The Architect's Chair #3 1st and Student Award winner - Université du Québec à Montréal

We’d like to take the opportunity to introduce you to the 1st and Student Award winners of our "The Architect's Chair #3" competition – Olivier Lacroix, in collaboration with William Deschamps from Canada!

Olivier Lacroix and William Deschamps

Please tell us about your company (when it was founded, where it is based, how many employees, etc) Alternatively, if you do not have a company, please give us some insights on your own professional/academia background.

Olivier Lacroix holds a BA in Film Production (Concordia University, Montreal), a BA in Environmental Design (École de design, Uqàm, Montreal) and will enter the Master’s program at the Peter Guo-hua Fu School of Architecture (McGill University) next fall. Last February, he was part of the exhibition Bois Magique No 2 in Montreal (Canada).

William Deschamps was first trained in industrial design at the Cégep de Ste-Foy (Québec) and recently graduated from BA program in Environmental Design (École de design, Uqàm, Montreal). His practice centers on object creation. He took part in the Bois Magique No 2 exhibition in February 2025, Montreal.

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?

The Risus side chair was created by Olivier Lacroix and William Deschamps as part of a course in object design at l’École de Design (Uqàm). The school allows students to explore different scales of intervention: the object, architecture and urban planning. The course in which the chair was designed allowed us to reflect more specifically on the typology of the chair, its materiality, its ergonomics and its structure.

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

We believe that it is now essential for an architect to have a global and transversal vision in his approach, in line with critical regionalism: a proposal should consider its context of implementation, local know-how, accessibility to material resources, sustainability and habitability of an architectural project.

Why do you participate in architecture competitions?

This is our first competition. I decided to participate along with William because of my interest in both design and architecture and the great opportunity it gives to gain international visibility. It's also an opportunity to receive constructive criticism and advice from a jury renowned in the field of design and architecture. For the two of us it's an occasion to further reflect on our practice and on the objects we believe are worth creating.

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

Give it a try! One never knows… I decided to enter this competition without really thinking about the outcome, whether it was even possible to win a prize or an award. It was more about participating and receiving feedback from an international professional jury. One can never tell in advance how far a project will go in a competition without trying.