Regional 2011

Regional Awards 2011

TOMORROW’S ARCHITECTS SET NEW STANDARDS AT 25TH COROBRIK ARCHITECTURAL STUDENT OF THE YEAR AWARDS

University of the Free State

Achieving sustainable built environments with low impacts on the natural environment is becoming a universal goal. Energy usage in buildings is under the spotlight. Water wise projects are most likely to get the go ahead. That’s why an in-depth understanding of the environmental constraints and impacts of technologies on architectural solutions is emerging so important for students of architecture. It is the resolution of environmental issues that can be expected drive architectural expression that will shape tomorrow’s buildings and the creation, extension and redevelopment of our towns and cities.

After 25 years sponsoring the Architectural Student of the Year Awards, Gary Westwood Corobrik Sales Manager Free State, said that Corobrik had seen many changes in architectural expression and anticipated that the growing consciousness and responsibility towards addressing the environmental imperatives will lead to architecture being increasingly grounded in the environmental resolution and that this will manifest itself more evidently in design. Passive solar design concepts, bio-mimicry and ‘living’ building fabrics that set out to manage and use the suns energy and water vapour are set to rise in prominence in tomorrow’s architecture. Tomorrows leading architects will therefore not be just great designers but will be well rounded in the technologies for achieving sustainable architecture. We have been witnessing the movement towards this in the student’s thesis projects in recent years and this years projects suggest students of architecture are increasingly up to speed and pushing the boundaries of design. He said this year’s regional winner Jurie Swart and his project Borderline – mediated landscape : A Water Research Centre for the University of the Free State (QwaQwa Campus) as well as runners up Marko Pretorius and Ian Cox and winner of the prize for best use of clay masonry, Martin Potgieter, demonstrated that future architects were embracing the sustainability agenda with environmental issues achieving equal status with functionality and aesthetics. Jurie Swart says, “When exploring the first traces of architecture it brings us to Marc-Antoine Laugiers’ reference to the primitive hut where the shelter and the skin act as a refuge: a wall offering protection from the outside world. In nature the skins of plants and animals are much more sophisticated - they are able to regulate temperature, generate energy and adapt to change.” “By exploring nature’s design and introducing biomimicry (the act of mimicking or copying biology) the obvious clues in nature can be applied to architecture which will ultimately result in the creation of a hybrid building- a building self-sustaining and adaptive to its surroundings.” This dissertation explores whether nature and architecture can amalgamate to become a hybrid solution in a vast landscape which has lost its reference to place and time. The transformation of place and time through architecture results in a progressive fusion giving meaning to a certain non-place lacking character and special qualities and resulting in an awakened space.” “The theoretical investigation strives to create an architectural typology that presents harmony between chaos and order, expressing the poetic quality of construction. The intention is to formulate a contemporary architecture which can be used to regenerate a declining urban context.”

The awards, which offer a R7 000 prize for the winner, a R5 000 prize for second place, a R3 000 prize for third place and a R3 000 prize for best use of clay masonry took place at the University of Cape Town. Each regional winner is entered into the national finals in March 2012 where the winner will receive R50,000. “These awards were created to promote quality design and to acknowledge talent among architectural students and Corobrik would like to believe this awards programme has promoted discourse and debate towards what constitutes really good architecture. Corobrik has for a long time regarded the role of the architectural community as key to defining the ultimate integrity of our built environment and for creating time honoured spaces that people feel comfortable to be in, are uplifting and relevant to those who use or witness them,” he said. Dirk Meyer, managing director of Corobrik said that achieving energy-efficiency that was central to the new National Building Regulations SANS 10400-XA:2011 defining the energy usage of buildings required that architects revisit the passive solar design concepts and techniques of yesteryear and where it may be appropriate enhance these with new technology able to add value with economic payback. As an example SANS10400-XA recognizes the role of thermal mass, thermal comfort and energy used for heating and cooling defining a minimum R-value of 0.35 for masonry walls, however thermal modeling shows how the incorporation of higher R-value insulation materials between the brick skins moves clay brick walls towards optimal thermal efficiency and comfort, supporting low life cycle energy costs and low total life cycle costs. Meyer said that energy efficiency was integral to Corobrik’s sustainability agenda. “Lower embodied energy values have been achieved with the introduction of new extrusion technology that has resulted in fuel savings for the drying and firing and delivery of products of products. This technology and the wider use of natural gas for the firing our products (natural gas nearly halves the carbon footprint per gigajoule of energy used in clay brick manufacture) is driving Corobrik’s embodied energy reductions,” he explained.

He added that Corobrik bricks continued to present designers with the opportunity to achieve sustainable buildings of quality with due sensitivity to environmental imperatives. “Corobrik provides clay bricks with embodied energy values in line with international best practice for the technologies employed as well as with thermal performance properties that support superior thermal comfort and lowest operational energy usage outcomes. A number of generic factors underpin clay bricks’ environmental integrity namely durability and longevity, reusability and recyclability, inertness that ensures no release of VOC’s or toxic fumes to impinge on air quality, incombustibility, natural sound insulation qualities, inorganic quality that is not a food source for mould and maintenance free qualities that incur no future carbon debt.”

Distributed on behalf of Corobrik (Pty) Ltd,
For additional information contact Gary Westwood on 051 432 4791
Jurie Swart can be reached on 083 657 1842

University of Cape Town

Corobrik continues to drive sustainability in the built environment and believes that it is essential to include sustainable materials in buildings able to contain future carbon debt and reduce costs associated with high maintenance and or material replacement within a hundred year lifecycle. Speaking at the 2011 Corobrik Architectural Student of the Year Awards at the University of Cape Town Christie van Niekerk, Corobrik Manager, Western Cape, said the regional finalists proved that sustainability, the more effective use of natural resources and the preservation of the environment were on the students’ radar. Meghan Roberta Ho-Tong whose project ‘Rupturing the Terrain Vague: Occupying the Territory Under the N2 Highway Bridges’ took first prize, highlighting how environmental elements might be integrated into the City of Cape Town. When discussing her thesis, Ho-Tong says, “This scheme originated with an inquiry into architecture as a tool for revelation, specifically of an existing situation which is overlooked or unappreciated. The project explores urban terrain vague, through an investigation of a specific site in Cape Town which does not fit into the efficient/productive circuits of the city, is a ‘leftover’ space as a result of developments in the Foreshore and is a site with extra-ordinary spatial and experiential characteristics. Rupture is investigated as a means to occupy the terrain vague in a way that maintains the ambiguity, potential and delicacy of the site situation but also facilitates an encounter with the site. Rupture, as a concept which accepts and also heightens, prolongs and intensifies inconsistencies, is explored in the project as a physical surface rupture and in the programme, which picks up on the site’s acoustic qualities and becomes a sound park which manipulates the sound environment of the site, creating silent spaces in which new sound can be created (artist residence for sound artist James Webb with public installation / performance space) and spaces in which new sounds are layered over the existing (public sound park). This year marks the 25th anniversary of Corobrik’s sponsorship of this prestigious competition. Thesis students from Universities and qualifying Institutes of Technology throughout South Africa are invited to submit entries for one of seven regional competitions. Each regional winner receives a prize of R7 000 and goes forward to represent the University at the national finals, where they will compete for top honours and a prize of R50 000 in early March 2012 In second place is Temba Jauch with his project entitled The project is entitled "Opportunity to Rise" which is a 40story mixed use building proposed to be sited in Cape Town CBD. Mandi Pretorius was placed third for her entry ‘Revealing the Sources of Making: A Narrative in Experimental Timber Construction.’

Students whose projects are placed second and third receive prizes of R5 000 and R3 000 respectively while the project that displays the best use of clay masonry is rewarded with R3 000. Joanne Stranack’s entry 'Inbetweening' won the award for best use of clay brick. Her entry is an architectural intervention for immigrants, who live in a constant condition of ‘in-between’, would have to balance the polarities of protecting immigrants from their host community while at the same time integrating them into it. Stranack says, “In keeping with Van Eyck’s ideas - enclosure through the right amount of openness / transparency – the scheme needed a material that could allow for varying degrees of transparency to facilitate spacial relationships and therefore social relationships. This is balanced by the need for the Immigrant Centre to be robust – a place with weight that feels safe and that could stand up to a heavy load of occupants and providing a strong physical barrier in times of crisis. The centre could however not be a cold detached place (often associated with the strong materials – concrete and steel) brick adds colour and a degree of softness while allowing a robust, low maintenance materiality. In many cultures it also has a strong association with the idea of ‘home’.

“The module of the brick is simple but with a variety of types and endless combinations the brick allows for unity in diversity, another principle of van Eyck's. Simple construction means that the community and immigrant can further benefit from the center by employing community participation in the construction process,” she concludes.

“The Corobrik Architectural Student of the Year Award programme was created to promote quality design and to acknowledge talent among architectural students. Over a quarter of a century, the architectural profession itself has changed significantly. While creating sustainable architecture has always been a fundamental aspect of design, aesthetics, functionality and environmental preservation are now more equal partners. While the parameters might have shifted over the years, we have witnessed a consistently high standard of work from Architectural students. As in past years, the 2011 entries demonstrate an understanding of the architectural challenges unique to South Africa and showcase innovative thinking.” This year’s entries and winners also echo Corobrik’s strong sustainability stance where the environment is one of the key pillars. “Within the environmental sustainability equation, Corobrik has focused on lowering the embodied energy values of its products to bring to architects products in line with international best practice for the technologies employed. In application these values combine with the internationally recognized thermal performance properties of double skin clay brick walls to support low total energy – embodied plus heating and cooling energy – outcomes, over the lifecycle of houses.

Tshwane University of Technology

Pieter Jonkers from the Tshwane University of Technology is this year’s regional representative at the 25th Corobrik Architectural Student of the Year Awards. His winning entry is ‘The Design of a Transportation Hub and Student Centre on the Pretoria Campus of the Tshwane University of Technology.’

Allin Dangers, Corobrik Director of Sales, Inland Region, noted that the architecture represented in the work of these young professionals from the Tshwane University of Technology was again of the highest caliber. Corobrik had been delighted to witness the growing maturity of architectural graduates coming out of Tshwane over the years, with architectural graduates now well able to compete with the best of the best from the other institutions. He said this year’s regional winner Pieter Jonkers as well as runners up Wandile Sibandze and Adrian Louw and winner of the prize for best use of clay masonry, Johan du Toit, demonstrated that future architects were embracing the sustainability agenda with environmental issues achieving equal status with functionality and aesthetics. Pieter Jonkers winning entry focuses on the design of a railway station and student centre as a place of arrival and meeting place at the Pretoria Campus of the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT). Various future developments envisaged for the campus will put more pressure on the already choked precinct. The proposal will comprise of an upgrade of the existing Metrorail station as well as an evaluation of the existing transport and parking situation. Jonkers says, “Although public transport to and from the campus mainly comprise busses and mini-bus taxi’s, railway transportation is an almost forgotten mode to serve the campus. A possible combination/connection between these forms of transport may result in a more centralised, accessible and organised transport situation – a gateway to TUT. Other modes of movement on campus will be tested (i.e. shuttle system). “ “In our vision this new complex (student centre /transportation hub) will become one of the most essential meeting and arrival spaces on campus – something which is currently absent. The approach will be to establish a pedestrian orientated campus environment integrated with activities to ignite a student life and to institute a sense of place. The redesign of existing outside spaces aims to create a more integrated and coherent campus environment.” In second place Wandile Sibandze’s thesis Mvembili Interpretive and Research Centre offers an interpretive and research centre in Mvembili area, Swaziland. Situated on a site rich in Swazi heritage and natural beauty of its environment the centre also encompasses a museum which tells the story of the monarch. Scientific and cultural explanation draws awareness of environmental conservation. Third place, Adrian Louw’s entry, ‘The design of a Louw security community re-entry facility in central Pretoria’ focuses on alternative approaches of incarceration in South African prisons. He says the current overcrowded facilities encourage habitual return to a life of crime whereas his dissertation proposes a new detention building. The facility he recommends will offer education, rehabilitation and holistic reintegration of inmates.

Best use of clay winner, Johan du Toit thesis is ‘The design of a music development centre in central Pretoria.’

Du Toit says, "The aim of the music centre is to contribute to the development of the musical art within the public arena of South Africa. It will serve as a case study for how music education and awareness could be approached.” “The design incorporates open and enclosed performing spaces, recording studios, classrooms, practice areas, an auditorium and administration facilities. It will act as a vibrant node as music and dance will be encouraged in the public area.” Louw integrated clay face brick on the main elements of the building to reflect the building's intention of the recognition of current material use and conform to what an African building should adhere to. Brick, especially in Pretoria, is used and recognised as a material used for formal buildings.
Flamingo Travertine from Corobrik will create an interesting and somewhat playful aesthetic on these main elements in juxtaposition to the monotonous colour pattern of concrete, which can become overbearing if used throughout the building. It not only serves an aesthetical purpose, but a functional purpose as well. Clay brick is recognised as a widely available building material in South Africa which does not require high skilled building aptitude. It also has a long life span, supports thermally efficient solutions with low maintenance this underpinning its economic value." The awards, which offer a R7 000 prize for the winner, a R5 000 prize for second place, a R3 000 prize for third place and a R3 000 prize for best use of clay masonry took place at the Tshwane University of Technology. Pieter Jonkers will represent this institution at the national finals on the 7th March 2012. “While these awards were created to promote quality design and to acknowledge talent among architectural students, they are importantly providing opportunity for discourse and debate on what constitutes really good architecture. As to be expected we are seeing design solutions and specification technologies emerging to better address the issues of global warming and that augurs well for our future built and natural environments,” Dangers said.

University of the Witwatersrand

Dwayne Saldanha of the University of Witwatersrand has scooped the Regional Award for the 25th Corobrik Architectural Student of the Year awards. Dwayne’s thesis entitled Choreography of Space is a dance studio, sited in Soweto. The proposed venue will give dancers an opportunity to develop their talents within their community. Speaking at the 2011 Corobrik Architectural Student of the Year Awards at the University of Witwatersrand, Chris Dickinson, Corobrik’ National Sales Director, said the regional finalists proved that sustainability, the more effective use of natural resources and the preservation of the environment were on the students’ radar. Dickinson commented that Corobrik had observed significant changes in architectural expression over the years and anticipated that tomorrows leading architects will, in addition to being great designers, be well informed and skilled in applying the various technologies for achieving sustainable architecture. Dwayne Saldanha, winner of the Wits regional finals said, “Soweto has an incredible, vibrant dance culture and no formalised dance studio exists. This thesis contemplates an integrated dance academy. The ‘Jabulani’ area is earmarked as the cultural precinct of Soweto and provides a rich historic canvas to explore the intersection of architecture and dance. The fusion of architecture and dance are configured by specific formal, political and aesthetic conditions. Architecture can then begin to be moulded from the language of choreography and its innate structure, rhythm, step and movement.” “Each style of dance requires different spatial arrangements normally separated from one another. Yet, Afrofusion is a new dance structure in Soweto which combines Western dance forms with South African dance rituals including Quito and Pantsula. In this way we can no longer design culturally specific spaces but need to be more sensitive allowing for this new form to arise and pay homage to the culturally fused nation we find ourselves in.” In second place is Caitlyn Manicom. Her thesis is entitled Ctrl. +Z (a cryonic tissue research lab + zoo) and asks the question, how do we undo and prevent animal extinction? She recommends the integration of the concepts of game reserve, zoo, natural history museum and cryobank into a single ‘DNA Zoo’ concept for the 21st century. Maincom says the red data list is evidence that measures taken to stall extinction are ineffective. The artificial landscapes attempted by man to preserve animals: namely nature reserves, zoological gardens and natural history museums; construct new versions of reality into which nature is filed so that it corresponds with Western logic. She believes it is possible to reinstate some of the natural order through establishing a network of genetics between zoos, natural history museums and nature reserves. In the process of collecting animal DNA data, we are creating a back up system for animals in the future. In third place is Michael Cornwell, his thesis is titled: Real-time City Hall: Ekurhuleni Legislature, Social Forum + Plaza. The region comprises towns and townships. Cornwell says the Ekurhuleni region was established at the end of the twentieth century and encompasses a sporadic clustering of towns and townships. It is region with enormous potential and a mature transport and industrial infrastructure. It however lacks an identifiable centre. Germiston, a historically significant town with a distinct CBD and the current location of the governing regional municipality is targeted for urban renewal. This renewal is intended to eventually extend throughout the region and lead to an integrated metropolitan city. He believes by introducing an intelligent and flexible City Hall which will relate to relevant issues a good civic life and legible city centre will emerge. Nicolette Garrett received a prize for the best use of clay in her thesis entitled, ‘[re]Writing New Layers. Inscribing refugee communities into the Johannesburg CBD’. In her entry she took cognisance of new global cultures that are emerging. She believes the refugees try and recreate their lost culture and identity in the new environment. Places must be connected, interesting, integrated, meaningful, and significant so they become a place of community, understanding, memory and meaning. Within the design the use of materials has been carefully considered as a tool for enhancing the sensory experience of the space. Natural materials; such as brick, wood and metals; have been used as a means for allowing for surfaces to enhance and alter the perceptions and experiences of spaces. Due to the fact the proposed project makes use of an existing building, the use of materials becomes an extremely important element of the design. With much of the existing building being left in a state of disrepair and abandonment the brick which was used in its construction has been left on display. The materials of the building are left to tell their story. The tarnishing and layering of wear on the brick surfaces adds the enriching experience of time allowing for the expressing of their age and history as well as the tale of their creation and human use. The objective of the building was to stimulate both internal and external perceptions, to heighten phenomenal and sensory experience while simultaneously expressing meaning. The use of brick allowed for all these objectives to be achieved. The brick allows for meaning and history to be read in the aging material while its tactile surface allowed for the stimulation of all the senses. The brick that was used was all reclaimed brick form the existing building. The bricks laid scattered in the buildings courtyard and it became important to incorporate them into the design of the new intervention.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of Corobrik’s sponsorship of this prestigious competition. Thesis students from Universities and qualifying Institutes of Technology throughout South Africa participate in the seven regional competitions. Each regional winner receives a prize of R7 000 and is entered into the national finals where they will compete for top honours and a prize of R50 000 in early March 2012 “The Corobrik Architectural Student of the Year Awards were created to promote quality design and to acknowledge talent among architectural students. Over a quarter of a century, the profession itself has changed significantly. While creating sustainable architecture has always been a fundamental aspect of design, aesthetics, functionality and environmental preservation are now more equal partners.

While the parameters might have shifted over the years, we have witnessed a consistently high standard of work from Architectural students. As in past years, the 2011 entries demonstrate an understanding of the architectural challenges unique to South Africa and showcase innovative thinking. This year’s entries and winners also echo Corobrik’s strong sustainability stance where the environment is one of the key pillars.” “The Corobrik Architectural Student Awards were created to promote quality design and recognise excellence among final year architectural students. Corobrik has always regarded the role of the architect as being critical in achieving quality of the built environment and in creating living and working spaces that are uplifting and relevant to those who inhabit them” concluded Dickinson.

University of Pretoria

Achieving sustainable built environments with low impacts on the natural environment has become a given for today’s architect. Energy usage in buildings is under the spotlight. Water wise projects are most likely to get the go ahead. That’s why an in-depth understanding of the environmental constraints and impacts of technologies on architectural solutions is emerging so important for students of architecture. It is the resolution of environmental issues within the sustainability quantum that can be expected to drive architectural expression that will shape tomorrow’s new and reconstituted buildings and the creation, extension and redevelopment of our towns and cities.

After 25 years sponsoring the Architectural Student of the Year Awards, Allin Dangers, Corobrik Director of Sales, Inland said that the company had seen many changes in the approach to specifying building products. Today’s strong focus on environmental sustainability has raised many new questions of materials manufacturers with answers sometimes based more on assumption than researched fact. Corobrik choose a long time back to avoid such a pitfall, committing resources to research to better understand why clay brick offers so much to the thermal efficiency of buildings and just where Corobrik products fell in embodied and operational energy terms. The bottom line from the research is that the embodied energy values of Corobrik clay bricks are competitive in international terms and that when it comes to thermal performance of walling envelopes namely thermal comfort and lowering energy usage for heating and cooling, double skin clay bricks walls with the appropriate use of resistance within the brick skins supports lowest operational energy outcomes. This contribution of clay brick to the sustainability of our built and natural environments is set to underpin the relevance and use and clay brick in modern architecture. He said this year’s regional winner Clifford Gouws and his project Magazine Hill: A weathered continuum as well as runners up Ahmed Alkayyali, Jankel Nieuwoudt and winner of the prize for best use of clay masonry, Petri van Wyk, demonstrated that future architects were embracing the sustainability agenda with environmental issues achieving equal status with functionality and aesthetics. Clifford Gouws dissertation proposes to use an abandoned historical military site on Magazine Hill in Pretoria He says,” my thesis is rooted within a process of unification, a personal struggle to understand the fragile relationship that exists between architecture and time. The site consists of two underground ammunition magazines, five bomb shelters and ammunition factories, all structures that represent an era of unrest in South Africa. In 1945 a mysterious explosion of the Central Magazine scarred the face of Magazine Hill, leading the activities on the site to an early death, trapping architecture in time and abandonment.” “The project places contemporary commemorative architecture under the limelight, criticizing the static notion of heritage commemoration through the typologies of museums and memorials. The architectural response of this dissertation is thus focused on commemoration through everyday use.” A brass foundry is proposed to recycle the spent ammunition shells of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), thereby introducing brass artists as a public interface to Magazine Hill. Where ammunition was once produced, ammunition is now reduced. This programme could form mediation between the public and the military; exposing different layers of the past by reinstating a connection between architecture and time,” concludes Gouws. Runner up Ahmed Alkayyali proposes a surveillance centre in Pretoria with his thesis Liminal Public Infrastructure. Everyday the city plays out its spectacle unnoticed. This quotidian context is one that is full of complexity, spontaneity and possibility. It is here that architecture can engage with the city and its user, space and experience; challenging conventional architectural typologies. In public space architecture can enhance and celebrate the everyday. The project investigates all these aspects within the city of Pretoria and more specifically along van der Walt Street, focusing on the urban cavity at Munitoria. Surveillance is conceptually used to experience this spectacle, on multiple levels of interpretation. An inhabited stairway is developed to link the urban cavity, back to the city. Where the architecture is reduced to support both the concept of surveillance and experience. In third place is Jankel Nieuwoudt, his thesis is a High Street Abattoir. Using a deserted industrial site he recommends an urban abattoir. The design creates a dialogue between the public and the abattoir by adopting the methodology of reclaiming the entire animal carcass as done in South African ritual slaughter. The design incorporates numerous sustainable systems to reduce the waste found in abattoirs.

Petri van Wyk won the best use of clay brick award for her entry entitled, ‘Die Wagte van Pretoria, 'n stedelike voetslaanroete’’. Her thesis is a hiking trail in the city of Pretoria to communicate the current and historic landscape and to illustrate the connections that existed between original fortifications. The distortion of heritage by the contemporary landscape of Pretoria is investigated by an overnight facility design at the Eastern Redoubt on Strubenkop, Lynnwood. Petri said, “I used clay brick as a contemporary stone for a present-day stronghold or fort (the overnight facility) in memory of the original stone fort that once stood on the hill. The versatility of brick provided me the opportunity to communicate my concept of distortion in the contemporary ruins exhibition area.” “The brick is used as infill for the steel frame structure to add thermal mass that will help moderate indoor temperatures. This had to be done as the building accommodates an outdoor lifestyle thus the whole experience had to be external without giving up the comfort of the occupants (no glass has been used).”

“Brick is available in standard sizes which make it easy to transport and handle on site without trampling the fragile, historic site with massive machinery. Finally, the use of red clay face brick was inspired by the natural colour palette of the Magaliesberg Moutain Range of which Strubenkop is part.” The awards, which offer a R7 000 prize for the winner, a R5 000 prize for second place, a R3 000 prize for third place and a R3 000 prize for best use of clay masonry took place at the University of Pretoria. Each regional winner is entered into the national finals in March next year where the winner will receive R50000. “These awards were created to promote quality design and to acknowledge talent among architectural students and it is particularly rewarding to witness how the awards programme is promoting discourse and debate towards what constitutes good architecture. The role of the architectural community is key to defining the ultimate integrity of our built environments and for creating time honoured spaces that people feel comfortable to be in, are uplifting and relevant to those who use and witness them,” continued Dangers.

Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University

Energy efficient mechanisms and interventions to better sustain the environment are not just nice to haves – they are integral to a more sustainable future and building standards and regulations are likely to be revised and fine tuned going forward to support such an end. The architectural profession is central to the solution. Speaking at the 2011 Corobrik Architectural Student of the Year Awards in Port Elizabeth, Christie Van Niekerk, Corobrik Manager, Western Cape, said the regional finalists projects proved that sustainability in its broadest sense was on the students radar albeit the focus of the projects presented was more towards the creation and enhancement of sustainable urban environments. Mofulatsi Rampou from the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, whose project 'The design of a train station in the Port Elizabeth CBD' took first prize highlighting the relevance of the cities transport infrastructure within the urban fabric and how the stations position and architecture may used to advance the social and economic sustainability of the city. Mofulatsi Rampou said, “The position of the current train station is some distant from the City’s other transit nodes vis-a-vis, BRT, minibus and meter taxis thus affecting the general commuting public.”

“Time is lost to travel, often by feet, compounded whenever heavy luggage must be moved from the train station to the next form of transport. If commuters waiting to board the trains need refreshments, they must cross the road to purchase refreshments.”

“Having identified the problem my thesis creates a comprehensive building, the needs and welfare of commuters can be accommodated. The train station will be sited centrally and will develop into a vibrant 24 hour hub.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of Corobrik’s sponsorship of this prestigious competition. Thesis students from Universities and qualifying Institutes of Technology throughout South Africa are invited to submit entries for one of seven regional competitions. Each regional winner receives a prize of R7 000 and is entered into the national finals, where they will compete for top honours and a prize of R50 000 at The Wanderers Club on 7 March 2012 Students whose projects are placed second and third receive prizes of R5 000 and R3 000 respectively while the project that displays the best use of clay masonry is rewarded with R3 000. This year’s runners up are Dustin Morris in second place and Elke Le Roux in third place Dustin Morris’ thesis is A City Opera House for Port Elizabeth. Morris says an existing natural park environment along the beachfront of Port Elizabeth will be the site of the Opera House. It will connect the rejuvenated inner city with the beachfront and the proposed future development of the Port Elizabeth waterfront. The building aims to establish an identity through its expression directly relating to the context. The use of clay brick is extensively used for its sound insulation properties, used in the detailing of the walls to prevent unwanted noise penetration. The brick also creates a mass that thermally regulates the building and makes the building more sustainable. In third place Elke Le Roux considers Port Elizabeth’s position as the Mohair capital of the world – yet remaining practically invisible within the city. She has created a centralized facility with her thesis entitled "The Consolidation of the Mohair Industry into a Single Exchange" She has designed an exchange which responds directly to the need within the mohair industry for a central point for farmers, brokers, buyers, entrepreneurs and young designers to introduce, market and sell raw mohair. It addresses the need to create awareness of the brand, process and product through exploring the notion of an integrated commercial exhibition space into an industrial process. “The Corobrik Architectural Student of the Year Awards were created to promote quality design and to acknowledge talent among architectural students. Over the past quarter of a century, the profession itself has changed significantly. While creating sustainable architecture has always been a fundamental aspect of design, aesthetics, functionality and the environmental issues are now emerging as more equal partners at the design concept stage. While the parameters might have shifted over the years, we have witnessed a consistently high standard of work from Architectural students. As in past years, the 2011 entries demonstrate an understanding of the architectural challenges unique to South Africa and showcase innovative thinking.”

Corobrik Recognises Landscape Architecture

In the pursuit of creating sustainable cities, the value of Landscape Architects in creating urban environments people appreciate and desire to live in, is now undisputed. This has been borne out of the economic success of so many well conceived new and urban renewal projects undertaken in major cities and tourist towns around the world – Cape Town being just one good example. Successful urban design, the combination of hard landscaping elements (paving, walls and structures) and soft elements (plants, shrubs, grassed areas) to compliment what is there and provide context and impetus to the architecture still to come, begins with the Landscape Architect.

It was in recognition of the importance and value Landscape Architects have made, and will continue to make towards more sustainable cities in South Africa that Corobrik considered it fitting to extend its Awards Programme for final year Architecture Students to Landscape Architecture students. This was done in the form of a special award of R7000.00 for “The Most Innovative Final Year Landscape Architecture Project' in Cape Town, the key criteria for this award being innovation and creativity as it finds expression in a final year master’s thesis project.

The 2011 award went to UCT graduate and member of the city of Cape Town’s urban design branch, Ancunel Steyn, for her project Sepulchre Landscape which takes an integrated, experiential approach to rethinking burial and burial grounds.

Steyn’s Sepulchre Landscape was designed as a public space much like a square, a park or a conservation area that is multifunctional. In contrast, existing cemeteries are often monofunctional with limited possibilities for future diversification of use.“A sepulcher landscape should be a place that engages the soul and embraces the spirit of the living, encouraging reflection and respect. Instead, cemeteries are usually places that reflect stagnation, separation and isolation rather than positioning death and mortality as an integral part of everyday life. Cemeteries are exiled to the outskirts of a city, divorced from the lives of the living and perceived as dead landscapes that don’t appeal to the senses of the visitor, create a meaningful experience or even provide a comfortable environment,” she explains. Steyn challenged this, pointing out that, historically, cemeteries were used as parks and were synonymous with churches and the main roads of villages. “I investigated how a space can better relate to a ‘living’ landscape than to a ‘dead’ one and explored abstract concepts such as memory, death, love, mourning and healing through poetry and a visual translation where emotion that resulted from a personal loss is transformed into design.” In embracing the more esoteric considerations, she ultimately interrogated the more functional issues – how a place such as this could be integrated with the wider urban fabric. “The vision of the sepulcher landscape addresses burial space limitations by making sepulcher landscapes hybrid open spaces. This award is important to me because it shows that others appreciate my work, innovative approach and comments on how we treat our open spaces,” she said. Corobrik Manager, Western Cape, Christie van Niekerk said it was fitting that this new Landscape Architecture award for a final year student should be born in Cape Town, a city where Corobrik clay pavers have enjoyed such wide expression in the beautification of Cape Town. While it is evident that our clay pavers have addressed the practical concerns of durability, longevity and low maintenance it is rewarding to witness how they have been able to transform dull areas into creative artworks. While contrasting pavers and patterns have been used effectively to draw awareness and guide people through public spaces their inherent rich earthy colours and textures sit unobtrusively in the green landscapes complimenting the overall look and feel of the urban landscape. Steyn’s design makes extensive use of de Hoop Red piazza pavers which both enhanced and contrasted with other materials such as re-used brick (a metaphor for deterioration and symbolic of the ageing process), metal, corten, exposed aggregate pavers and concrete. Steyn said the vivid red of the de Hoop pavers encompassed all the traditional symbolism of the colour red – blood, warning, love, passion and war. “Red can be seen in the transition period between summer and winter. Red warns of what is to come but also contributes to a rich and positive experience of the physical world and a strong portrayal of the metaphysical. The red brick warns of one’s immortal nature and stands in between life and death.”

University of KwaZulu- Natal

Speaking at the 2011 Corobrik Architectural Student of the Year Awards in Durban on 10 February 2012, Mike Ingram, Corobrik’s Director of Sales, KwaZulu-Natal and Border said, “Corobrik’s association with the university goes back to the late 1970’s. In those far off days Corobrik used to, inter alia, sponsor an end of year function for final year architectural students. Our interactions with the university lead to discussions, which culminated into the “Corobrik Architectural Student of the Year Award” being born in 1986.” “2011 marks the 25th anniversary of this national event which has been sponsored by Corobrik since it’s inception.” “Over the years we have seen many exciting submissions and have seen previous national winners go on to great success in their architectural careers.” “Over the last 25 years financial, political, social and environmental issues have changed significantly and this has been reflected in the diversity of the architectural submissions. They have always been characterized by very high standards meaning that the winners were always “the best of the best” in any one year. “This year’s entries and winners echo Corobrik’s strong sustainability stance where the environment is one of the key pillars. Within the environmental sustainability equation, embodied energy of building materials forms an important consideration in today’s design and specification processes and preempting this Corobrik to steps a long time back to ensure its clay bricks embodied energy values were in line with the best international practice. In application these values combine with internationally recognized thermal performance properties of clay brick walls to support lowest total energy requirements over a building’s life cycle”. “Add to this the longevity of clay masonry and the fact that clay brick is inert and emits no VOC’s either in installation or use, that research concludes that clay bricks meet all the requirements for healthy indoor and outdoor environments and Corobrik clay bricks present architects with the opportunity to achieve quality buildings and sustainable built environments.” This year’s regional winner from the University of KwaZulu- Natal is Mohammad Bilal Haq whose project ‘Transformation of Museum architecture in South Africa: Towards a children’s museum for the City of Durban’ took first prize, highlighting how environmental resolutions could be accommodated in a structure that fired the imagination. Bilal says he proposes a Children’s Museum for the City of Durban. He says, “For a long time museums throughout the world were specifically designed to respond to grown-ups and their children were obligated to experience museums as if they were adults. The way children learned and experienced the world and places around them was never considered in the design of the public museum. Similarly, in the inner-city of Durban.”

“There are few distinguishable public buildings and urban places that are designed with children and families in mind. The increasing number of shopping malls, theatres, and gaming centres in Durban are hardly the places for children and families looking for a unique experience that allows freedom to learn, joyful interaction, self exploration, creativity, becoming one with nature and positive social and cultural exchange.”

“My study is motivated by the need to define such a place and proposes that a children’s museum for Durban is the missing link in child education in our contemporary society.”

Runner up Jeff Timm’s entry is entitled “A study of the decentralised business nodes of the Post-Apartheid city of Durban: Toward a new business district as part of the greater Durban business system.” He has designed an office node on buffer strip of land between Umlazi and Lamontville and Chatsworth, with the intention of providing economic upliftment opportunities to the previously disadvantaged communities. One of the major features of the building is the transparency on the south side, created by glass. It is intended to connect the building to Umlazi across the river. Another feature is the tree-like columns which hold up the roofs above the circulation. They are indicative of new growth and technological advancement in previously disadvantaged areas. The winner of the “Regional Corobrik Architectural Student of the Year Award” will represent UKZN at the National Awards to be held in Johannesburg over three days from 5 – 7 March. There, the seven regional winners from all architectural faculties in South Africa will present to a three person panel of judges who are professional architects and the National winner will be announced on 7 March. The National winner will receive a certificate and a cash prize of R50 000. The Architectural Student of the Year Award is the premier architectural student award in South Africa and Corobrik is proud to be the sponsor, contributing to the development of a profession so important for defining what tomorrows sustainable built environments shall be.