Architecture Competition Tokyo Urban Meditation Cabins Honorable mention winner - Ecole Nationale Supérieure d'Architecture Clermont-Ferrand

We’d like to take the opportunity to introduce you to one of our Honorable mention winner for our "Tokyo Urban Meditation Cabins" competition – Andranik Shahmirian from France!

Honorable mention from France

I am a senior student at the Clermont-Ferrand School of Architecture in France.

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?

Despite the fact that the most recent projects I worked on were primarily academic in nature and of a modest size, I continue to be drawn to new initiatives that push the boundaries of my understanding of architecture and the spaces that make up our physical environment.

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

A successful architecture project should use carefully selected materials and community-engagement techniques to materialize the terrain, history, and people of its immediate surroundings. Architecture must now, more than ever, adapt to climate change and local community requirements.As a result of the current problems, the role of an architect is changing and must evolve with those crises.

Why do you participate in architecture competitions?

I participate in architecture vision competitions when i find extra time in my academical work. Competitions in architecture are an excellent method to test out strategies, explore individual interests, and exercise more creative flexibility.

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

If you’re on the fence over participating or even just thinking about it, I urge you to simply do it. By choosing certain issues you want to research but don’t have the chance to in your office or school, taking part in an architecture competition might help you focus your interest in the broad field of architecture. Also, it gives you a chance to refine and test your design strategy.