Introduction

COMPETITION ORGANISERS
Iceland 
Cave Tower Iceland 
Cave Tower
Official partner
Iceland 
Cave Tower

The Iceland Cave Tower Competition was the fourth Bee Breeders event in an ongoing design series, set in the extraordinary landscape of Iceland. The competition site on Vogar farmland is located near lake Mývatn in northern Iceland, and the event was organized in partnership with the landowners, Landeigendur Voga ehf. 

Participants were tasked with submitting proposals for an observation point accommodating a small visitor center on the farmland’s site overlooking Vogagjá – a spectacular ground fissure resulting from seismic activity. The fissure is especially significant as a marker of the boundary between the two tectonic plates of the European and North American continents. 

The Vogagjá fissure also houses caves that have become popular bathing spots, with waters naturally heated by volcanic flows. The caves receive thousands of annual visitors, and while the remote site of Vogar farmland has become a popular destination, its surrounding lava fields have unfortunately sustained significant damage in recent years. In addition to an observation point to identify the site, the landowners seek a modular design solution for walking paths to better preserve the fragile natural surroundings. 

The project sought eco-friendly, site-specific solutions. Proposals were considered for their constructability, cost-effectiveness, resistance to extreme weather, environmental responsibility, energy-efficiency, and low maintenance. They were also evaluated for their strength of concept and their promise to become a meaningful destination. The winning schemes will be considered for construction. 

Hundreds of submissions were received from around the world. They creatively explored a broad variety of forms, means for integration within the landscape, and also abstract expressions. Designs experimented with both monolithic and humble presences. While some proposals made use of site-specific stone and earth as primary building materials, others proposed methods for prefabrication or utilization of factory-produced construction elements. 

Bee Breeders collaborated with a fantastic international and regional jury for this event: Louis Becker, partner at Henning Larsen; Marshall Blecher, founder of Marshall Blecher Studio; Jette Hopp, director at Snohetta; Borghildur Indriðadóttir, Icelandic artist; and Kristina Loock, head of business development at GMP. We express our gratitude to the jury panel for its support and conscientious analysis of the submissions. 

Bee Breeders and its jury panel would like to thank each of the participants for submitting such a range of ideas to this competition!

We sincerely thank our jury panel
for their time and expertise

Jette Hopp

Director, Snøhetta

Norway

Kristina Loock

Head of Business Development, gmp

Germany

Borghildur Indriðadóttir

Teiknistofan Óðinstorgi

Iceland

Marshall Blecher

Founder at Studio Marshall Blecher & Co-founder at MAST

Denmark

Louis Becker

Henning Larsen

Denmark

1st Prize Winner

Project name

Rising from Grjótagjá

Competitions help to engage and think about projects with less constraints, which allows to create new fundamental concepts and values.

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Authors
Mareike Schlatow
Gaspar Cánepa
Country
Denmark

2nd Prize Winner +
BB STUDENT AWARD

Project name

THE MOVING SURFACES

We think that taking part in competitions is a very interesting experience that broadens our horizons. It provides us with an opportunity to work in a group setting and prepares us for our future careers. Participation in competitions enables us to present our design vision to a larger audience and compare it with the ideas of other participants.

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Authors
Aleksandra Bieszka
Maria Pielach
Aleksandra Mucha
Country
Poland
+146 points Buildner University Rankings

3rd Prize Winner

Project name

hófsemi

For us, taking part in architectural vision competition is a big chance for experimentation with space and structure, an opportunity to celebrate the design process and to face unusual topics. It develops us as professionals and motivates us to search for new ways of thinking about architecture.

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Authors
Kamila Szatanowska
Paulina Rogalska
Country
Poland

BB GREEN AWARD

Project name

SKERA Visitor Centre

When you are young, a competition helps you find a narrative, present an idea, and get familiar with silly deadlines. As you get older, a competition is a good way to break routine. Competitions offer a rare opportunity to showcase and experiment with ideas and architectural expression without restrictions. You challenge your skills and learn new things.

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Authors
Vaia Vakouli
Orestis Gkouvas
Country
United Kingdom

Client Favorite

Project name

Dance of the Giants

We adore challenges and architecture competitions are a great way to keep the creative juices flowing, as they encourage imaginative freedom. That said, it is a great platform for emerging architects to showcase their design skills and share unique ideas.

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Authors
Agata Vodnicka
Andrius Raguotis
Country
Lithuania

Honorable Mentions

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Project name

The Grjótagjá Tower

Author
Barbara Drud Henningsen
Country
Denmark
Project name

PERISCOPE

Authors
Antonio Salvi
Antonello Boschi
Francesco Polci
Filippo Pecorai
Country
Italy
+78 points Buildner University Rankings
Project name

Monolith

Authors
Giacomo Cozzi
Andrea Maltinti
Country
Italy
Project name

HIGH GROUND

Authors
Bruce Feng
Alexandra Hopkins
Penny Fuller
Jad Silvester
Country
Australia
Project name

Together Apart

Author
Arthur Analts
Country
Latvia
Project name

KLAMM

Authors
Martynas Degutis
Michael Samson
Justus Würtenberger
Country
Germany

Shortlisted projects

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SPROUTING LANDSCAPE

Rui pedro Santos
Ricardo Ibrahim
Portugal

Fracture

Blazka Ilovar
Mojca Kastelic
Nika Guzelj
Ursa Heric

University of Ljubljana, Faculty for architecture, Slovenia

+22 points Buildner University Rankings!
Slovenia

EARTH TOWER

Thibaut Van der beken
Aurélie Van calenbergh
Oskar Vanhulst
Belgium

Yfir Landturn

Alexandra Georgescu
Tomas Kozelsky
Viktor Odstrčilík

KOGAA

Czech Republic

Grjótagjá Ark

Gabriel Stuart
Koosha Hosseini

Royal Institute of Technology

+22 points Buildner University Rankings!
Sweden

Dance of the Giants

Agata Vodnicka
Andrius Raguotis
Lithuania

THE MOVING SURFACES

Aleksandra Bieszka
Maria Pielach
Aleksandra Mucha

Uniwersytet Artystyczny w Poznaniu

+146 points Buildner University Rankings!
Poland

Displaced

Afshan Behnamghader
Konstantinos Moustakas
Anna Vasileiou
Peter Lin
United States

Monolith

Giacomo Cozzi
Andrea Maltinti
Italy

Inside Out

Pablo Castro
Louis Boulacheb

Ecole nationale supérieure d'architecture de Paris-Belleville

+22 points Buildner University Rankings!
France

HIGH GROUND

Bruce Feng
Alexandra Hopkins
Penny Fuller
Jad Silvester

Silvester Fuller

Australia

KLAMM

Martynas Degutis
Michael Samson
Justus Würtenberger
Germany

Ubi Via

Laia Rafel filella
Bianca Suárez steckelmacher
Marc Sanchez alfonso
Ignacio Escarpenter garcia
Spain

Over The Crevice - On the Beautiful & the Sublime

Anton Schneider
Andri Luescher
Ryan Nguyen
Miaojie Zhang
United States

PERISCOPE

Antonio Salvi
Antonello Boschi
Francesco Polci
Filippo Pecorai
Italy

Upside Down

Lucas Dias
Ariel Calabrese
France

INSIGHT Iceland Cave Tower

Valentín andres Vodanovic
Alejandro Nicolas Rodriguez Masjoan
Agustín Francisco Rennella

Facultad De Arquitectura, Urbanismo Y Diseño (FAUD) - Universidad Nacional De Córdoba (UNC), Argentina.

+22 points Buildner University Rankings!
Argentina

Symbiosis

Aleksandar Dadic

FACULTY OF TECHNICAL SCIENCES IN NOVI SAD

+22 points Buildner University Rankings!
Serbia

Together Apart

Arthur Analts

Variant Studio

Latvia

The Fault

Marion Duval
Vincent Lecler
France

At the Crossroads

Piotr Dziewierz
Filip Sierak
Maria Zimnoch
Poland

The Bridge between two Continents

Finn Blindow
Julius Wolff

Münster School of Architecture

+22 points Buildner University Rankings!
Germany

Between Gaps

Alejandro Moreno
Mexico

Jafnvægi_Cave Tower

Dani Reimers
Camrin Plaatjes
Phillippe Fouché
Jacques Steyn

SAOTA

South Africa

mörk

Tauri Tamme
Anna Solts
Elis Märks
Saamuel Rammo

Tallinn University of Technology

+22 points Buildner University Rankings!
Estonia

Rising from Grjótagjá

Mareike Schlatow
Gaspar Cánepa
Denmark

Pipe Dream

Rickard Jakobsson
Markus Wenden
Sweden

LANDSCOPE

Peter Tokaji
N. bence Krajnyak
Hungary

SKERA Visitor Centre

Vaia Vakouli
Orestis Gkouvas
United Kingdom

The Grjótagjá Tower

Barbara Drud Henningsen
Denmark

A prefab tower in the landscape for Reykjahlíð

Aurélien Massart
Thomas Lourdeaux
Thibault Lerouge

Ecole Nationale Supérieure d'Architecture de Versailles

+22 points Buildner University Rankings!
France

hófsemi

Kamila Szatanowska
Paulina Rogalska
Poland

ICELAND CAVE TOWER

Kiril Shopov
Bulgaria

Suture

Norbert Pánovits
Laszló Simon
Vanda Kocsis
Dóra Grádinger
Hungary

cave. light. house.

Benjamin Smithers
Kofong Hsia
United States

TOWER BRIDGE

Jędrzej Pawlaczyk
Anna Swarowska
Marcin Gęzikiewicz
Poland

POP-OUT

Matthew Casaverde
Rj Fiorentino
Sebastian Faciolince
Sholan Kunjappan
United States

FOREGROUND, BACKGROUND, UNDERGROUND

Anton Boman
Lars filip Cullin
Denmark

ANTRUM. A visitor center and observation tower by the Grjótagjá Caves

Carlo giovanni Bernyak
Martino Bonfioli
Cecilia giulia Bersani
Italy

THE FRAME

Antonio Pérez cerpa
Pablo Delgado márquez
Ruben Ortega gonzalez
Spain