Words Gabrielle de la Cruz and WAF 2024
Images World Architecture Festival
“How will architecture, urban design, landscape and interiors be affected by the trends we see around us in respect of population movement, city growth, digital technology, AI, immersive environments and cultural change?” is the question that the 2024 World Architecture Festival aims to answer with its theme, “Tomorrow.”
Once again taking place at the Marina Bay Sands Expo in Singapore from November 6 to 8, WAF 2024 follows the same program as its previous editions, where keynote speeches and panel discussions, networking opportunities, and fringe events take place alongside the live presentations.
“This year, we invited industry professionals to reflect on the changes they see coming, and how this is being reflected in their own work and thinking,” the organizers shared.
Keynote speeches and panel discussions will take place on the main stage, while live presentations will be happening at smaller festival stages and crit rooms.
Read on for a briefer on the three-day festival’s program!
WAF 2024 Schedule
A total of 485 live project presentations will be happening during the festival. This includes entries from WAF, INSIDE, and the Global Student Charette.
Here’s a quick rundown of the schedule:
November 6 (Day 1)
- Completed Buildings, from crit rooms 1 to 10: Civic and Community; Creative Re-Use; Culture; House & Villa (Rural/Coastal); House &Villa (Urban); Housing; Office; Production, Energy and Logistics; School; and Sport.
- Future Projects, from crit rooms 11 to 15: Competition Entries and Infrastructure; Civic; Leisure-led Development; Masterplanning; and Office and Sport.
- INSIDE, from crit rooms 16 and 17: Hotels and Health and Fitness; and Workplace (Large) and Workplace (Small).
- WAFX winners at Festival Hall Stage, starting at 10:00 AM: Ageing and Health; Cultural Identity; Carbon and Climate; Building Technology; Digital Worlds; Ethics and Values; Power and Justice; and Food.
Note: All shortlisted participants will have 20 minutes each for their presentations (10 minutes to present and another 10 for the live Q&A), while WAFX winners will have 10 minutes each.
November 7 (Day 2)
- Completed Buildings, from crit rooms 1 to 6 and 13: Landscape; Higher Education and Research; Hotel & Leisure; Mixed-Use; Retrofit; Shopping and Transport; and Health and Display.
- Future Projects, from crit rooms 7 to 12: Commercial Mixed-Use; Culture; Education; Experimental; Health and House; and Residential.
- INSIDE, from crit rooms 14 to 17: Bars & Restaurants; Public Buildings; Education and Residential; and Retail and Temporary/Meanwhile uses.
- WAFX presentations at Festival Hall Stage: Re-use; Smart Cities; and Water.
November 8 (Day 3)
- World Building of the Year, main stage
- Inside World Interior of the Year, festival stage
- Future Project of the Year, crit room 1
- Special Prizes, from crit rooms 2 to 7: Best use of Colour; Small Project of the Year; Best use of Natural Light; Best use of Stone; The Sustainability Prize; and Student Charette Prize
20 presentations and panel discussions, including lunchtime keynotes will also be distributed throughout the festival. WAF attendees will have the chance to hear from Yansong Ma of MAD Architects, Kerstin Thompson of Kerstin Thompson Architects, and Kongjian Yu of Peking University on the first day.
Practices including Foster + Partners and Form4 Architecture will be sharing their insights on the second day, along with a lunchtime keynote by Sir Peter Cook of Cook Belacevic Haffner and Partners.
Two presentations from Dave Gilmore of DesignIntelligence and Kai-Uwe Bergmann of Bjarke Ingels will take the main stage on the last day, with all winners announced at the end of the day. Awardees will be invited into a Gala Night where they will be recognized and handed their respective WAF trophies.
Filipino representation at WAF 2024
The Philippines made another robust showing at the festival this year! While the number of shortlist placements took a slight dip, this year’s entries show the country’s highest concentration of new entrants and regional representation. A total of eight (8) firms were shortlisted namely Archion Architects, Bacungan Architects, and Pluszerotwo Architecture from Manila; LLG Architects Design Studio, Obra Majoralia, and San Studio from Cebu; and LT Pagaduan Design Studio and Swito Designs from Davao City.
The country also made a record-breaking number of entries at the Global Student Charette following last year’s win, with four (4) student groups making up half of the program’s shortlist. Last year’s winning school, the University of Northern Philippines, returns this 2024 with two entries (teams of Rachelle Anne Arce and Jeronimo Valdez). They are joined by another set of two student teams from Mapúa Malayan Colleges Mindanao (submissions by Jasper Marie Arnilla and Arnel Rasheed Defensor).
#KantoWAF2024
Kanto is returning as a WAF media partner for a fourth time! Readers will get live updates on all the exciting developments at the Marina Bay Sands Expo in Singapore, from the live crits to the announcement of winners. •
All-access tickets to the festival are now sold out, but premium and standard tickets are still available! Secure your WAF passes here.
You may also download a copy of the full delegate brochure via this link.
