Strip Horizon

Strip Horizon is an architectural and urban design for a flexible, scalable residential neighbourhood in the municipality of Runavík in the Faroe Islands. The work was shortlisted in an open, two-stage international competition. The final entry was presented to the jury and Faroese stakeholders in June 2016. The project developed multi-dimensional perspectives on architectural sustainability. The design incorporated environmental, economic and place-making components. It provided a theoretical reflection, a method of enquiry, and a case study. Critically, the design proposal experimented with a customised linear building typology unprecedented in the regional context of the Faroe Islands and the Nordic Countries. The design enquiry was repeatable and scalable in the Faroese context, but also in the broader context of the Nordic Countries. The stage 1 competition submission was amongst the top 4 finalists and received international press coverage (see Appendix, page 26). Relevant stakeholders in the Nordic Countries contributed to stage 2 development via public presentations (see Appendix, page 26). The project contributed to design debate within the regional context in co-operation with the other 3 finalist teams via workshops (see Appendix, page 26). The reflective critique initiated in stage 2 was further extended and redeployed in academic debate through the development of peer-reviewed conference papers. The project constituted substantial research incorporating multi-dimensional sustainability indicators synthesised in the form of an Urban Strategies Diagram (see page 22) that provided a novel methodological analysis tool that was both reflective and projective. Peer-review assessment was carried out twice during the competition process through an international jury in stages 1 and 2, with feedback from the jury following both stages. Academic publication provided further peer-review assessment.