Re:Form - New Life for Old Spaces

Julien De Smedt is the founder and director of JDS Architects based in Copenhagen and Brussels. An architect and designer whose work  is internationally spread, Julien’s commitment to the exploration of  new architectural models and programs has helped re-energize the  contemporary architecture discussion. Seminal projects include the VM Housing Complex, the Mountain  Dwellings, Lille’s Maison Stéphane Hessel, the Iceberg, Kalvebod Waves  and the Holmenkollen Ski Jump. Born in Brussels to French art enthusiast Jacques Léobold and Belgian  artist Claude De Smedt, Julien attended schools in Brussels, Paris, and  Los Angeles before receiving his diploma from the Bartlett School of  Architecture in London. Prior to founding JDS Architects, Julien worked with Rem Koolhaas in  Rotterdam, and co-founded the architecture firm PLOT with Bjarke Ingels  in Copenhagen. In 2013 he co-founded with William Ravn the agenda driven design label Makers With Agendas, addressing matters of society to  create meaningful products. Julien has been a guest lecturer in numerous venues worldwide and  a visiting professor at Copenhagen’s Art Academy, Rice University in Houston, Texas, the University of Kentucky, MIT in Cambridge, USA, and  at the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm. His work is published  and exhibited internationally. He published the monograph PIXL to XL and released 2 influential books:  Agenda, Can We Sustain our Ability to Crisis? and Built Unbuilt. Among other awards and recognition, Julien received the Henning  Larsen Prize in 2003 and the Eckersberg medal in 2005, the Maaskant  Award in 2009 and the Prix Dejean in 2014 from the French Academy of Architecture. In 2004 the Stavanger Concert Hall received the Golden Lion as the  World’s Best Concert Hall at the Venice Biennale, the Maritime youth  House won the AR+D award in London and was nominated for the Mies  van der Rohe award. The Mountain received the World Architecture  Festival Award and MIPIM Award in 2009, while the Iceberg received the latter in 2013 along with the Architizer A+ Award and the Best Building Award in 2015 from Archdaily. More recently Maison Stéphane Hessel was among  the best Hotels at the 2016 MIPIM Awards and the Hangzhou Gateway  was a 2017 Architizer A+ finalist. In 2019 The Holmenkollen Ski Jump  received the Houen Foundation Award, Norway’s most important award for architecture.

Anne Cecilie Haug is the director of staffing, senior architect, and member of the research and innovation team at the Oslo office of Snøhetta. Her completed projects with Snøhetta include the Fuglemyrhytta and Tungestølen wooden cabin projects, as well as several hospitality projects with small units and micro-homes.

Haggai Dror is a seasoned leader with over 15 years of international experience in the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) space. As the founder of AggEquo, a private equity firm based in Pittsburgh, Haggai focuses on acquiring and growing design, engineering, and architecture firms. He has led transformational projects across North America in infrastructure, transportation, real estate, and renewable energy. Haggai’s operational expertise and passion for innovative, sustainable design make him a valuable contributor to the competition jury.

Kevin Lim is founding principal of Studio SKLIM, an award-winning multidisciplinary practice based in Singapore, where he works at the intersection of architecture, material research, and sustainable innovation. His career spans London, Singapore, and Beijing, including experience with OMA, and his work extends into speaking and teaching roles with institutions such as the Indian Institute of Architects, Korea University, Tarumanagara University, and the National University of Singapore, as well as appearances at events like the original Pecha Kucha in Tokyo. His research—supported by DesignSingapore and Hyundai Motor Group’s ZER01NE platform—explores the integration of natural materials, traditional craft techniques, and contemporary technologies to shape new approaches to sustainable design. He is the author of the studio’s monograph Studio SKLIM: Evolving Techne (Images Publishing) and currently leads a design studio at the National University of Singapore. Lim holds an AA Diploma from the Architectural Association in London, a Bachelor of Architecture from NUS, and is accredited with the India Green Building Council (IGBC).

Roman Izquierdo Bouldstridge is the Founder and Principal of Studio Roman Izquierdo Bouldstridge, an award-winning architecture and design practice based in Barcelona. His studio is known for its innovative and highly conceptual approach, rooted in continuous research and a pursuit of beauty through simplicity. Each project begins with a deep reading of the existing space and its context, resulting in architecture that blurs the line between the natural and the artificial. Light plays a central poetic role in his work, shaping calm, harmonious atmospheres that express a strong environmental responsibility. Studio Roman Izquierdo Bouldstridge works across architecture, interiors, and furniture design. Izquierdo Bouldstridge’s creative sensitivity—strongly influenced by Japanese aesthetics—is evident in his warm, nature-infused spaces where light, material, and time are carefully orchestrated. A graduate of the Barcelona School of Architecture (ETSAB), he began his professional career in Japan with celebrated architects Junya Ishigami and Kengo Kuma before founding his own studio in 2014. His work has been exhibited at the Venice Architecture Biennale 2021 (Time Space Existence) and has earned international recognition, including the Architecture Madrid Awards (AMA), International Design Awards (IDA), and Rethinking the Future Awards. He has also been a finalist for the Dezeen Awards 2020, the SBID Awards, and the World Interiors News (WIN) Awards, and has been nominated for Building of the Year. In parallel with his practice, Roman Izquierdo Bouldstridge is active in academia. He is currently a professor at Elisava, School of Design and Engineering, teaching in the Master’s programme in Interior Design and Interior Architecture, and at IED Barcelona, where he leads the course Interior Design with Japanese Inspiration. He has also taught at Artidi, School of Visual Merchandising and Design, focusing on light, form, materials, and spatial dialogue.

Oliverio Najmias is an architect, professor, and founder of Oliverio Najmias Arquitectos. Since 2007, he has worked under a single conviction: architecture begins when the unseen is revealed. His practice focuses on dismantling the obvious, reading context with precision, and transforming complex problems into operational clarity. His multiscale approach—from the urban to the domestic—rejects style as a formula: each project finds its inevitable form.

Tom Schroeder is a senior architect with Patkau Architects and a guest critic / adjunct faculty at the University of British Columbia.  Tom has led teams of architects on a broad range of projects including some of the most distinguished and innovative academic, cultural, civic and residential projects in Canada.

Tiago do Vale is a Portuguese architect known for his critically engaged, context-driven approach to design. A graduate of the University of Coimbra with advanced studies in Architectural Heritage at the University of Porto, his work at Tiago do Vale Arquitectos explores the continuity between architecture, culture, and lived experience, emphasizing sensitivity to place and historical narrative. His projects have been widely published and exhibited internationally and have received numerous honors, including the Architecture MasterPrize, ArchDaily’s Building of the Year Award, and the Architizer A+ Awards. He frequently serves as a juror for major international design competitions. In addition to his architectural practice, do Vale is active as an editor, curator, columnist, and lecturer, contributing to ongoing discussions on urban planning, heritage preservation, and architectural rehabilitation.