Durban - Sustainable building demands architectural design that aims to minimise negative environmental impact.
This was apparent in the designs submitted for the 32nd Corobrik Architectural Student of the Year Regional Awards at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, says Corobrik chief executive Dirk Meyer.
Through the competition, the country’s best architectural students from eight participating universities are identified based on their final theses and presented with awards at regional events. The winners qualify to compete for the national title and a R70000 prize at the Corobrik Architectural Student of the Year Awards due be held in May.
Meyer recently presented the awards at UKZN.
Shuaib Bayat was named the regional winner for UKZN, receiving a R10000 prize. Peter Harel was first runner-up with Tegan Wright in third place. Meloshan Pillay received the prize for the best use of clay masonry.
Bayat’s thesis, titled “Exploring solar energy design systems in peri-urban settlements for responsive architecture”, proposes the design of a multi-purpose upcycling skills centre in Cato Manor.
Bayat said: “Having a visual stimulus in your environment is important. For example, if I’m walking down the street, I want to see an eclectic mix of buildings that I find exciting to look at rather than a row of uniform ones. Studying architecture allowed me to have a passion for art as I began to have the thrill to be among those to change the skylines.”
Harel’s thesis is a beach city surf hub for the Rivertown Precinct on the edge of Durban’s CBD. The building provides infrastructural diversity for the future city of Durban with industrial, environmental and social infrastructural needs. The building makes use of upcycled and recycled materials.
Wright’s thesis was titled “Exploring Food Security as a Catalyst for the Adaptive Reuse of Architecture. Towards an Agricultural Hub in the Inner City of Durban”.
The building design is of an agricultural hub. The dissertation explores the adaptive reuse of an existing nine-storey parking structure. This topic was chosen in response to the need to better address issues of food security, revitalisation and regeneration of the city, and sustainable living.
Pillay’s thesis, “A Symbiosis of Biodiversity and Architecture: Towards a Centre for Awareness and Research in the uMngeni Precinct”, was inspired by his growing up in the vicinity of the uMngeni Precinct.
He saw industrial processes inundating the uMngeni River and its ecosystems, displacing communities from the natural world. His design uses nature’s processes through hi-tech thinking with low-tech to create ecological awareness and a platform for research while conserving the river, its ecosystems and communities.
Meyer said the judging process recognised the choice of sustainable building materials and the long-term implications on the environment.
“These are factors which aspiring architects need to consider when
creating new additions to the built environment in South Africa ensuring that their projects are socially responsible as well as functional, engaging and in harmony with the surrounding landscape.”