The International VELUX Award (IVA) is a biennial competition for architecture students from all over the world to create projects investigating the role of daylight in our everyday lives. This contest has been in existence since 2004 and is endorsed by the UIA. The last edition had over 4 000 registered contestants and over 600 submitted projects from ambitious and innovative future architects.
This year’s theme of the competition is “The light of Tomorrow” and it aims to extend daylight limits to architecture, including aesthetics, functionality, sustainability and interaction between buildings and the environment.
Multidisciplinary teams, including students in the domains of design, engineering and landscaping, are encouraged.
The contestants can choose between two different categories:
- Daylight in Buildings (“projects that demonstrate applicable principles for providing daylight and sunlight into buildings”)
- Daylight Investigations (“projects that look at the physical properties of light, basics of optics and materials, as well as technological developments, new materials, storage or transportation of daylight”).
Projects are evaluated according to the following criteria:
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The work with daylighting as a premise for architecture.
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How the project is researched and documented.
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How the project addresses contemporary and future challenges.
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The level of experimentation and innovation.
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The overall graphic presentation of the project, how the project presents itself.
Important dates are:
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Registration opens: 1 September 2019
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Registration closes and submission period opens: 1 April 2020
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Deadline for questions: 1 April 2020
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Submission deadline; project upload: 15 June 2020
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Jury meeting: 25-26 June 2020
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Winners announcement and online exhibition: December 2020
More information about the competition: https://iva.velux.com