Starting with 51 submissions from 11 countries, the winners of the 2017 RIBA President's Awards for Research have been announced! The competition distinguishes top-notch architectural research projects by students, academics, and practitioners worldwide. The winners were selected from a shortlist comprising four categories: History and Theory; Cities and Community; Design and Technical; and the 2017 theme of Housing.

Out of the four category winners, the coveted 2017 RIBA President’s Medal for Research was awarded to Dr. Edward Denison of the Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL (who also won in last year's competition) and UK-based independent researcher Guang Yu Ren for their project “Ultra Modernism in Manchuria”.

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Image from 2017 RIBA President’s Medal for Research and History and Theory category winner: “Ultra Modernism in Manchuria”
Image from 2017 RIBA President’s Medal for Research and History and Theory category winner: “Ultra Modernism in Manchuria” - Project excerpt from the RIBA Book of Abstracts: “Such was the speed and intensity of Manchukuo’s encounter with modernity and its distinction from western precedents, the Japanese branded it ultra-modernism. Ultra-Modernism in Manchukuo was ideologically ubiquitous and became manifest in urban planning, architecture, transportation, photography and film - all essential facets of modern metropolitan life in Manchukuo...After more than a decade of research culminating in the recent publication of the first book to focus exclusively on architecture and modernity in Manchuria, this work not only fills a conspicuous gap in existing architectural knowledge and challenges the modernist canon, but also provides important context to the rising tensions in the region, the seeds of which were sown in Manchuria.”
  • Dr. Edward Denison, Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL, UK
  • Guang Yu Ren, Independent Researcher, UK
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