The event, organised by the prize PR team at Caro Communications, was held at the SCP East furniture store on November 24th and was attended by many participating teams, two of the 2021 judging panel and representatives of the architectural press. The ceremony was a great occasion to finally meet the teams face to face, view all shortlisted entries as well as the 3 finalist videos, also featured on the Davidson Prize website.
The Davidson Prize is primarily about three things:
- To promote transformative architecture for the home
- To encourage multi-disciplinary approaches (which this year’s entrants showcased brilliantly)
- And to recognise inventive and compelling ways of communicating design to a wider audience
Alan was a passionate believer in the power of storytelling, and the aim of the Davidson Prize is to celebrate both traditional and modern ways of communicating design ideas, from sketching to immersive technology.
Launching the Prize in the middle of a pandemic, we thought it would be interesting and timely to re-imagine how we work and live at home beyond sticking a desk in a corner of a living room and therefore the theme became Home/Work – a new future.
We received 55 submissions. These submissions were incredibly diverse, from modular furniture, to new housing types and retrofits, looking beyond the four walls of a home to the garden, the street or the entire community, from micro solutions to macro societal changes. The standards were really high and the stories were very personal and, at times, incredibly moving.
The judges had the very difficult job of whittling these entries down to a shortlist of 18, from this, three finalists emerged who were given six weeks to develop their initial idea further into the films, which you can view here.
Each finalist was presented with trophies, handed over by Narinder Sagoo and Sonia Solicari, judges of the 2021 Prize. The trophies were kindly made bespoke by our friends at AHMM.
Finalist
NewNormal
The judges found the proposal really captivating and thought it was brilliantly communicated. They felt that the idea of an extendable window where the building user could be better connected to the outside world was very emotive and would resonate with the wider public.
Finalist
Origin 3 Studio
The judges thought that theirs was one of the most fun submissions they received and felt that Alan would have loved the design, particularly the hand-sketches. They enjoyed how they conveyed the home as the space beyond the building’s four walls to create a solution that could combat social isolation and loneliness.
Winner
HomeForest
The judges felt that their presentation was very seductive, and they loved the collaboration between the different disciplines. They thought that the proposal was an exemplar of how technology could have a positive influence on the home, particularly for those who don’t have access to outdoor space.
Many congratulations for being the winner of the 2021 Davidson Prize! We hope to see you more great entries next year.
