Architecture Competition Sleeping Pods On A Cliff Clients Favorite Award winners – Yanja Tumurbaatar, Sara Lolarga and Mini Cheon

We’d like to take the opportunity to introduce you to the Clients Favorite winners of our “Sleeping Pods On A Cliff” competition – Yanja Tumurbaatar, Sara Lolarga and Mini Cheon from Canada!

Clients Favorite from Canada

We are a group of three friends with diverse educational and working backgrounds who share a passion for meaningful architecture. Despite being separated in different cities across Canada, our group was formed through mutual connections and a desire to seek new opportunities to exercise our creativity. Collaboration on the Sleeping Pod competition enabled our group to develop a strong bond through the alignment of our values and differences in our strengths.

Yanja has two years of professional experience in architecture with degrees in architecture and interior design. Mini is a recent graduate of the Master of Architecture program at McGill University with professional experience in architecture. Sara has a degree in psychology and a diploma in architectural technology, with professional experience in mass timber manufacturing.

All three members are inspired by architecture that acknowledges the connection between people and their environment. Thus, we seek to design projects that speak to ephemeral qualities, such as experience and emotion.

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?

This is the group’s first architecture competition following graduation from post-secondary education. Throughout our professional experiences, members of the group have been exposed to a variety of projects ranging from civic to residential. Regarding our preferred project size, the group is most drawn towards small intimately scaled projects, as they allow us to experiment, have fun, and express our creativity.

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

Architecture is a physical manifestation of the interaction between environment and human experience. We believe an architect’s role is to design spaces that consider, respect, and respond to human behavior while also celebrating the uniqueness of geography, culture, and social context.

Why do you participate in architecture competitions?

We participate in architecture competitions because it is an opportunity to learn and experiment with new ideas. We enjoy how architecture’s creative process combines research and design to familiarize oneself with a different environment and culture. Since this competition took place during a time when travel was limited, this competition allowed our group to direct our creative energy into an expression that allowed for exploration of a new place, which further expanded our knowledge of the world.

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

Our group views architecture competitions as platforms to share ideas with the world. For those considering the benefits of entering a competition, we would encourage participating for the valuable lessons that one may gain from studying other cultures and exchanging ideas. Architecture competitions are fun opportunities to exercise one’s skill while also engaging with exciting prompts from around the world that resonate with one’s own values.