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Habitare Design Competition 2023

The theme of the Habitare Design Competition 2023 is Tools for togetherness. The first phase of the two-phase competition has ended on April 21, 2023. Thank you to everyone who applied for the competition! The works of the finalists will be seen at Habitare in September 2023.

Helsinki Expo and Convention Centre, Habitare design and interior fair, and Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture, are organising a design competition in two stages. The competition is intended for students studying art, design, and architecture in Finland. Over the years Habitare Design Competition has put the spotlight on up-and-coming design and architecture students.

This year, Architect Diébédo Francis Kéré has been invited to be head judge for the competition. The grand prize for the competition (€5,000), donated by the Finnish Fair Foundation, has been used to encourage young students to continue their studies and build successful careers. 

First phase of the two-phase competition has ended on April 21, 2023. Thank you to everyone who applied for the competition!

The competition theme and design brief

The Competition Theme

The competition’s theme is “Tools for togetherness”. What are the essential or new typologies of furniture, spaces, objects that can support collective experiencing and social interaction, enabling us to dream up a better future together. 

The Design Brief

The task is to design and make new “tools” with a strong potential for inspiring closeness within or beyond human scale and condition. The competition proposal can include spaces, furniture, objects, and other tools. Explore the cultural, artistic and design possibilities within the given theme. Participants are encouraged to form multidisciplinary teams so that different scales and means can be combined resulting in coherent experiences. 

Participants may themselves choose the scale of their design proposal. However, if selected to proceed to the competition’s second stage, the proposal must be such that it can be partially or fully built and displayed in the scale 1:1 at the Habitare Fair within an area of approximately 2.5 x 2.5 x 2.5 meters.

Evaluation Criteria

The Jury will evaluate the competition entries based on their artistic and design quality. The entries will also be assessed based on their functional, material and structural characteristics. 

Other information

Using the Competition Material

Expo and Convention Centre will place finalist proposals of the competition, i.e., the proposals selected for the 2nd stage, on display in connection with the Habitare design and interior fair 2023 and uses the competition material for domestic and foreign marketing and communication about the event

For more information about the competition, please contact:

Helsinki Expo and Convention Centre, producer Ida Ågren, ida.agren@messukeskus.com