Architecture Competition Pavilion Of Humanity: First Contact Honorable mention – Alexa Burkle and Santiago Esquivel

We’d like to take the opportunity to introduce you to one of our Honorable mention winners for our “Pavilion Of Humanity: First Contact” competition –Alexa Burkle and Santiago Esquivel from Mexico!

Alexa Burkle and Santiago Esquivel from Mexico

We are an architect and a soon-to-be architect that have worked on few projects together but have been sharing many ideas and insights for more than 5 years. We both live in México and share a big love for our country. Santiago is an architect, graduated from Tecnológico de Monterrey in Querétaro, and Alexa is a student at Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City.

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?

We really like projects that let us test the limits of our profession. Even more so, we interest ourselves with architecture and conversations that question the profession itself; the role we have in it, and the systems of belief that weigh down on it.

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

For us, architecture is a means of conveying a message, of taking a stance and participating in the construction of our culture and the values of our society. Architecture impacts the way we live by taking decisions and molding us as humans. Therefore we, as architects, have the responsibility to imagine and create a better, more congruent way of living.

Why do you participate in architecture competitions?

We really enjoy the freedom inscribed in architecture competitions. We try to always challenge ourselves to go further than the most obvious answer to the questions asked. For us, it is an opportunity to test the congruency in the process of elaboration of our ideas, hence testing the integrity of our work.

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

Competitions are almost an academic exercise, a parallel school, but a school of one-self where self-teaching and self-limits guide the intellectual growth. Even though you are playing by someone else’s rules, it’s a great way to understand your own.