Architectural competition Piraeus Tower 2010 (press release) - 29.12.2009

Architects, civil engineers, students, mechanical engineers, designers, artists and profesionals from various other specialties took part in the open architectural ideas contest, which was organised by GreekArchitects.gr and DuPont, for a fictional facade of the Piraeus Tower

"The members of the Jury committee, GreekArchitects.gr and DuPont, wish to sincerely thank all those who participated in our contest. The number of participations exceeded every initial expectation, as 380 proposals were ultimately submitted, by 949 studiers from 42 countries. The fact that many participants actually visited the Piraeus Tower in order to gather more details and information about the building, as well as the inclusion of the contest in the academic curriculums of international technical universities, demonstrates how the Tower of Piraeus evolved from an ideas' contest to a research and study field project", said Vassilis Mistriotis, Director of GreekArchitects.gr and Coordinator of the Competition Steering Committee.

"Athens is the most successful example of the "Changing the Face" contest, a concept that was initiated in Rome, in 2008, and was then developed in Bucharest, Prague, Zagreb and Moscow. The number of participations, as well as the interest received for the contest in Athens is indeed impressive", said Wlodek Sobon, DuPont Building Innovations Central Europe.

It should be underlined that the "Changing the Face" contest, which was proclaimed in January 2010 by GreekArchitects.gr and DuPont, aimed at re-designing the face of the Piraeus Tower. Yet, the real challenge was to reassess the role of the tallest building in the Piraeus Port - and second tallest in Athens - which remains one the most widely known unfinished projects since 1974, and to also leverage the Tower's surface for the benefit of the local community. It should be noted that the Tower spans across 30,000 square meters and thus, has a significant commercial value. The contest set the grounds for the beginning of a public discourse around the Tower, which has become known in the course of time as "the sleeping giant".

All proposals shall be published by GreekArchitects.gr, whereas the awarded proposalsand the final results of the contest,which is supported by the Technical University of Crete, the Department of Architectural Engineering, the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat, the Vakalo School of Art and Design and the Municipality of Piraeus, will be soon announced. On the occasion of the announcement of the contest's results, an official event and exhibition will take place, in which the members of the organizational committee and the jury will address speeches. The Jury Committee is currently reviewing a great number of submitted proposals, and the date of the official announcement of the results, will be soon released.

For more information on the Contest, please visit:

http://www.greekarchitects.gr/competition2010

AboutGreekArchitects:

The e-zine Greek Architects (GRA) was created in March 2002 aiming at offering to Greek architects an objective and full information source, and with a vision of becoming a useful tool for architects' activities. The informative approach taken focuses on finding and systematically reporting on issues of theory and implementation that concern modern architects, as well as reporting on news, updates, views and materials. The magazine is targeting architects and civil engineers and is updated on a daily basis with new feature pieces, presentations, articles and more on Greek and global architecture.

AboutDuPont:

Founded in 1802, DuPont puts science to work by creating sustainable solutions essential to a better, safer, healthier life for people everywhere. Operating in more than 70 countries, DuPont offers a wide range of innovative products and services for markets including agriculture and food; building and construction; communications; and transportation.