Governor General's Medals in Architecture — Call for Submissions | Royal Architectural Institute of Canada

Governor General's Medals in Architecture — Call for Submissions

Submission deadline: 11:59 p.m. EST, December 10, 2021

RAIC and the Canada Council for the Arts (CCA) are pleased to invite architects to participate in the competition for the 2022 Governor General’s Medals in Architecture. The RAIC, with the RAIC College of Fellows, is proud to organize and administer the competition. The Canada Council for the Arts is responsible for selecting and administering the peer assessment committee.

Objective

The objective of the Governor General’s Medals in Architecture is to recognize and celebrate outstanding design in recently completed built projects by Canadian architects. The 2022 competition continues a tradition initiated by the Massey Medals in 1950, providing an important source of understanding of the nature of Canadian architecture and the regional, cultural and historic forces expressed in the built environment.

Eligibility 

Projects built in and outside of Canada, completed between January 1, 2014 and September 1, 2021 and for which licensed/registered architect or Team of Architects who are Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada and are licensed/registered with a Canadian Provincial or Territorial Jurisdiction and were the lead design architects, are eligible to be submitted.

The following are NOT eligible:

• Projects having received a Governor General’s Medal in Architecture in a previous competition;
• Projects with involvement of a peer assessment committee member (jury) for the 2022 competition;
• A member of the RAIC Awards Committee or RAIC staff; or a member of the Board or staff of the Canada Council for the Arts.

Awards

The 2022 competition will result in the awarding of 12 Governor General’s Medals in Architecture.

Peer Assessment Committee

Dr. Izabel Fraga Do Amaral E Silva, Director-School of Architecture, University of Montreal, Montreal, QC
Anik Shooner, FIRAC, President and co-founder of Menkès Shooner Dagenais LeTourneux Architectes, Montreal, QC
Dr. Patrick Stewart, MRAIC, Principal-Patrick Stewart Architecture, Chilliwack, B.C.
Christian Benimana, RA, Senior Principal MASS Design Group & Director of the African Design Centre, Kigali, Rwanda
Dr. Lígia Nunes, Chair- architecture sans frontières International, Lisboa, Portugal 

Assessment

Medals are awarded for excellence in the art of architecture. The primary criterion will be the architectural artistic merit of the design, including such elements as:

  • Conceptual Clarity;
  • Compatibility with the Site;
  • Detailing;
  • Innovation and Uniqueness;
  • Sustainable Design.

Procedures for Entry

Submission Date

Submissions must be received before 11:59 p.m. EST, Friday, December 10, 2021. Entrants are solely responsible for timely submissions. This date and time are firm without exceptions.

Entry Fee

An entry fee must accompany each submission.

$650 plus applicable taxes, for RAIC members (the lead design architect must be a member of the RAIC)
$1,200 plus applicable taxes, for non-RAIC members

Instructions

Submissions will be completed using the online submission platform.

The following items must be provided:

1. Submission Form;
2. Project Credits;
3. Project Descriptions;
4. 10 Digital Images (including a site plan, a building plan and cross-section);
5. Key List of Images;
6. Publication Release Form;
7. Disclaimer and Declaration Form.

Entries can be submitted either in English or in French.

Note: Once you have started the online submission process, you may 'save' and come back at a later date to complete your submission (prior to the submission deadline).

Rules of the Competition

Only one medal will be bestowed to the lead design architect listed for each project selected. Additional medals can be purchased upon request by each architectural firm involved in the project or by the client.

Submission of an entry to the 2022 Governor General’s Medals in Architecture grants all rights to the RAIC and Canada Council for the Arts for unrestricted publication of the material in all media, including electronic media. Permission from owners/clients and photographers is the responsibility of the entrants and must be obtained before making an entry.

Photographs used for any purpose by the RAIC or the Canada Council for the Arts will bear the customary photographer’s credit line as provided by the entrant.

All submissions will be kept by the RAIC for publications, public relations and archival purposes. Unsuccessful entries will not be returned to entrants.

All recipients of winning submissions must produce two display panels. The panels must be delivered to the RAIC. All panels must be made from 1/4” thick gatorboard, 20” x 20” in size. Detailed specifications will be provided to all medalists.

RAIC and the Canada Council for the Arts must be included in all media/newspaper releases and announcements regarding the medal by winning candidates.

If you have any questions or require additional information, please contact use by email awards-prix@raic.org.

The RAIC is committed to equity and justice as well as inclusion across race, colour, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, disability and age and encourages anyone interested in the Honours and Awards Program to submit.