The 6th Order Competition

The 6th Order competition is open to architects and designers who will create a new classical order that is beyond the traditional five. It requires coming up with a sixth that redefines architectural expression as the competition proceeds to the already established Tuscan, Doric, Ionic, Corinthian, and Composite orders. The competition digs into the architectural themes of power, symbolism, and identity.

The designers are encouraged not to limit their imagination and to create something big and significant. Obviously, the winning design will be determined by the ability of the participants not only to please the eye but also to communicate an idea imbued with rich, cultural, and philosophical foundations. It is requesting architects to think deeply about the probable evolution of classical language in modern times.

Submission is through digital and conceptual means. The requirement for each participant is to present their idea on an A1 vertical board along with a single, very clear image or concept. This format is conducive to creativity and encourages visual clarity rather than technical detail.

Competition Overview

The competition, which is organized by ICARCH, is an opportunity for everyone who is interested in the reinterpretation of classical architecture. It invites architects, students, artists, and thinkers to reconsider the reflection of culture and time in the architectural orders.

Submission is done anonymously and is based on concepts only. The participants can adopt a literal, an abstract, or even an innovative approach. The competition encourages freedom of thought and expression, and it values the ideas that can provoke discussion and reflection.

There are no specific material or technical requirements. Instead, the submissions are evaluated based on the criteria of concept strength, visual clarity, and intellectual depth. The organizers plan to publicly showcase selected works, thus granting exposure to the creative and unconventional ideas.

Timeline

Entry Fees

Awards

Architectural Analysis

The competition’s design reasoning is based on the connection between heritage and its renewal. History and modernity are both under scrutiny, and participants are invited to have a conversation with the past of classical architecture in order to find its current relevance. Designers must propose a new scheme that involves doing justice to the old and simultaneously being innovative.

Use of materials, although not specified, is assumed to have a significant impact on the visual perception. For instance, some might go for stone or marble to recall the ancient times, while others may opt for steel, glass, or even recycled materials to symbolize their concepts of change and evolution.

The competition settings encourage a confrontation of past with present. The classical orders mirrored the very characteristics of power, proportion, and beauty. Nowadays, those same characteristics can be viewed through different lenses, such as social, political, or ecological. Such rethinking brings ancient times nearer to today’s diverse cultural stories.

From a critique viewpoint, the competition juxtaposes the two extremes: homage and critique. It places architects in the position to choose the nature of their sixth order: whether it is a tribute to the past or a complete overthrow of it. It is a theoretical challenge as well as a declaration of the role of architecture in shaping the identity.

Competition Importance

The 6th Order competition is a massive playground for architects, as it challenges them to defy the usual and traditional ways of thinking. Its message is that even the most classic design approaches can change after all. It reveals the dynamic nature of architecture, which is a fruitful dialogue among meaning, symbolism, and values.

This competition plays a role in architectural thought by broadening the range of typologies and redefining what classical expression can be. It allows the designers to interrogate the concepts of power, beauty, and ideologies in the context of their new territory.

Its significance in today’s world is very high because of the global trend of going back to cultural heritage, identity, and symbolism in architecture. The majority of modern architects that are making use of classical forms in their designs are doing so without completely grasping the context of those forms. The competition is turning designers into historians who have to come up with a new vision for the old times.

✦ ArchUp Competition Review

This competition requires architects to redefine the classical by creating a new order beyond the previous five. It allows artistic freedom and critical thinking, thereby encouraging participants to rethink the evolution of historical design systems in a modern context. The single-board format prioritizes concept and clarity above construction detail, which brings ideas but can restrict the depth of exploration. The open-ended brief might produce too abstract entries but succeeds in sparking discussion about meaning, symbolism, and the place of tradition in the contemporary world. The competition, in the end, is an intellectual experiment that combines heritage, philosophy, and modern architecture that expresses itself in the most sophisticated way.

Conclusion

The 6th Order competition is a daring mental contest. It requires inventiveness, meditation, and bravery. It is a challenge for architects to create a new architectural order that is pertinent to today’s world and is at the same time respectful of the past.

The competition does not only admire the shape but rather embraces the thinking process; it celebrates the latter very much. It allows the participants to express their ideas through architecture as a medium for debate and innovation. The 6th Order is an experiment of how old principles can lead to new thoughts, thus merging the eternal and the modern through one genius design act.

Explore the Latest Architecture Exhibitions & Conferences

ArchUp offers daily updates on top global architectural exhibitions, design conferences, and professional art and design forums.
Follow key architecture competitions, check official results, and stay informed through the latest architectural news worldwide.
ArchUp is your encyclopedic hub for discovering events and design-driven opportunities across the globe.

Registration Deadline

Brought to you by the ArchUp Editorial Team

Inspiration starts here. Dive deeper into Architecture, Interior Design, Research, Cities, Design, and cutting-edge Projects on ArchUp