Design the Future of Building Shade Near You!

ARCHITIZER IS EXCITED TO PARTNER WITH SUNBRELLA® FOR THE FIFTH ANNUAL FUTURE OF SHADE COMPETITION, WHICH IS DEDICATED TO EXPLORING SPACE-BUILDING POTENTIALS OF FABRIC. OVER THE YEARS, THE COMPETITION HAS GENERATED INTEREST FROM ARCHITECTS AND DESIGNERS ALL OVER THE WORLD, ATTRACTING INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS THAT ADVANCE THE TECHNOLOGICAL AND AESTHETIC POTENTIAL OF SUNBRELLA PRODUCTS. THE GRAND PRIZE WINNER In each category WILL RECEIVE $10,000 AND HAVE THE CHANCE TO HAVE THEIR DESIGN REALIZED WITH SUNBRELLA FABRICS.

The Future of Shade Competition is now open! We are pleased to introduce the first of three categories available for entry: Building Shade.

By exploring the different ways that textiles can contribute to sustainability, comfort and extraordinary design, architects play a critical role in pushing the envelope of the built environment with innovative fabrics. That’s why Architizer is once again teaming up with leading performance-fabric manufacturer Sunbrella® for the fifth annual Future of Shade competition. Once again, this year’s entry categories are based on three different site-specific challenges that will task competitors with exploring the importance of fabric in shade and building design.

Using durable and versatile Sunbrella fabrics as the focal materials for each entry, these designs will highlight the revolutionary ways that performance fabrics can transform a project. Past winners have had the opportunity to build their designs and be part of a larger conversation about how their projects can influence the future of shade.

Last year, the Building Shade category invited architects and designers to envision shading for a specific site in Miami’s Design District, and the winner, Quasicrystals for Design by Santiago, Chile–based architects AF_A, envisioned a new protective shading device that complemented the architecture of luxury-brand storefronts in this district.

The design featured a honeycomb arrangement of saffron-colored lanterns made with Sunbrella fabrics. The structure was conceived to provide shoppers with shade as they travel between stores without sacrificing views of the district’s architecturally stunning buildings.

2016 Sunbrella Future of Shade – Building Shade Grand Prize Winner from Sunbrella on Vimeo

In last year’s honorable mention “The Stripe,” a team from XA (X-Architecture) used Sunbrella fabrics not only as a shading structure, but also as flexible seating that allows people to relax and unwind underneath the system of hanging textiles.

This year, entrants will further customize their proposals for the Building Shade category by defining real-life shade problems in their own backyard. Sunbrella is challenging architects and designers to identify a site in their own communities or another specific area, diagnose a major sun-related issue that textiles can address and solve it concretely using Sunbrella fabrics. The more detailed, the better.

Is there an area you want to improve in your city? Do you always see the design solutions possible for a sun-soaked section of your neighborhood? What about when you travel?

This category emphasizes the notion that we must think outside the box and open our eyes to surrounding inspiration in order for true innovation to occur. We believe architects are best at picking out real-world issues in the environments in which they live, work and play. Now is your opportunity to design the future of shade near you.

The deadline to submit to any of the Sunbrella Future of Shade categories is May 14, 2017. View past winners of the competition here. More information can be found on the contest’s competition page here on Architizer.