Introduction

 

Introducing the Architect's Chair Competition, an exciting opportunity for architects and designers to showcase their versatility and creativity by designing a signature piece of furniture. Inspired by the long-standing tradition of iconic architects creating custom furniture as an extension of their architectural work, this competition challenges participants to distill their design approach into its core components and represent their unique style in a single piece of furniture – the architect's chair.

COMPETITION ORGANISERS
The Architect's Chair

Throughout history, renowned architects such as Charles and Ray Eames, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Marcel Breuer, and Arne Jacobsen have successfully designed iconic chairs that embody their distinct design philosophies. The Architect's Chair competition seeks to continue this tradition by inviting architects and designers to explore new materials, construction techniques, and ergonomic solutions within the constraints of a chair design, ultimately producing a functional and aesthetically compelling piece of furniture.

As the first installment in a new series of competitions focused on custom furniture design, the Architect's Chair competition encourages participants to think beyond the boundaries of architecture and delve into the realm of product design. By creating a signature chair that reflects their individual style and vision, architects and designers can demonstrate their versatility and contribute to the ongoing dialogue between architecture and design. So, take a seat and let your creativity unfold in the Architect's Chair competition!

Download 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.

The Full Competition Brief

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

(!) FULL COMPETITION BRIEF
Download

Prizes

TOTAL PRIZE FUND

5,000 €

1ST PLACE

3,000 €

2ND PLACE

1,500 €

3RD PLACE

500 €

+ 6 Honorable 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:

"SEEN BY" ONE MILLION

Results published on buildner.com - one of the leading websites in the industry and is visited by over one million unique visitors each year.

"SEEN BY" 800 000 MORE

Publications on Buildner's social networks (over 600,000 followers) and newsletter campaigns (over 200,000 subscribers).

INTERVIEW

Exclusive interview published with the results and shared on Buildner's social networks.

MOVIE

The competition winners will be granted an opportunity to submit a movie about themselves. The video will be published on Buildner's website and social networks.

MEDIA PARTNERS

The competition results will get international art and design media coverage and will be featured in the world’s leading architecture media outlets.

Key dates

Send reminders
Closing date for registration
1 November 2023
Closing date for project submission
5 December 2023
23:59 (LONDON TIME)
Competition Q&A deadline
6 November 2023

In order to guarantee equal opportunities to all competition participants,
No new questions will be answered after this deadline.

Announcement of the winners
13 February 2024
Competition Q&A deadline
6 November 2023

In order to guarantee equal opportunities to all competition participants,
No new questions will be answered after this deadline.

Registration fees

I'm

65 €

55 €

Register now

+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 ([email protected]) a request from your university email address and basic information about yourself and your university/school. Only recognized university staff can apply for the reduced student rate.

Jury

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]  

Johan Ansander

designer

Sweden

Rasmus Bækkel Fex

Furniture designer

Denmark

Boris Berlin

Founder and Partner at Boris Berlin Design

Denmark

Anne Brandhøj

designer at Bly Studio, Anne Brandhø

Denmark

Mårten Claesson

co-founder of Claesson Koivisto Rune Architects

Sweden

Sarah Hossli

Product designer

Switzerland

Lorenz Noelle

Product designer

Switzerland

Li Xiang

Founder and CEO of X+Living

China

Takeshi Yamamura

founder of YSLA YamamuraSanzLaviña Architects

Japan

Extended list of jury biographies

FAQ

Contact us for more questions
Participants in the competition are not required to submit images of an actual, physically built chair. Instead, you can simply submit final renders or other representations of your concept design.
The "Architect's Chair" competition suggests a chair designed by an architect, meaning it's a chair conceived and executed with an architectural perspective. The target audience for this chair could be anyone, not just architects. It's about applying architectural principles and thinking to the design of a chair.
Yes, any form of seating, including benches and stools, is acceptable for submission to The Architect's Chair competition. The competition brief is open to interpretation, and you are even welcome to reimagine the very process of sitting. We encourage creativity and innovation in all entries.
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.
Only one proposal per registration is permitted. Participants are entitled to register multiple times if they wish to participate in the competition with several proposals.
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.
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 lpreviously 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.