The Jury of the Cristián Undurraga International Prize for Sacred Architecture

With May 15th being the registration deadline for the VI Edition of the International Prize for Sacred Architecture for new religious buildings of Christian worship created worldwide, the Frate Sole Foundation has selected the jurors that on Tuesday, June 7th will meet to evaluate the various projects submitted and who then will select the finalists. The applicants will be evaluated by a Jury formed by members of the Scientific Committee of the Frate Sole Foundation and by the world famous Chilean architect, Cristian Undurraga, winner of the last edition of the International Prize for Sacred Architecture, with his “Capilla del Retiro”, and also creator of the Chile Expo 2015 Pavilion.

By June 30th, the Frate Sole Foundation will post the results of the competition on its website: www.fondazionefratesole.org. The applicants admitted will be informed and invited to the awards ceremony, which will be held in #pavia on October 4th. A documentary exhibition will present the works selected. The total prize amount for the International Prize will be equal to 30,000 Euros. At the discretion of the Jury, it could be awarded to just one winner, or split among several winners.

The Jury

Cristián Undurraga began his studies at the School of Architecture of the Pontificia Universidad Catolica in Chile in 1972 and graduated in 1977 with honors. In the same year, he won first prize as a young architect at the Chilean Biennial of Architecture and, a year later, he founded Undurraga Devés Arquitectos. He has played a significant role in the architecture of Chile and Latin America, in general, and along with his brilliant career as architect, Undurraga has also been President of the XV Biennial of Architecture, professor at the Universidad Catolica School of Architecture, as well as lecturer for universities and cultural centers, both on a national and international level.

His fame soon traversed the ocean and, in 1991, he went on to win the Andrea Palladio International Architecture Award with his “House on a Hill”, the beginning of a new era in Chilean architecture, followed by his “Casa Mirador” project in 2004, winner of the International Award at the Biennale Iberoamericana de Quito. In 2005, Undurraga received the Gold Medal at the Biennial of Miami with his “La Casa del Lago” and, in 2009, he was nominated Honorary Fellow of the American Institute of Architects. In 2012, he won the International Prize for Sacred Architecture with “Capilla del Retiro”, a cubic space of reinforced concrete, supported by a glass perimeter, in turn, inserted into a opening excavated in the rock at the foot of Mount Carmelo, 70 kms. north of Santiago, near the Sanctuary of Teresa de Los Andes.

In 2015, he created the project for the Chile Pavilion at Expo 2015. A suspended structure, a large wooden lintel enclosed in a frame of cross beams, supported by four concrete pillars that create an intermediate space, a temperate horizon, typical of Chilean architecture. The main material was Monterey pine, a wood that is most exported from Chile and, in this case, worked in Italy, used as a reminder that the surface area of forests in Chile is increasing, in contrast to the ongoing deforestation carried out on Earth.

Luigi Leoni is an architect and President of the Frate Sole Foundation in #pavia. He has created over thirty churches around the world, along with the artist, Father Costantino Ruggeri, with whom he has collaborated from 1965 to 2007, while also taking an interest in the study and creation of sacred works of art and stained glass.

Esteban Fernandez Cobian is an architect and lecturer at the Department of Architectural Technology at the Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura in La Coruña, Spain, where he conducts research on the construction of sacred space in contemporary architecture. He is also director of the digital magazine, “Boletin Académico” and author of numerous works, including the famous, “El espacio sagrado en la arquitectura española contemporánea” (2005) and “Arquitecturas de lo sagrado: memoria y proyecto” (2009).

Walter Zahner is a doctor of theology and art history, and was the Head of the German Bishops' Conference for Art and Architecture between 1991 and 1996. Since 2005, he has been professor of sacred art at the Technische Universität in Darmstadt, Chairman of the Art Committee of the Diocese of Würzburg and, since 2006, Chairman of DG, the German Society for Christian Art in Munich, as well as being a member of the Scientific Councils for Conferences on Liturgy, Architecture, and Art for the C.E.I. (Conferenza Episcopale Italiana - Italian Episcopal Conference) in Venice and the International Congress on Sacred Architecture in Ourense in Spain. He is also the author of numerous publications on architecture, art, and liturgy.

Giorgio Della Longa is an architect and teaches, in particular, in the post-graduate training field. He is the author of research papers and publications regarding the subject of contemporary religious architectural projects and the adaptation and enhancement of existing ones, among which include the monographs, “Celebrare con la luce. Valorizzazione delle chiese con valenza storico-artisitca: liturgia e tecnologie” (2002) - Celebrating with light. The enhancement of churches with historical and artistic value: the liturgy and technologies - on the topic of technological innovation in historical churches, “Antichi spazi per la nuova liturgia. Le cattedrali del Triveneto” (2002) - Ancient spaces for a new liturgy. Cathedrals in Triveneto, and “Le cattedrali dell’Emilia Romagna. Storia, #arte, Liturgia (2007) - The cathedrals of Emilia Romagna. History, Art, Liturgy, on the topic of adaptation and enhancement of liturgical spaces. Lecturer in numerous conferences and national and international congresses, he has also collaborated with the C.E.I. as curator of the conferences related to “Art, Architecture, and Liturgy in the twentieth century”, Venice 2003-2006 and, since 2009, has been member of the Scientific Committee of the International Congress on Contemporary Religious Architecture in Ourense in Spain.

Caterina Parrello is an architect who works on the national territory and collaborates with Private and Public Institutions. She has developed her skills in the fields of architecture and communication and carries out promotional and organizational activities for contests, architectural awards, and cultural events. She has been a member of juries and technical committees of numerous national and international architectural contests and awards.

Valerio Pennasso is responsible for the executive office of the National Service for Sacred Buildings established through the General Secretariat of the C.E.I. and at the service of the Italian dioceses, and the eponymous Committee, in matters regarding religious constructions.

The International Prize for Sacred Architecture is organized by the Frate Sole Foundation and sponsored by local authorities and national ecclesiastical and cultural institutes, such as the Pontifical Commission for the Ecclesiastic Cultural Heritage of the Holy See, the Ministry of Heritage and Culture, the National Council of Architects, the Order of Landscaping Architects of the Province of #pavia, the Diocese of #pavia, the Municipality of #pavia, the University of #pavia, the National Bureau for Sacred Buildings, and the Province of Lombardy of the Friars Minor.

www.fondazionefratesole.org