Former Ballyclare High School student earns finalist position in Young Architects Competition
The Royal Society of Ulster Architects along with JP Corry, recently announced the finalists of a competition for young architects to design an architectural pavilion for Belfast around the theme of ‘comfort’.
Adam Joyce, a former student of the school, was announced as one of the five finalists.
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Hide AdThe competition was established to provide local architects under the age of 40 with an opportunity to showcase their creativity and talent. The award – a luxury weekend away to London for two, a West End show and a visit to the Saint-Gobain Innovation Centre – was presented to the overall winner, Aileen McConaghie by honorary RSUA member, broadcaster and designer, Kevin McCloud at Architecture Night 2016 last Friday evening.
In response to the task, which also had to demonstrate three of the possible five multi-comfort pillars: thermal, audio, visual, indoor air and economic comfort, Adam designed a pavilion located on a space of land adjacent to the Titanic Visitor’s Centre in the Titanic Quarter, Belfast.
Commenting on his design, Adam who works as a Project Architect for TODD Architects in Belfast, explained: “The pavilion acts as a protective structure to the public, and ‘comfort’ is portrayed in a number of ways through the elements of design.
“My aim was to provide an enhanced and more private enclosure within the two rooms in the plan. The variation of architecture and spatial experiences of the pavilion provide it with a strong identity within its context, promoting interaction with the public.”
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Hide AdCommenting on the competition, Ciarán Fox, Director of RSUA, said: “I wish to convey my congratulations to Aileen on her winning design. The Pavilion Design Competition provided local young architects with the platform to unleash their creativity and to showcase their talent. With Belfast being the only city across Ireland to have been accepted into the worldwide 100 Resilient Cities Network, we thought it would be fitting for the competition to help explore the role of the city’s built environment in addressing climate change.”
Architecture Night was held in the recently decommissioned, former Belfast Telegraph Print Works on Royal Avenue. Along with a showcase of local architecture, guests were treated to food, drink and live music by Duke Special, as well as the BBC’s Mark Simpson as presenter.
Whilst there aren’t plans in place in the current year for the winning design to be constructed, the competition acts as a catalyst for the future inclusion of architectural pavilions in the physical and cultural landscape of Northern Ireland.