Until mid-March, the exhibition space «RTU and Origo Future Stop» will present the diploma works of young architects who have recently graduated from Riga Technical University (RTU). The collection of diploma theses covers a wide range of thematic and geographical issues.
The diploma project marks the beginning of the architect's professional life. After five years of study, future architects develop a comprehensive master's thesis with an integrated diploma project. The student is free to choose the topic of the diploma project, to use the knowledge and skills acquired during his studies, to let his imagination run free and to reveal his world vision and handwriting to the wider public.
«Young architects are not only proposing new buildings, but also tackling themes where it is necessary to assess and balance various, even contradictory, factors influencing the development of the environment - the development prospects of the recognised and uncomfortable historical heritage, the revitalisation of the residential environment and urban public space, and even the expansion of living space beyond our planetary boundaries. They conjure up a vision of the ideal living space and environment in which we could live in the future. The students' proposals are not utopian, they are rooted in a thorough research of the subject and a serious analysis of the environmental context and history, » says Velta Holcmane, curator of the exhibition and project manager at the RTU Institute of Architecture and Design.
«Origo's strategy is based on a focus on sustainability and an orientation towards innovation and the use of technology. In cooperation with RTU, we have the opportunity to promote innovation and support talented young people by providing them with a platform to develop their talents, as well as to introduce Origo’s visitors to young RTU architects, their dream projects and their vision for the future, demonstrating the latest trends in sustainable architecture, including climate care, » says Viktorija Bižāne, Marketing Manager at Origo.
The exhibition includes the 2018 diploma project «Ogre Central Library New Building» by Rūdis Rubenis. In less than four years, his dream project has become a real object that has won public and professional acclaim. Another bold and intriguing project is the one created by Helmuts Nežborts for a space station on Mars in 2020. The author outlines the spatial contours of the theoretical possibilities for the future development of civilisation. Can and how to ensure a full life in extreme environments, such as a space station on Mars? What is the role of the architect in this? Concerned about human psychological well-being, he has created an artificial habitat on the space station and used human-friendly spatial planning techniques. Creating the exterior of the structure has been challenging because of the radiation, extreme climate, gravity and engineering solutions on Mars.
Raivis Jānis Mucenieks, using a concept common in Scandinavia for prisons, where buildings are divided into smaller units according to function and arranged in a village-like central composition, has developed a project for a prison in Pierīga. This solution brings life in prison closer to life outside the prison walls and could help prisoners to reintegrate more successfully into society. Jānis Lielmanis, on the other hand, has researched and summarised the principles of the development of historic European markets in a contemporary urban environment, while creating a vision for the future of the Central Market area. His project encompasses a broad urban design package of commerce and industry with the aim of restoring the role of the Central Market in Riga's urban network and making it competitive on a European scale.
Dāvis Jansons has designed the Latvian Sculpture Museum on the site occupied by the Latvian Artists' Union's creative quarter «Kombināts MĀKSLA». The new volumes are designed in different types of concrete structures, emphasising the possibilities offered by concrete shells and 3D printed concrete.
The exhibition was opened on 17 January in the presence of students from the O. Kalpaka Riga Folk Art Primary School who are interested in architectural studies. Under the guidance of specialists from the RTU Institute of Architecture and Design, they had to perform a task - without measuring instruments, using only their own stride length, a classmate's hand or something else, measure a room, draw its layout, cut it out and fold it.
«RTU and Origo Future Stop» is located on the 2nd floor of the new building of the shopping mall Origo, Stacijas laukums 4. It introduces the public to the latest technological solutions, scientific discoveries, achievements of RTU students, engineers and scientists.
