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2023 AIA CHESAPEAKE BAY DESIGN AWARDS - PROFESSIONAL

Call for Entries
Deadline: Friday, August 11, 2023 11:59:59 PM

Please read the newly revised instructions below and then click here to enter a project to the 2023 AIA Chesapeake Bay Excellence in Design Awards!

THE PROGRAM

Through its Annual Design Awards Program, AIA Chesapeake Bay Chapter recognizes excellence in architecture throughout the Chesapeake Bay Region.  The purpose of the awards program is to encourage and recognize distinguished architectural achievement and to honor the architects, clients, and consultants who work together to improve the built environment, and for their role in shaping the quality of life through design excellence.

 – Framework for Design Excellence

The AIA Maryland Chapters utilize AIA’s Framework for Design Excellence as part of the entry and judging process for their Design Award Programs. In the submission portal, we provide prompts for all ten measures from the AIA Framework for Design Excellence:  this includes Designing for Integration, Designing for Equitable Communities, Designing for Ecosystems, Designing for Water, Designing for Economy, Designing for Energy, Designing for Well-Being, Designing for Resources, Design for Change and Design for Discovery. 

When you submit a project, you will be given open-ended prompts to describe in a few sentences how your design achieves outcomes for each of the above measures. Projects are not required to address every measure; you should only address those measures that are relevant to your project. We do not use the Framework for Design as our sole criterion for evaluating projects. The goal is to promote the sustainable design work of our members and to support AIA’s Resolution for Urgent and Sustained Climate Action

– Expanded Promotion of Design Award Projects to Clients and the Public

To create added value to our design awards programs, The AIA Chapters in Maryland are collaborating on a new digital platform to promote more widely the 2023 awarded projects. This will include a more visually compelling awards gallery and additional marketing to public and client-facing publications.

2023 SCHEDULE

  • Friday, August 11, 2023:  Submission Forms, Material Uploads and Entry Fees are due by 11:59:59 pm ET.  Entry fee payments may be made by credit card in the awards submission portal when the project is ready for final submission.
  • Check payments, payable to AIA Chesapeake Bay, must be received at the AIA Chesapeake Bay Office (86 Maryland Ave., Annapolis, MD 21401) by the submission deadline.
  • August 21 - 25, 2023: Jury Review 
  • Week of September 5 - 8, 2023: Award Winners Notified
  • November 2, 2023 Design Awards Celebration

ELIGIBILITY

The Awards Program is open to AIA Chesapeake Bay members for projects located anywhere in the world. For a project to be considered eligible for an award, the architect submitting the project must be an assigned member of the AIA Chesapeake Bay Chapter as of the entry deadline of August 11, 2023. 

In addition - any AIA member architect located outside of the CBC area who wishes to submit a project may do so, if the project location itself is within the CBC area (Anne Arundel, Calvert, St. Mary's, Kent, Queen Anne's, Talbot, Caroline, Dorchester, Wicomico, Worcester, and Somerset counties).

New structures, additions, and projects involving significant changes to existing buildings, regardless of location, whose construction was completed after January 1, 2018, may be submitted. Projects must be completed and built. Projects that have previously won an AIACBC award are ineligible. However, a project which had ONLY won a People’s Choice Award at a previous event is eligible for re-submission.

There is no limit to the number of projects that may be entered by a firm, and all materials included in submissions must be cleared for public reproduction. Entries must be submitted jointly by the architect and client and must credit all members of the design and construction team. Projects must be submitted by or on behalf of an AIA member involved in the project.

ENTRY FEES

  • AIA Chesapeake Bay Member:   $150 per project
  • AIA Member of another Chapter:   $275 per project

Multiple projects can be submitted, each at the applicable entry fee. Payment is required at time of submission. There is no separate deadline for payment and project submission. Registration fees are non-refundable; however, upon request fees may be deferred to the following year’s program.

CATEGORIES

Projects of all types and scale, including new construction, additions, renovations, and historic preservation projects, are encouraged in each of the following categories:

  • Residential New Construction
  • Residential Renovation/Addition
  • Non-Residential New Construction
  • Non-Residential Renovation/Addition

The size, scope, category, or cost of a project in no way limits its eligibility or level of award.

AWARDS AND JUDGING

A panel of distinguished architects from AIA Western Massachusetts will review project entries for design excellence. Three levels of awards shall be considered by the jury: Honor, Merit, and Citation, of which Honor is the highest distinction. No minimum or maximum number of awards will be required of the jury.

At the jury’s discretion, the following awards may also be considered in addition to Honor, Merit and Citation awards:

  • Preservation Award
  • Framework for Design Excellence Award    

An “award winning project” shall demonstrate a high level of design resolution.  A project which also advances the contemporary understanding of design by proposing new approaches to the development of architectural form should also be awarded. Entries shall be weighed individually, not in comparison with each other. Awards may be given in as many or as few projects as are deemed worthy to receive recognition and as the Jury believes are justified by the quality of the submissions.

Awards will be considered using the following criteria, with additional consideration given to responses to the Framework for Design Excellence measures:

  • DESIGN EXCELLENCE: How well does the design elevate the human experience while addressing the project’s practical needs?
  • SUSTAINABLE DESIGN / RESILIENCY: How well does the design take a progressive approach to advancing the missions of sustainability and/or resiliency?
  • COMMUNITY IMPACT: How well does the design provide significant improvement to its social or physical setting?

WINNING ENTRIES AND PUBLICITY

The Winners of 2023 Design Awards will be notified prior to the Design Awards Celebration November 2, 2023. Award winners will be announced and award certificates presented to the Architect at the Design Awards Celebration. Additional award certificates may be provided when requested via email to camille@aiacbc.org and will be printed and mailed after the Design Awards Celebration. Notification to the Architect will indicate that the project/firm will be receiving an award but will NOT indicate the award level prior to the event. Architect winners are requested to notify their Client, General Contractor/Construction Manager and Consultants that the project will be receiving an award, and are encouraged to invite them to the awards celebration. Winners are asked to refrain from publicizing their award until after the awards ceremony. 

AIA Chesapeake Bay will promote the winning projects on the AIACBC website and social media platforms, Maryland AIA Chapters Design Awards Gallery website, and in Maryland AIA Chapter publications. A Press Release may be sent to the local media.

DESIGN AWARDS CELEBRATION

The Annual AIA Chesapeake Bay Excellence in Design Awards Celebration is scheduled for November 2, 2023. Check the AIACBC website (www.aia.org/chesapeakebay) in the coming months for additional information and to register for the Celebration.

 

PROJECT SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS:

To complete your submission, you must do the following by Friday, August 11, 2023, 11:59:59 PM ET:

1.    Complete the SUBMISSION FORM in the awards submission portal 

2.    Upload and finalize the PROJECT/JURY PDF, PRESENTATION PDF and IMAGE FILES (3-8 digital images with captions and photographer credits) to the submission portal 

3.    Make full payment of ENTRY FEES within submission portal (once project is finalized), or by mail (to be received by the deadline above)

Please complete all requested information in the portal. Required fields are marked with an asterisk. Please be sure the information appears EXACTLY as you wish to see it published and listed on the awards certificates. Check the spelling of names carefully. You may save your work and return to the submission site as often as needed if you complete and submit all parts of the project submission, along with payment of entry fees, by the due date.

AIA Chesapeake Bay and/or the AIA Jury reserve the right to disqualify any entry not submitted in the manner specified. Please direct questions to AIA Chesapeake Bay at camille@aiacbc.org or 410-268-3534.

SUBMITTING A PROJECT

Your design entry must be prepared and formatted as described below for submission through the online submission portal.

If you have previously submitted a project, you have an account and will be able to login with those credentials. If you have not, you will automatically establish an account when you create an entry application for the first time. Please review detailed instructions on the portal home page if you experience any technological issues using the portal.

All submission forms, file uploads and payment of fees will be handled through the online submission portal. You may save your work as you go and return to the site as often as needed, but all submission materials and entry fee payments must be completed and submitted by the submission deadline.

SUBMISSION TO MULTIPLE AIA CHAPTERS

Once an entry is completed for a project, that entire project submission may then be submitted to another Maryland Chapter awards program without any re-entry or re-uploading. Simply check the box: "I Want to Submit This Project to Another Chapter Awards Program" on the last page of the submission, 'Entry Uploads,' when you are ready to finalize your initial submission.

Conceal all references to the architecture firm name or design team members on all materials submitted for jury review. Identification of authorship within the Project/Jury PDF will disqualify the submission. Project PDFs must be in landscape orientation with a page size of 8 1/2" x 11", may not exceed 10MB total (all pages combined), and shall conform to the following requirements:

  • An anonymous PROJECT/JURY PDF presentation file for jury review and evaluation purposes only.
  • A PRESENTATION PDF presentation file for public presentation purposes. May include references to architecture design firm/team and client.

 

PROJECT/JURY PDF (10MB, 10 pages max) This is what the Jury sees!

Entries shall conform to the following page requirements:

  • The total size of each entry—all pages combined—may not exceed 10MB of data.
  • Each submission may contain a maximum of 10 pages. At your discretion, submit individual images on separate pages, or arrange multiple elements in a layout on a single page. 
  • Each page must be 8 1/2" x 11" in landscape orientation, and developed as a PDF presentation file. An easy way to produce your PDF presentation file is to create your presentation in PowerPoint and then save the file as a PDF. The jury will view your submission on computer screens and through screen projection.
  • Name the Jury PDF: JPDF_ProjectName.pdf
  • Please remember you must conceal references to the architecture firm or team members in the PDF submitted for jury review. Identification of project authorship within the Project/Jury PDF, including the file naming convention and photo credit, will disqualify the submission.

 

The Jury PDF should be organized as follows:

First Page: Project Description and Introduction

Format:

  • 8 1/2" x 11" landscape orientation (all pages)
  • Combination of text and images, 12 pt. minimum font size, formatted and designed at entrant's discretion to include:

           - Project Name

           - Project Location (City, State, if applicable)

           - Project Category (a project may be entered in only one category)

           - Project Summary describing the "Site," "Program," and "Solution." As part of this synopsis, discuss key design aspects (intent,           concepts, and contextual relationships), technical aspects (structure, materials, mechanical systems, etc. where informative), and the social, environmental, or other benefits of the project to the public and its users. This summary is intended for publication. It is suggested to have another set of eye’s proof it before submitting.

 

Subsequent Pages (2–10): Visuals

Include images along with additional succinct annotation. The format and design of the pages are at the entrant's discretion while maintaining 8 1/2" x 11" landscape orientation. Renderings are discouraged for built work—diagrams and images should speak to the design process and completed built work.

  • Please include photographs, drawings, floor plans, elevations, sections, and graphic images as necessary to provide a clear understanding of the extent and quality of the finished project. A site plan is required. Photographs should depict the whole project with views of each exposed exterior façade and each room of the project, as appropriate. Exterior views are optional for Interiors projects.
  • Label images with suitable titling and captions. Photographer credit on the images used in the Project/Jury PDF is permitted except those identifying the firm and/or team members.
  • Renovations, restorations, additions, and conversions should present “before” and “after” photographs. For projects involving changes to existing structures, documentation of original conditions is highly recommended. Process sketches that communicate the development of the project and/or its construction are encouraged.
  • Indicate the project’s physical context or site character through graphics and/or imagery.

 

PRESENTATION PDF (6MB, 3 pages max) This will be used by the Chapter.

Select three images that best represent your project. Selected images of all entries will be displayed during the cocktail reception at the Celebration, and images of award-winning entries will be displayed during the Awards Ceremony.

Prepare Presentation PDF in the following format:

  • The total size of PDF—all three pages combined—may not exceed 6MB of data.
  • Three pages maximum.
  • 10” x 7.5” – in landscape orientation and developed as a PDF presentation file.
  • On each page add project title, firm name, firm logos, or other identifiers as desired.
  • Use this naming convention for Presentation PDF file: PPDF_Firm Name_ProjectName.pdf

 

IMAGE FILES (3–8 images, JPG)

·        Provide no more than 8 images in JPG format (10MB max per image) for use in the presentation of entrants, awards, and publications. The Jury will not see these files. List captions and photographer or rendering credit for each image. Three of the images are to be of high resolution of the best representation of the project - one thumbnail, one exterior photo and one interior photo. The Thumbnail image can be a repeat of one of the other two, or a different image entirely. The three high-res images should be at least 300 dpi and 8”x10” and labeled:

1) Project Name thumbnail

2) Project Name high-res ext. JPG

3) Project Name high-res int.

Subsequent images must be at a maximum of 6” x 9” at 150 dpi for horizontal images, and a maximum of 6” x 7.5” at 150 dpi for vertical images.

Click here to enter a project to the 2023 AIA Chesapeake Bay Design Awards Program
 

Frequently Asked Questions

►  ​I’m not a member of AIA Chesapeake Bay, but a member of my project team is. Can I submit at the lower “member rate?” Yes, you can; the AIA Chesapeake Bay member should be listed as the eligible entrant.

►  I will be submitting three projects. Should I complete three registration forms? Yes, you will need to complete three separate entry applications.

►  Can I include the project name in the Project/Jury PDF? Yes, you may—just make sure you do not identify the submitting firm or designer. Submissions are to remain anonymous.

►  What happens if I exceed the 10MB file limit? You will be asked once to reduce the size of the file and resubmit your project.

►  How will I know my submission has been received? Upon submitting your entry, you will receive a confirmation e-mail message containing your submission details.

►  What should I do if I did not receive a confirmation e-mail containing my submission details? First, check your junk mail folder - the most likely problem is that your spam filter sent the e-mail there. If you don't find it in your junk mail folder, please contact the chapter program administrator for assistance: camille@aiacbc.org.

►  Do I have to start and finish my submission in one session? No. You can start your submission and come back to finish it before the applicable program deadline date by 11:59:59 pm EDT.

►  Can I revise my submission after I've hit the "Save and Finalize" button? Yes, provided your request is made and changes are complete by the entry deadline. You will need to ask the program's administrator to open your submission to allow you to make the change yourself through the portal. Email aiachesapeakebay@gmail.com.

►  Can we submit a few days late? No. In the interest of fairness to all participants, no late entries will be accepted.

►  How will our PDF be viewed? Jurors will view projects on both small (laptops) and large screens. As long as your images are web-ready (150 dpi), there will be no loss of fidelity.

Please direct additional questions to Camille Cimino, Executive Director, AIA Chesapeake Bay: camille@aiacbc.org or call 410-268-3534.

 

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