Since 2005, DKA have sponsored the Digital Visualisation Prize at the University of Bath 4th Year End of Year Exhibition. As always, it was inspiring to see the range and quality of student work across the school of architecture and as ever, the job of selecting a winner was very tough. Due to deadlines in the office, we relied on Fabien to trek up the hill and select a shortlist of projects for the office to vote via Whatsapp. Unfortunately for Priyesh (ex-DKA placement student), his project was swiftly removed from the shortlist to avoid any conflict of interest.
The 2023 winner selected by our panel of judges is Joel Boyd for his Oxford Archaeology Centre. Joel’s work stood out amongst some strong contenders across the cohort. What drew our attention was the range of graphics to illustrate the project – internal views, sectional perspective, room layout views, and photomontage with the proposed scheme perfectly blending into the Oxford urban fabric.
We asked Joel to describe his scheme
The Archaeology Centre for Oxford celebrates Oxford’s identity as a city with a rich history. By bringing together an archaeological research laboratory and museum space, the artefacts remain in the public eye – from dig to display, and are showcased through the research process. A temporary exhibition space holds artefacts throughout their analysis, on constant rotation, allowing the public to view artefacts straight out of the ground. The public can also learn about Oxford’s past in the archive & library which overlooks a preserved archaeological dig within the building, before visiting the cafe which spills into a green courtyard. The scheme also contains a large event-hall used for hosting archaeological outreach such as costume making workshops for school trips or artefact handling sessions for the local community.
The scheme celebrates a historic view from Bulwarks Lane to Oxford Mound, framing it with a concertinaed roof and creating a visual extension of the mound with a publicly accessible rooftop wildflower garden. This roof form is optimised for PV use and a hopper & open channel alongside the public walkway celebrate rainwater harvesting.
Past winners:
2022 – Emmanuel Chryssanthopoulos
2021 – Alexander Wells
2020 – Yansu Wang
2019 – Heui Sung Kim
2018 – Jonathan Tam
2017 – Scott Chen
2016 – Luke Gordon
2015 – Sam Shortland
2014 – Sophie Beagles
2013 – Elisabeth Day
2012 – Tom Selby
2011 – Lauren Li
Previous winners entries are included in the image wheel below.
