Introduction

COMPETITION ORGANISERS
The Last 
Nuclear Bomb Memorial

With the future in such a state of uncertainty and political relationships more strained than ever, there is one silent threat that could end up being more deadly and dangerous to humanity than a hundred pandemics: nuclear weapons.

In 1945, the US bombed Hiroshima and Nagasaki, effectively ending World War II and killing well over 100,000 people, the majority of whom were civilians. The bombing of Nagasaki was the second and final time a country deployed a nuclear weapon in combat. However, it wasn’t the last nuclear explosion, as testing of controlled explosions continued for years.

[left] The Trinity explosion; [right] Wrecked framework of the Museum of Science and Industry in Hiroshima, Japan 1945 © Everett Collection

On the 75th anniversary of the bombing, Nagasaki Mayor Tomihisa Taue called on Japanese President Shinzo Abe and the central government to sign and ratify the 2017 United Nations Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. However, there has been little if any official progress towards an international ban on nuclear weapons since then.

Data from: Arms Control Association Source: Hans M. Kristensen, Matt Kordas, U.S. Department of State, and Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

We support the call for a ban on nuclear weapons and as the threat of nuclear bombs is ever present, we are continuing our annual architecture competition to create “The Last Nuclear Bomb Memorial”. The Last Nuclear Bomb Memorial / Edition #5 is the fifth annual competition in which participants are tasked with creating a memorial located within a decommissioned nuclear weapon testing site. In response to the global silence surrounding the issue of nuclear weapons, participants in “The Last Nuclear Bomb Memorial / Edition #5” competition must submit their designs with NO DESCRIPTION TEXT. The architecture ideas must be communicated strictly with visuals. We are asking participants to design a building or structure in which the architecture would do all the talking.

The Last Nuclear Bomb Memorial / Edition #5 competition must submit their designs with NO DESCRIPTION TEXT; Choose a site from the list (available for download below) of top testing sites for the world’s strongest nuclear weapons. 

Download the full competition brief for more information!

Competition is open to all. No professional qualification is required. Design proposals can be developed individually or by teams (4 team members maximum). Correspondence with organizers must be conducted in English; All information submitted by participants must be in English.

Brief

The full competition brief can be downloaded as often as required; no additional information will be provided after registration.

(!) Full Competition Brief

Download brief

Prizes

Prize fund

10,000 €

1ST PLACE

5,000 €

2ND PLACE

3,000 €

3RD PLACE

1,000 €

Buildner Student Award

1,000 €

(more details)

6 Honourable mentions & certificates

Buildner will acknowledge the outstanding performance of all winners and honourable mentions with Certificates of Achievement.

Publicity campaign

The Buildner’s extensive global publicity campaign for the competition winners:

Buildner's two million

The results are published on buildner.com, a leading website in the architecture industry, attracting over one million unique visitors annually. Additionally, the campaign extends to Buildner's social networks, which boast over 800,000 followers combined, and through newsletter campaigns reaching over 200,000 subscribers.

Interview and movie

Winners will have the opportunity to submit a movie and an interview, boosting their recognizability and helping to build their name in the industry.

Extensive media network

Buildner leverages an extensive network of media industry leaders to publish the competition results. This broadens the audience further, ensuring that participants' work is showcased across multiple platforms known for their influence and reach in the architecture and design sectors.

Publicity

ArchDaily feature

As part of the collaboration between Buildner and ArchDaily, the competition winners will be showcased on ArchDaily, a leading architecture news platform.

This feature will greatly boost the winners' visibility to millions of architecture professionals and enthusiasts worldwide, increasing their chances for new opportunities, attracting new clients, and establishing their reputation in the industry.

Read more about Buildner and ArchDaily partnership
&

Jury members shall under no circumstances be contacted by competition participants or their representatives. Participants who attempt to contact jury members, shall be disqualified.

All jury members are involved in the evaluation based on their availability at that time. All communication regarding the competition should only be carried out with Buildner staff. For any questions please contact us on [email protected]  

Olha Kleytman

Founder of SBM studio

Ukraine

Flora Lee

Associate Partner, MAD Architects

USA

Peter Newman

artist

UK

Vincent Panhuysen

KAAN Architecten

Netherlands

James Whitaker

Founder of Whitaker Studio

United Kingdom

Wu Ziye

co-founder of Mix Architecture

China

Key dates

Send reminders

Registration fees

I'm
I will pay in
ADVANCED

19 Sep - 06 Nov

120 €

full award package

80 €

no monetary award

110 €

full award package

80 €

no monetary award

LAST MINUTE

07 Nov - 16 Jan

140 €

full award package

100 €

no monetary award

120 €

full award package

90 €

no monetary award

ADVANCED

19 Sep - 06 Nov

120 €

full award package

80 €

no monetary award

110 €

full award package

80 €

no monetary award

LAST MINUTE

07 Nov - 16 Jan

140 €

full award package

100 €

no monetary award

120 €

full award package

90 €

no monetary award

+4.5% VAT

 

STUDENT REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS


Contact us to receive special student rates for group registrations (discount applies for 3+ registrations from one university/school) and to receive further information and support for getting your students involved in architecture competitions. Send us request from your university email address along with basic information about yourself and your university/school. Please note that only recognized university staff can apply for the reduced student rate.

This project has no set budget.
No specific site has been selected for this competition. Choose a site from the list (available for download above) of top testing sites for the world’s strongest nuclear weapons.
No, as there is no specific site has been selected for this competition.
We recommend participants to select one site, however as this is an ideas competition, alternative visions can be proposed.
Memorial can be proposed on the testing site or anywhere near it.
For this competition participants are not allowed to use any text, including, but not limited to, concept description, room tags (e.g.: auditorium, bathroom, etc.), view names (e.g.:floor plan, section, etc.), scale (e.g.: M 1:500, etc.) or project title.
The purpose of the “no text” requirement is to ask participants to communicate their design using only images (sketches, 3D perspectives, diagrams etc.). Substituting text with icons would not serve the initial competition goal.
As it is explained in the competition brief - for this competition participants are required to upload one A2 presentation panel. Presentation deliverables set listed in the competition brief is a suggestion only. Participants are not required to present the entire list. Please choose only the most essential information set that would explain your design in the most efficient manner.
Engravings on the walls are allowed as long as they are not used as design/presentation annotations.
The Last Nuclear Bomb Memorial / Edition #5 is an ideas competition. Participants should focus on the concept development rather than the technical execution.
As it is explained in the competition brief - for this competition no text is allowed. The concept must be explained by visuals only.
Yes, participants may propose a sculpture instead of architecture as the main medium.
Participants are permitted to propose their own sites for the competition. The chosen location should hold historical significance related to nuclear weapons testing or development. It's important for the design to visually communicate this context effectively.
Click on "register now", fill in all the required fields, choose your payment method and submit your information. You will be forwarded to Paypal or CPS secure payment gateway, to cover the competition fee. Once we receive your payment, we'll send you an email with your username and password to upload your submission directly to the website.
You can add/remove/edit team member information as often as you want in the upload panel, up until the submission deadline.
Yes we are in the process of negotiating with multiple international industry-related media representatives. The list of media partners is constantly updated on our website, please check it regularly to find latest updates.
Yes. If the jury panel selects a Student award's submission for the top 3, it will automatically be awarded both prizes.
No. Competition entries are evaluated anonymously. The participant registration type is only revealed upon the announcement of the results.
Please contact us – [email protected] and we will address the problem directly.
The short answer is yes, you may submit a previously published design concept as long as you are the author. Before re-submitting your project, please carefully read the following clarification points listed here - architecturecompetitions.com/resubmit-your-design
As AI-generated images may be based on pre-existing work or generated using proprietary algorithms, it is best to check the specific terms and conditions of the AI tool used to generate the image to determine its ownership status. It may also be necessary to seek legal advice to fully understand the ownership rights and any restrictions that may apply. In general, it is not recommended to consider AI-generated images as your sole work or intellectual property unless you have obtained explicit permission to do so.
Celebrate your idea. Register today!