The COAC wins plaudits for its international outreach
The awards ceremony was held on Tuesday 3 December in the Plenary Room of the Senate in Madrid and was attended by HRH Felipe, Prince of Asturias, the Minister for Public Works, Ana Pastor, the President of the Senate, Pío García Escudero, and the President of the CSCAE, Jordi Ludevid.
The award distinguishes the almost two decades during which the COAC has striven to foster, promote and facilitate the internationalization of its architects. It gives particular recognition to the ArqCatMón project, which the Association organized in 2005 and which, coordinated by Jordi Farrando, helped Catalan architecture to win increased recognition beyond our borders through a magnificent exhibition staged in Istanbul featuring more than 500 international projects designed by 242 Catalan architects.
During the ceremony, Ana Pastor, the Minister for Public Works, highlighted COAC’s 'constant and invaluable backing and support, which is so necessary if we are to be successful abroad', referring to the recent creation of COAC’s Correspondent Network abroad, a collaborative network of member architects who work outside Catalonia and can currently be found in 23 cities on five continents.
The Spanish International Architecture Awards are sponsored by the Spanish Architecture Forum, which includes the Higher Council of Architects’ Associations of Spain (CSCAE), architects’ associations and architectural schools and foundations, and are aimed at disseminating the excellence of its architects and urban planners in the international sphere.
The CSCAE awarded its 2013 Medal to the former Minister for Public Works, Rafael Arias Salgado, and architect Jaume Duró.
This first edition of the award included five categories: Award for Architecture (the new Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam), Award for an International Tender Project (Gösta Museum of the Serlachius Foundation in Finland, by MXSI Mara Partida, Boris Bezan and Héctor Mendoza), Award for Associated Spanish Company (Constructora San José), Young Architect’s Award for an International Project (Centre Léonce Georges by Pilar Calderón and Marc Folch) and the Support for Internationalization Award, which was won by the COAC.
COAC's new website
The website of the Architects’ Association has been given a total makeover. Obviously, architects and architecture are the protagonists. The new website aims to provide an essential tool to help reposition the role of architects within our society, while at the same time promoting the social and cultural values of architecture. The website arquitectes.cat aims to provide a point of reference that will bring us closer to the community and the business world at a time when it is essential to assert ourselves both collectively and individually.
arquitectes.cat is based around five main browsing sections: citizens, architects, architecture, the Association and the business world. Great care has been taken to ensure that every section reflects the dynamic role that architects and their representative Association play in our society.
The site’s user-friendliness has also been improved by simplifying and streamlining the browsing experience and including the dissemination opportunities offered by social networks.
Customized content
arquitectes.cat also aims to address the huge range of interests of our member architects and the general public by offering visitors the chance to customize the website to suit their interests, whether this is in terms of the subject matter (sustainability, town and country planning, building renovations, society, internationalization, etc.) or geographically speaking.
Nueva Ley catalana de Arquitectura
El Consell Executiu aprobó el martes 3 de diciembre la memoria previa al inicio de la tramitación del Anteproyecto de la nueva ley de arquitectura, con la voluntad que el nuevo texto legal esté aprobado a finales de 2014.
El objetivo general es poner en valor el interés público de la arquitectura, asegurar la preservación como patrimonio cultural i social, así como distinguirla como bien fundamental para garantizar el bienestar de las personas y la cohesión social dotándola de objetivos de calidad en todo tipo de proyectos. El Colegio ha tenido un papel muy destacado en el impulso de esta ley, que fue anunciada por el conseller de Territori i Sostenibilitat, Santi Vila, en nuestra sede el pasado mes de julio. Además, el COAC participará activamente en el proceso de redacción de la ley.
