The call for submissions for a new edition of the Richard H. Driehaus Architecture Competition, organized by the Traditional Building Cultures Foundation thanks to Richard H. Driehaus and the collaboration of the Spanish Ministry of Culture through its Directorate General for Cultural Heritage and Fine Arts, INTBAU Spain, and the Spanish High Council of Institutes of Architects, is now open.
Proposals for each of the three municipalities selected in the first phase of the competition—Baltanás (Palencia), Irurita (Navarra), and La Fresneda (Teruel)—can be submitted until February 4, 2025.
In this second phase of the competition, which is international in scope, architects of any nationality are encouraged to submit architectural and urban design proposals for any of these three locations.
For each of the three sites, the authors of the winning First Prize proposal will receive a total of €12,000, and the authors of each Honorable Mention awarded by the jury will receive a total of €2,000.
– Baltanás, Palencia province –
The proposal from Baltanás was chosen by the competition jury for the comprehensive nature of its approach to the ensemble of the winery cellars and their environs, and for the inclusion of a building to be transformed in keeping with local building tradition. The jury also noted the project’s ability to become a model of good practice for other villages with similar dug-out complexes.
The proposal aims to equip the municipality with a multipurpose center with a cultural program linked to Baltanás’s dug-out heritage that will be able to promote related social activity and function as a visitor center for the cellar complex, known as “el Cotarro.” Refurbishment is also proposed for the approaches, tracks, and paths on the south side, in contact with the village center. These measures are intended to foster integration of the urban fabric and to enhance the perception of the municipality’s heritage and tourism value.
– Irurita, Navarra province –
The proposed refurbishment of Plaza de Rebote and its environs was selected by the competition jury in view of the significance of this space within the urban ensemble. It is an indispensable venue for the local community given its configuration and the activities that it hosts. Thus particular value was attached to the positive impact that its embellishment and enhancement, together with the rehabilitation of the adjoining Casa Dolantxea, might have on the village overall.
It is proposed that the square be rearranged so as to give priority to community and sports uses and to improve pedestrian accessibility. Other aspects such as the state of the paving and of the frontis wall should also be addressed, as well as, if possible, a treatment of the surrounding buildings, as most of them have lost their original plastering and their facades are strung with cables which it would be advisable to run underground. The proposal lays particular emphasis on the house known as Dolantxea, on the northeast side of the square, now in a state of ruin and in the process of being compulsorily purchased by the Baztán town council. It is proposed that the house be turned into a visitor center for the sport that is played in front of it, as a vantage point and a didactic, recreational, and cultural venue, also making use of the adjoining garden, which is likewise derelict.
– La Fresneda, Teruel province –
The proposal from La Fresneda for the slopes of the hill surmounted by the village’s castle, today a run-down area, was noted by the competition jury for the interest of the multiple aspects addressed: the arrangement of volumes, the treatment of road access, landscaping aspects, the creation of a community vegetable garden, and the development of a house for public rental in keeping with local tradition and which may become a reference for future buildings in the area. On the basis of the extant remains, the volumes of the buildable lots are to be rearranged and roads laid out as required to revitalize the area, both for residential use and to promote the village’s rich heritage through an itinerary focused on the church, the castle, and the old cemetery. The aim is to restore the physiognomy of this part of the hill with the intention that local people should once again value the area not just as a site for tourism and recreation but also as a place for living in.
Through the following link, contestants can access the necessary information to develop their proposals.
