Videos

“We need knowledge to address the built environment,” says Alejandro Aravena following the LafargeHolcim Forum on “Re-materializing construction”. Aravena is partner architect of Elemental in Chile and member of the Board of the LafargeHolcim Foundation for Sustainable Construction. 

Watch a 5-minute summary featuring statements on “Re-materializing construction”, the topic of the 6th International LafargeHolcim Forum, by Lord Norman Foster, Marc Angélil, Alejandro Aravena, Kai-Uwe Bergmann, Anna Heringer, Laila Iskandar, Francis Kéré, Anne Lacaton, Stuart Smith, Brinda Somaya, and Rt Hon Simon Upton. 

Awards Bronze: Alejandro Aravena, Head of the Global LafargeHolcim Awards 2018 jury thinks being an active agent of change is a compelling aspect of the Bronze Award winning project from the USA. The scalable community-driven model could be applied in other shrinking cities, where taking action in a design void breaks down the scale of centralized infrastructure to deliver water, energy and food locally.

Awards Silver: Head of the Global LafargeHolcim Awards 2018 jury, Alejandro Aravena, complimented the many dimensions and layers of the Awards Silver winner from Niger, which moved it from a single work to holding universal qualities. The project achieves a remarkable level of quality, and strategically leverages traditional knowledge and local materials.

Premio de Oro: El líder del jurado de los Global LafargeHolcim Awards 2018, Alejandro Aravena destaca que el proyecto ganador del premio de Oro, proveniente de México, acertó en identificar un tema relevante y desarrollar una respuesta expandible que integra varias dimensiones para lograr soluciones, y no sólo abordar los problemas.

Awards Gold: Head of the Global LafargeHolcim Awards 2018 jury, Alejandro Aravena, notes how the Gold Award winning Project from Mexico addresses the critical and relevant matter of water. The scalable program could transfer from the single case to become a systemic response – and integrates more than one dimension that enhances life quality and public space beyond technical responses alone.

Premio Ideas para "Territorial Figure" en Argentina: El líder del jurado de los Global LafargeHolcim Awards, Alejandro Aravena destaca que la idea de los estudiantes de Córdoba es clara, relevante y original; y se manifiesta entusiasmado de que tanto el Award de Oro como uno de los premios Ideas para la categoría Next Generation hayan sido otorgados a proyectos presentados en Latinoamérica.

Alejandro Aravena points out that when he was looking for specialists who would share knowledge, tools and strategies at "his" Biennale 2016, almost one third of the selected experts were in some way connected to the LafargeHolcim Foundation. 

The expert panel examined the interplay between sustainability and security and how architecture should respond to the challenges. With the 300-person venue at the 15th International International Architecture Exhibition of La Biennale di Venezia filled to capacity, moderator Rolf Soiron inspired the panelists Alejandro Aravena, Jonathan Ledgard, Milinda Pathiraja and Robert Mardini to discuss practical solutions, rather than hold a strictly formal debate.

Alejandro Aravena, Partner Architect at Elemental, provides an overview on the firm’s sustainable post-tsunami reconstruction master plan for the city of Constitución, Chile. Now five years after implementation began, most elements of the project have been implemented to improve the quality of the city. The approach was able to negotiate private benefit with common good.

Curator of the 15th International Architecture Biennale, Alejandro Aravena, supports using “a mix of high-tech innovation and low-tech local materials” to reduce carbon emissions related to construction. In a video released by the LafargeHolcim Foundation for Sustainable Construction, Aravena points to the Droneport shell prototype at the Venice exhibition as an outstanding example of the pivotal change needed from architecture and industry. 

Alejandro Aravena, Partner Architect at Elemental, provides an overview on the firm’s sustainable post-tsunami reconstruction master plan for the city of Constitución, Chile. Now five years after implementation began, most elements of the project have been implemented to improve the quality of the city. The approach was able to negotiate private benefit with common good.

Alejandro Aravena, jurado global de los Holcim Awards considera que el proyecto "Unidades de Vida Articulada: Parque público en reservas de agua" en Colombia, se destaca por ir más allá de la reutilización de enfoques exitosos de la arquitectura y el diseño urbano. 

Jury members, Mohsen Mostafavi (head of jury), Alejandro Aravena and Marc Angélil comment on a project for a public park in Medellín, Colombia that combines architectural ideas and urban development across multiple scales. “Articulated Site: Water reservoirs as public park” by Colectivo 720 in Cali and EPM Group in Medellín was winner of the Global Holcim Awards Gold 2015.

Members of the Global Holcim Awards jury 2015 comment on what they consider to be the most significant impact of the Holcim Awards (in order of appearance): Alejandro Aravena, Elemental, Chile; Mohsen Mostafavi, GSD Harvard University, USA; Yolanda Kakabadse, WFF International, Ecuador; Maria Atkinson, Green Building Council of Australia; Matthias Schuler, Transsolar Energietechnik , Germany; and Meisa Batayneh Maani, maisam architects and engineers, Jordan.

Global Holcim Awards jury member Alejandro Aravena considers the Gold-winning “Articulated Site: Water reservoirs as public park” in Colombia to be remarkable for going beyond the re-use of successful approaches to architecture and urban design. By addressing new fields and new areas of expertise, the project by Colectivo 720 and EPM Group emphasizes the value of water and public space in a way that keeps on innovating, and builds upon previous achievements.

Alejandro Aravena presented three of his projects from Chile that illustrate the power of design at a TED event in Rio de Janeiro. A community housing project in the center of Iquique, the Innovation Center UC Anacleto Angelini in Santiago, and the Holcim Awards Silver 2011 winning urban reconstruction project in Constitución show the importance of design. By bringing the community into the process to understand the problems – the design process ensures that the “right questions” are the focus.

This film by Urban-Think Tank (U-TT) was created in the context of the 4th International Holcim Forum. It features keynote speakers and workshop leaders of the event: David Chipperfield (UK), Prasad Shetty (India), Pierre Bélanger (USA), Alfredo Brillembourg (Brazil), Sanjay Prakash (India), Mohsen Mostafavi (USA), Geeta Mehta (USA), Michael Sorkin (USA), Alejandro Aravena (Chile) and Jose Castillo (Mexico) and examines the critical issues impacting on sustainable development in the megacity of Mumbai.

The Holcim Awards Silver 2011 winning project from Latin America by Alejandro Aravena of Elemental has recently received a further award for innovation within urban developments from the Zumtobel Group. The video presents “Sustainable post-tsunami reconstruction master plan” for Constitución and its successful approach to participatory urban planning. 

In his keynote speech at the 4th Holcim Forum 2013 in Mumbai, Chilean architect Alejandro Aravena reported on the extensive rebuilding of the port city of Constitucíon in Chile, which was destroyed by a tsunami in 2010 - and explained a number of "uncommon sense" observations from his experience.