“Your designs should offer a refuge from the pain of war with spaces where guests are able to rejuvenate and feel their way towards a more hopeful future. Your hotel should have wellbeing at its heart.”
KINDLING 2022-23 / Competition
The inaugural edition of Kindling aimed to highlight, elevate and celebrate the work of Ukrainian students of Architecture & Design. It invited them, working individually or in groups, to present their concept for a new hotel in Ukraine when the war with Russia was over and hospitality could replace hostility.
The brief called for Vision – a pleasing aesthetic, creative insight and considered use of materials; Purpose – designs that would facilitate interpersonal connections and social experiences for guests and local residents alike; and Sustainability – designs that reflected the hotel’s place within the environment and wider ecosystem as well as in Ukrainian culture. The hotel could be in an urban, rural or coastal location. There were three categories for entries: Architecture, Interior Design and Architecture & Interior Design.
Over 40 students from colleges across Ukraine participated, supported by online mentoring sessions with ReardonSmith Architects and MKV Design. The schools were further encouraged to include the competition into one of their modules to enhance learning opportunities.
The students’ commitment to the Kindling challenge was formidable. Despite all the pressures, disruption and anxiety of conflict, almost all the students met our deadlines along the way – even the students whose house was hit, demolishing the roof, were only a few hours late!
KINDLING 2022-23/ Winners
Architecture:
Rostyslav Hurskyi, Vadym Bilyk and Valeriia Likhitska of Lviv Polytechnic National University for their scheme “Archipelago Resort”
Interior Design:
Valeriia Zhurba and Diana Pogosian of Kyiv National University of Construction & Architecture for “Pereyaslav”
Architecture and Interior Design:
Olesia Danysh, Mariia Fedun and Katrin Berkela of Lviv Polytechnic National University for “Vidhomin”
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One person (all girls since the boys were not allowed to leave Ukraine) from each winning team was brought to London for a four-day, all-expenses paid trip, which included attendance at AHEAD Europe Awards, where the students received their trophies. In addition, each winning team was awarded a cash prize of £500 and each member of the three teams received a computer tablet.
KINDLING 2022-23 / Sponsors
