The International VELUX Award (IVA) is a biennial ideas competition for students of architecture. It invites students from all over the world to create projects investigating the role of daylight in our everyday lives. Endorsed by the UIA since 2004, the theme of each edition is “Light of Tomorrow”. The competition encourages students to approach the subject of daylight in architecture experimentally, and to explore questions of aesthetics, functionality, sustainability, and the interaction between buildings and environment.
The International VELUX Award has enjoyed increasing numbers of participants since its inception in 2004. Since its inception in 2004, more than 10,000 students from more than 800 schools from all regions of the world have participated in the competition.
See the brief for the 2022 edition here.
Register for the 2022 edition here.
Keywords : Daylight, Education
Theme and objectives
“Light of Tomorrow” is the overall theme of the International VELUX Award. The award seeks to challenge the future of daylight in the built environment with an open-minded and experimental approach. Therefore, the award seeks to widen the boundaries of daylight in architecture, including aesthetics, functionality, sustainability, and the interaction between buildings and environment.
1. Daylight in buildings
Projects that demonstrate applicable principles for providing daylight and sunlight into buildings – including the effects of building construction and context of the site, shape and dimensions, window openings, screens, shadings, interior divisions, materials and external conditions.
Specific focus on architecture for health and well-being and projects that address challenges faced by cities, communities and modern societies, and where daylight and architecture can help create change through better and healthier living environments.
2. Daylight investigations
Projects that look at the physical properties of light, basics of optics and materials, as well as technological developments, new materials, storage or transportation of daylight.
The use of daylight in public space for functional, recreational, cultural or spiritual use and the effect of daylight on state of mind, health and well-being as well as the dynamics and temporal quality of daylight and its effects on behaviour and spaces over time and seasons.
Eligibility
The award is open to any registered student of architecture – individual or team – all over the world. We encourage multi-disciplinary teams including e.g. engineering, design and landscaping. Every student or student team must be backed and granted submission by a teacher from a school of architecture.
The award welcomes projects from individuals or groups of students, who are students during the study year 2021/22.
There is no limit to the number of entries from each school, but participating schools should ensure the quality of submitted study projects, e.g. by making a prejudgment. VELUX employees cannot participate.
Jury Members
Fuensanta Nieto (Spain), UIA Representative
John Ronan (United States)
Anupama Kundoo (India)
Rainer Hofmann (Germany)
Martin Løkke (Denmark)