Architecture competition "European Velo Stops" honorable mention - Christian Steixner and Boutros Bou-Nahra

We’d like to take the opportunity to introduce you to the winners of one of our Honorable mentions for the “European Velo Stops” competition - Christian Steixner and Boutros Bou-Nahra from United States!

Christian Steixner and Boutros Bou-Nahra from United States

Christian: Christian has a Bachelor’s in Architecture from Florida Atlantic University, where he graduated with the Thesis award, Alpha Ro Chi medal, and the Henry Adam's medal in 2015. Post graduation, Christian is a registered architect working professionally as a designer for a mid-sized firm in South Florida. Christian is also an Adjunct Professor in Architecture at Palm Beach State College where he teaches studio courses.

Boutros: Originally from Belize, Boutros moved to the United States to study at Florida Atlantic University where he received a Bachelor’s degree in Architecture in 2015. Since that time, he has become a licensed architect and now practices architecture in both the U.S and Belize. He is driven by a desire to explore architectural systems that have been implemented in our past, as well as the urge to create and discover new alternatives.

The two met in their first year of architecture studies and formed a think tank after various successful collaborations.

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 company/ individuals have been involved?

Having taught a parametric design course together, we learned that we enjoy working on projects that stem from rational development which occur from a bottom up approach to design thinking. We tend to gravitate towards projects where we can observe how users interface with the built environment and subsequently what it then means to alter those parameters.

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

To us the role of an architect is to provide opportunities through interventions which initiate the users perception on daily life, hoping to spark interest or alter their course of action with a positive outcome.

Why do you participate in architecture vision competitions?

We believe that architecture competitions help to explore new alternatives to existing problems, and even sometimes pose new questions/dilemmas for future explorations. We feel privileged/ hopeful to be a building block for future, even greater ideas.

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

There is always a benefit to participating in competitions. It is never about the end result but the thought process of how you resolve issues. Once the competition is over you can analyze how others may have approached it in a different way and ultimately expanding your position on the topic.