THE ARCHITECT’S STAIR EDITION #3 2026

Competition Brief

Intent

The contest invites the partakers to see the stair again as a building element. Not just a means of moving around, it can also be a way to talk about the issues of the floor, the angles, the motion, and the space. The stair should be seen as a subject for conceptual and spatial inquiry an as an easy technical solution of the standard type.

Purpose

The competition’s main goal is to unchain the stair from its functional limitations so that it may serve as the source of the architect’s imagination. The organizers of the contest invite the participants to share their design philosophy, their story, and their abstraction by means of form, thus creating spatial experiences that will make the audience think.

Requirements

The contest is open for all designers, architects, and creative thinkers. There are no professional requirements. Individuals or teams of up to four people can participate. The language of the submissions will be English and the focus will be on the clarity and creativity of the concept rather than on the compliance with the building codes.

Jury

The jury for the year 2026 has not yet been formed and announced. However, previous events of the same kind have featured the participation of architects, educators, and design experts as members of the jury.

Fees

Rewards

Dates

✦ ArchUp Competition Review

Buildner Architecture Competitions, a global platform that organizes conceptual architecture challenges, is behind the third installment of The Architect’s Stair Edition. The jury and their specific professional backgrounds have not been released for the 2026 edition, which increases the uncertainty about the standards of evaluation and experts’ skills involved. The competition is professional and academic in nature, concentrating on the conceptual camping of the stair as a spatial and symbolic architectural element rather than being just a publicity stunt. Money and recognition are involved, and while these can be considered as a moderate matching with the creative effort needed, they surely do not guarantee professional growth. The participation in the competition is mainly through portfolio development and intellectual experimentation, with direct implementation opportunity being negligible. The jury consists of design professionals, but their credentials are not confirmed in detail.

Conclusion and Final Thoughts

The third edition of The Architect’s Stair is a mainly conceptual competition. It gives the participants a chance to delve into the stair, practically and philosophically, as an element, providing a platform for intellectual experimentation. Nevertheless, the changing fees during the different registration periods and the lack of confirmed jury details bring about uncertainty with regard to evaluation and professional gain. It is better to consider this competition as a conceptual exercise and as an opportunity for development of one’s portfolio rather than as a way to obtain recognition from the profession that is guaranteed.

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