The Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC) Alberta Chapter has announced its first annual architectural photo competition aimed at revealing the hidden beauty of Alberta architecture and its role in sustaining Canada’s most westerly prairie province as a world-class travel destination.
In this call for entries for the competition which closes on February 27, 2014, the RAIC acknowledges that Alberta is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful places on earth. “Architecture is definitely one of the most important stimuli that helps accentuate the grandeur and beauty of Alberta but is not often explicitly acknowledged as an essential tourism element,” says Samuel Oboh, RAIC Regional Director for Alberta/NWT.
Entries into the competition, open to enthusiasts from all walks of life, will be reviewed by an independent jury comprised of renowned photographers and experts including Jim Dobie, Jonathan Luckhurst and Owen Murray. As explained by Mike Johnson, a member of the competition committee, “the subject image entered into the competition may be of any scale and may also include buildings, recognizable details of buildings or structures, architecturally designed memorials, monuments, landscapes and bridges, architecturally designed industrial structures/systems, architecturally inspired cultural heritage/historic assets/artifacts, inspiring construction site(s) with noteworthy tourism points of interest.”
Darrel Babuk, another member of the competition, committee noted that “this competition is very unique because it provides an opportunity for everyone – irrespective of where they live – to use the ubiquitous medium of photography to promote Alberta’s architecture and high-quality built environment to the world. This is truly unique.”
Winners of the photo competition will be announced in Edmonton during the spring of 2014 and a presentation gala is planned for the summer of 2014 where memorabilia, prize money and certificates will be presented to winning entrants. Additionally, the RAIC plans to publish the jury-selected winning entries as a book of postcards and to curate a travelling exhibition in various locations locally and internationally. The competition has been made possible by sponsors such as West Canadian, Al-Terra, Shanahan’s, Bold Design, KFR Engineering, and publicity support from MADE and Canadian Architect.
The RAIC is Canada’s largest and oldest voluntary national architectural association established in 1907 as the voice for architecture and its practice in Canada. With over 4,600 members, the RAIC works to celebrate the richness and diversity of architecture in Canada and supports excellence and innovation in place-making through initiatives such as this.
For more information on the RAIC’s first annual architectural photo competition, please visit www.raic.org/alberta or e-mail [email protected].