Architecture Competition Architect's Sugar Architectural Visualization Award Honorable mention winner - University of Kassel

We’d like to take the opportunity to introduce you to one of our Honorable mention winner for our "Architect's Sugar Architectural Visualization Award" competition –  Fridtjof Schmidt from Germany!

Fridtjof Schmidt from Germany

I'm currently still studying architecture at the University of Kassel, and I'm in the middle of my master's thesis. In addition to architecture, I have always been interested in graphic design and visual media. During my studies, I noticed that both can be combined very well. I have worked as a student assistant in several fields over the past few years. What grabbed me the most was the design, the beginning of an idea and its development. In the future I would like to work in both directions, architecture and graphic design and try to combine them.

Brief information about the projects that you/your company have been involved with. For instance, what scale have you focused on/preferred, any significant projects where the company/ individuals have been involved?

So far, I have worked on several student projects. The most exciting were those that were also realized, but also those where there was an idea at the beginning that carried through to the end of the project. During my studies I also founded a small collective with 3 friends I met during my studies, in which we dealt with architectural interventions in urban space, the exciting thing here was that all interventions or structures were really built by us and the idea became reality.

What does architecture mean to you and what is the role of an architect in your society?

For me, it is important when i later work as an architect that you can see an idea in my work. An idea that runs through the project. It shouldn't just happen or be practical, but express something that unites all aspects in one big idea. For me, the architect these days is someone who helps others to come up with ideas and can also present them visually. The rendering is a great way for me to visualize an idea, to create a first picture of what can later become reality. I think it's important that you emphasize an idea in a visualization and stage it concisely in order to memorize it. I also think it's important to present the idea in such a way that you don't feel like it's already been built. The built object or building only becomes reality and can be experienced in its entirety when it is actually made of real materials.

Why do you participate in architecture competitions?

Architecture competitions are a good way for me to prepare for later working life. They are also fun and a challenge because you always have a new task or topic to deal with over a certain period of time. I think you always acquire new skills and learn from them.

What advice would you give to individuals who struggle to decide whether it would be beneficial for them to participate in architecture competitions?

I think that it is important to get involved in a task and don’t be afraid, for example I took part in the techno-booth competition with my collective which I mentioned above and got a recognition for it. In the process of the competition, we decided to really build our project and exhibit it at our university's annual exhibition, which turned out to be a great exhibition that we never thought would take place before.