgia and curiosity. Just like the kid who always asks "Why?", these fun uplifting projects are a reminder that inquisitiveness should never run dry and, regardless of age, learning never stops.

Never Too Young; 15 Librarian-Recommended Architecture Books for Young Children ↓

The winning narratives of the first Fairy Tales Architecture Competition ↓

"Constructing Holden Caulfield": Learning to build character through literary arc...

“Hortus Conclusus Andersen” - 1st-prize for H C Andersen House of Fairytales, Denmark

2014-04-21T18:35:00-04:00

The fairytale wouldn't be complete without the "Hortus Conclusus Andersen" from the Hans Christian Andersen Museum's House of Fairytales competition. Designed by Transborder Studio of Oslo, the proposal was the lucky first-prize winner of the international ideas competition that drew in nearly 500 entrants. These results are only the beginning, as the H C Museum plans for a more restricted design competition for the House of Fairytales.

Get more details on Bustler.