Architecture Student Design Award 2009 Winner Announced

London Metropolitan University student Priscilla Fernandes has been unanimously chosen as the winner of this year’s fiercely-contested Architecture Student Design Award 2009. The final judging took place at Guildhall this month before a panel of ten judges, which included Deputy Christine Cohen OBE, Chairman of Planning and Transportation Committee at the City of London Corporation, and joint sponsors Adam Stone of Cathedral Works Organisation (CWO) and Michael Poultney of Albion Stone Plc.

The award was first launched in 2006 by the City of London Corporation, CWO and Albion Stone Plc to encourage architecture students to come up with innovative design ideas, introducing them to designing with stone, in addition providing an opportunity for selected apprentice masons to develop their stonemasonry skills.

This year, 19 architecture students responded to the invitation to submit designs for a new seating form for the Riverside Walk, which is part of London’s Thames Path, extending from Victoria Embankment to Tower Pier on the north side of the River Thames. The objective was to produce a striking, innovative, 21st century seating design that would both enhance and complement the Riverside Walk. The design would be carved from a single block of quarried natural stone, with or without slabbing and jointing, to produce a visually engaging, well crafted and functionally useful end result. Other factors such as weathering, safety and ease of maintenance were also to be taken into consideration along with skateboard prevention measures.

Priscilla Fernandes, with her Flowerbench design, was named the winner out of the four shortlisted finalists. The Flowerbench consists of a series of independent stone blocks, each with intricate carvings of flowers and plants reflecting the those found along the Riverside Walk. Together, the carved stone ‘flowerbeds’ form a curved bench offering views both of the public space and out towards the river and Tower Bridge.

Adam Stone, Technical Director at CWO and one of the judges, said: “We were absolutely delighted with the quality of the entries this year. However, this meant that choosing the winning design was an extremely difficult, although rewarding, task. We felt that Priscilla’s design, with its intricate floral carvings, successfully fulfilled all the objectives we had set. It manages to reflect the natural beauty of the Riverside Walk, the organic beauty of the stone, and also the skill involved in artisan stonemasonry. I am looking forward to seeing the design take shape over the next few months!”

Priscilla Fernandes will work alongside apprentice masons from CWO and the Worshipful Company of Masons in October and November as they bring her design to life, and watch its installation on a chosen site along the Riverside Walk  (adjacent to London Bridge). She will also be invited to attend the unveiling ceremony, hosted by the Lord Mayor of the City of London on Thursday 3 December 2009.