| TEXTS |
Last year’s ARCHITECTS GRAND PRIX – NATIONAL ARCHITECTURE AWARD, the most prestigious award for architects in the Czech Republic, took place for the first time with a new name, and for the first time in cooperation with the largest architects‘ guild in the Czech Republic - the Society of Czech Architects with the Czech Chamber of Architects – an autonomous institution with the transferred execution of state administration. Under the law, the CCA is responsible for the environment created to give rise to architecture in the Czech Republic. Although the competition was held “in cooperation”, it followed rules from previous years. This year’s competition saw a fundamental turning point. In order to clear away many architects’ complaints about the method of nomination and the way the competition is presented, a process to adjust the rules was set in motion. The representatives of convening organizations agreed to establish the ACADEMY OF ARCHITECTURE. After several months of negotiations, searching for a way to name its members and to define the role of the “academics” in the competition, a group of people was formed whose qualification cannot be disputed. A compromise was also reached as to what role they would play in nominations for the competition. I personally feel happy about the agreement the organizers of the “Architects Grand Prix“ reached. The competition remained unique insofar as the entries are assessed by a completely independent, mostly foreign Jury, and self-nominations are acceptable. The creation of the “academy” added an objective label to quality as it is viewed by experts. That is very important for the competition’s credibility and its position in society.
It made me feel glad that nearly all “academics” addressed responded to the organizers’ appeal. Most of the addressed accepted their appointment and sent their nominations. Better yet, the authors of selected projects, with just a few exceptions, felt honoured by their nominations and really entered their projects into the competition. That way, we really had a truly representative set of buildings for the international Jury. A set overlapping with what had already caught the attention of many experts earlier and what had also been considered remarkable by critics and theorists from specialist magazines and the Czech Architecture Year Book. I am convinced that interest in the results will increase - a fact not negligible in our media-driven society.
The media presentation of information arising from the competition is the main aim for next year’s volume organizers. I believe that this year’s leap in quality will help us in presenting the competition on TV. A feature-length show on a prestigious channel is the right expression of the importance that architecture plays in everyone’s lives and in the life of society as a whole. The processing of materials obtained and their use for education in broad terms as well as for the education of professionals has as yet been an unseized opportunity and challenge.
I am truly glad that forces were joined – success is always lies in unity. The Architects Grand Prix is a competition both the organizers and participants can be proud of.
Ing. arch. Dalibor Borák,
Chairman of Czech Chamber of Architects,
17. 5. 2008