Architectural Oscar
Johannesburg based Peter Rich Architects has done South Africa proud by bringing home the Oscar of world architecture for the Mapungubwe Interpretation Centre in Limpopo. The building was recently named the World Building of the Year at the World Architecture Festival in Spain.
Architect Peter Rich still can’t believe that they scooped the coveted 2009 award at the World Architecture Festival, said to be the world’s largest architectural awards programme. “Winning the award was a huge surprise. When the judges started describing the winning project, I soon realised that it was mine they were talking about. It was a very humbling experience,” Rich says.
The jury voted for the Mapungubwe Interpretation Centre because it was the most “architecturally and psychologically powerful” project of all. Rich adds that the building’s authenticity was also an important factor. “What drew people to the building is that it evokes the same sentiments one experiences when walking into a ruin – a deep sense of history and emotion,” he says.
Rich also doesn’t dismiss the serious contenders he was up against, or the jury of highly respected professionals in the industry. “There was a formidable array of competition, but I just ran my best race,” he tells. Other shortlisted projects included the Bras Basah Mass Rapid Transit Station in Singapore and the redevelopment of Father Duffy Square in New York.
The Mapungubwe Interpretation Centre was first shortlisted in the culture category – one of the most difficult categories to enter, Rich says. It won in this category and went on to compete against buildings in all fifteen other categories, again making a clean sweep to bring home the prize. Shortlisted architects presented their projects to more than 1,500 delegates, distinguished architects and renowned industry experts at the festival. Rich says that many of the judges have been an inspiration to him for years. “On the jury you have people who are your heroes,” he says.
The Mapungubwe Interpretation Centre, commissioned by South African National Parks (SANParks) three years ago, is an important building for South Africa. It was constructed on a site with great historical and archaeological significance in the Mapungubwe National Park, in the Limpopo Province.
Around 1,050 AD to 1,270 AD, Mapungubwe was a flourishing city. It was situated in what is now northern South Africa, where the Shashe and Limpopo rivers meet. It was the centre of a pre-Shona kingdom that also spanned over parts of modern-day Botswana and Zimbabwe. The site of the city is now a World Heritage Site and national park.
Its significance called for a unique design approach – particularly as it would house artefacts from the region’s prehistory. “The architecture needed something special. You couldn’t just have gum poles and thatch to display gold and artefacts. I wanted it to be a piece of landscape, not a building,” Rich explains. It is also not in keeping with a particular fashion and style. “One person aptly described it as something that looks like it has grown out of the ground,” he says.
Rich admits that it was a demanding project to take on, but he doesn’t regret doing it. “The building process was far more exciting than the project on paper,” he says. Rich had to source the appropriate skills necessary for construction and even the park’s elephants wanted to put their stamp of approval on the building site. But Rich is casual about their involvement: “They pulled the spikes out of the ground in the early construction phases, but this is all part of the story of the building.”
The site’s landscape was both the inspiration for the design and the source of most of the materials for its construction. Rich only used carbon-friendly construction methods, because the sustainability component of the project was important. He emphasises that this decision wasn’t motivated by green building trends, but to highlight the vulnerability of the local ecology. “The green concept of building should become the standard. Architects shouldn’t be patted on the back for it,” he says. The building has an 80% lower carbon footprint compared to conventional buildings, as most of the materials used for the roof and cladding are from the site.
There was also plenty of local involvement in the project. Local stonemasons were employed to clad the building and unemployed people were trained in the manufacture of stabilised earth tiles and in building the Timbrel vaults. This is a long-forgotten construction technique using interlocking terracotta tiles to construct self-supporting arches.
Although the company received the award, he believes it is a timeous achievement for South African architecture. “It has affirmed the country’s position in world architecture,” he says. Winning the award shows that the Mapungubwe Interpretation Centre has value on the world stage. “The award has strengthened my resolve to do good work and focus on work for people who need it most,” he says.
Story by Wilma den Hartigh
Pix © Peter Rich Architects
