Eldry Infante of Mede Architecture is Hybrid Category Winner at the Architecture Drawing Prize 2023

Second time’s the charm for Architecture Drawing Prize joiner, architect-artist Eldry Infante. After reaching as far as the shortlist for his graphite rendition of Renzo Piano’s ‘The Bubble’ at 2021’s Architecture Drawing Prize, the Pampanga native is back with a vengeance, creating a monumental hybrid piece, a 14 by 29-inch graphite-digitally manipulated depiction of NewSubstance’s infamous See Monster installation. The co-principal of Mede Architecture and co-moderator for Brutalist Pilipinas writes of his entry:

“This composition explores line and drawing’s ability to incite discussions that go beyond a structure’s physicality. Rendering the transformation of the defunct oil platform “See Monster” (2022) into a sustainable project, my mode of imaging expresses the project’s readaptation story and resulting public perceptions.”

With his win, Eldry Infante is the second winner of Filipino descent at the prestigious drawing prize, after French-Filipino architect-artist Clement Luk Laurencio, who bagged the hand-drawn and overall prize for Apartment #5 drawing, a Labyrinth and Repository of Spatial Memories in 2020.

The intricate artwork soundly clinched the Hybrid category (combination of hand-drawn and digital drawing), rising above a field of more than 200 global entries, a considerable rise from last year’s 138 submissions. For 2023, the hand-drawn category is won by ‘Grundtvig’ by Ben Johnson, while Singapore’s Eugene Tan nabs the digital category for ‘The Archatographic Map of the Incomplete Landscape on Pedra Branca.’

Head of Exhibitions at Sir John Soane’s Museum and Prize Judge, Louise Stewart, says of Infante’s entry:
“We were impressed by this skillful and detailed drawing which has been digitally manipulated to create a very dynamic and varied composition. One of the drawing’s particular strengths is the way in which it uses a variety of visual languages, all of which convey information about how buildings work.”

Winners and shortlisted entrants will have their winning pieces exhibited at the Architecture Drawing Prize booth at the World Architecture Festival 2023 (November 29 to December 1) at the Marina Bay Sands in Singapore and again at the Sir John Soane Museum in London, from January 31 to March 3. The overall and category winners receive complimentary delegate and gala dinner passes to the World Architecture Festival, while the overall winner nabs a travel-expense paid trip to London to attend the exhibition preview. The overall winner be revealed ahead of the exhibition in a webinar hosted by Sir John Soane’s Museum on January 29, 2024, 5PM GMT. Details will be available soon in the Soane website.

The hand-drawn category shortlist

• The Glasgow School of Art Fire (triptych) by Alan Dunlop
• Trees and rocks, the shapeshifter by Alexander Warncke
• St. Stephen Walbrook by Luka Pajovic

The digital category shortlist

• The Bucolic Palimpsest by Ziad Haddad
• Transcultural Journey on the Orient Express by Chi Wai Vincent
• Gall-E: Interpolating Arts, Space and Display in the Age of AI by Tom Chan

The hybrid category shortlist

• Liverpool Capriccio 2200 C.E. by Tim Wheeler
• The Urban Anthro-Scape: Above by Alexander Jeong

First established in 2017 by Make Architects, the Architecture Drawing Prize was created to celebrate the craft and beauty of architectural drawing, whether it be hand-drawn or digitally rendered. The annual prize is now jointly organized by Make, Sir John Soane’s Museum and the World Architecture Festival with the support of Iris Ceramica Group. Each year, hundreds of global entries are received for the program’s three categories: hand-drawn, digital, and hybrid, which are then judged by a distinguished panel of jurors. This year’s judges consist of:

• Ben Langlands and Nikki Bell, artists, Langlands & Bell
• Federica Minozzi, CEO of Iris Ceramica Group
• Ken Shuttleworth, founder of Make Architects
• Lily Jencks, co-founder of LilyJencksStudio and JencksSquared
• Narinder Sagoo, senior partner at Foster + Partners
• Pablo Bronstein, artist
• Paul Finch, program director of the World Architecture Festival

Here is Infante’s statement on his win:

“I’m grateful for the recognition from the judges and organizers of the Drawing Prize. It’s an honor to be part of a collection showcasing skillful and narrative drawings, drawing inspiration from past editions, especially the work of Filipino-French architect Clement Laurencio in 2020.

In my submission for this year’s prize, I delved into the storytelling potential of line and drawing. The See Monster project, transforming a decommissioned oil rig into a platform for sustainability and creativity, captivated me. Public reactions varied despite its pertinent agenda, leading me to capture these diverse stories as “frames of narratives.” These frames, digitally manipulated or salvaged from my manual drawing of the See Monster, depict fractions of the structure’s lifespan, emphasizing the concept of creative reuse.

The drawing includes annotations highlighting key phases: the oil rig in the North Sea, construction exceeding deadlines, a focused map of the site, significant visitor numbers, and a concise 8-week run. It also details the structure’s impact on the sea, tabulates main and added/reused elements, and outlines media coverage. Additionally, it notes the planned replanting of over 1000 plants and shrubs in a dedicated legacy garden.

For me, drawing is more than expression; it’s a tool for learning and studying architecture. Each line is a conversation with the designer, allowing me to explore details without physical presence. My drawings reflect a quest for meaningful works, and I take joy in sharing stories while upholding the medium.

Drawing is the foundation of my journey into architecture, a means to connect and explore. This recognition resonates with me personally. Thank you to The Architecture Drawing Prize and World Architecture Festival for this meaningful acknowledgment!”

Luid ka, Eldry! •