New European Bauhaus Prizes 2023

Project category

Identify the award category for which this project is being submitted
Reconnecting with nature

Email user
konstantin.iko@gmail.com

Basic information
Project title
Qaammat Pavilion

Full Project Title
Qaammat Pavilion, UNESCO, Greenland by Konstantin Ikonomidis

Please provide a short, catchy description of your project to be used in communication towards the public.
Located in Sarfannguit, a cultural landscape in West Greenland and a UNESCO World Heritage site since 2018, the Fjeld pavilion by Konstantin Ikonomidis is designed to celebrate and promote the Inuit intangible cultural heritage and traditional knowledge of the environment. Characterized by the two fjords that meet on Sarfannguit’s eastern tip on the hills, the pavilion’s location has been carefully chosen by the local community, site manager Paninnguaq Fleischer-Lyberth and architect.

What was the geographical scope of your project?
National

Where was your project implemented?
Member State(s) and Western Balkans
Denmark

If relevant, insert names of region(s)/municipality(ies) involved
The pavilion in implemented in Sarfannguit, Greenland. The planing and construction of the Qaammat Pavilion was made possible thanks to the UNESCO Site Manager Paninguaq Flaisher-Lyberth, Qeqqata municipality, the UNESCO Aasivissuit-Nipisat team and the Sisimiut Museum.

Does your project address mainly urban or rural issues?
Mainly rural

Does your project refer to a physical transformation of the built environment or other types of transformations (hard or soft investments)?
It refers to a physical transformation of the built environment (hard investment)

Has your project benefited from EU programmes and/or funds?
No

Has your project won an EU prize with a monetary value awarded?
No

Is your project fully completed
Yes

Please indicate a date (mm/yy)
2021-11-21

On whose behalf are you submitting the application?
As an individual
Please provide the contact details for the project promoter (the individual or representative of the organisation authorised to represent the project).
- First name: Konstantin
  Last name: Ikonomidis
  Gender: Prefer not to say
  Nationality: Sweden
  If relevant, please select your other nationality: Greece
  Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Kullagatan 44
  Town: Helsingborg
  Postal code: 252 21
  Country: Sweden
  Direct Tel: +45 53 71 01 22
  E-mail: konstantin.iko@gmail.com
  Website: https://www.konstantin-ik.com
Social Media accounts (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, etc.)
- URL: https://www.instagram.com/konstantin_ik/?hl=en
  Social media handle and associated hashtag(s): #Qaammat #konstantinArkitekter
In case my project is selected as a finalist of the NEB Prizes 2023, I agree to share the name (individual and/or organisation’s), email address, website and social media accounts indicated above with other NEB Prizes finalists. I also agree to publish the name (individual and/or organisation’s), website and social media accounts indicated above next to the public description of my project in the channels of the European Commission.
Yes

How did you hear about the New European Bauhaus Prizes?
Swedish Architecture unions newsletter

Description of the project
Please provide a summary of your project.
Qaammat Pavilion - a Contemporary "inussuk" (Cairn)
One of the more significant features of UNESCO's Aasivissuit-Nipisat Herrigate Site is the extraordinary cairn systems, a Greenlandic "inussuk," a manufactured monument in an open environment. The idea and location of the landmark Qaammat are inextricably tied to the traditions of the local heritage, and it seeks to serve as both a reverence to the historical “inussuk", and a modern landmark for the newly announced UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Qaammat Pavilion - Located in Sarfannguit, a cultural landscape in West Greenland and a UNESCO World Heritage site since 2018, the Fjeld pavilion by Konstantin Ikonomidis is designed to celebrate and promote the Inuit intangible cultural heritage and traditional knowledge of the environment. Characterized by the two fjords that meet on Sarfannguit’s eastern tip on the hills, the pavilion’s location has been carefully chosen by the local community, site manager Paninnguaq Fleischer-Lyberth and architect.

Set on the planned trail between Sarfannguit and Nipisat, this site-specific installation will serve as a landmark and a gathering point and dissemination site in Sarfannguit, where the World Heritage site’s beautiful surroundings can be experienced by locals and visitors to the village. The Fjeld pavilion is designed as a poetic and aesthetic object, but most importantly as a symbolic gesture acknowledging the natural site and rich history, the distinctiveness of the Greenlandic culture, and the spiritual sensibilities rooted in Sarfannguit.

Please indicate the main themes of your project with 5 key words.
Art, Culture, Science

Please indicate the main themes of your project with key words
A contemporary cairn = Reconnecting with Traditions,

Please indicate the main themes of your project with key words
Landscape Art = Reconnecting with nature

Please indicate the main themes of your project with key words
Community process and Unity

Please indicate the main themes of your project with key words
Sustainable economy through tourism

Please give information about the key objectives of your project in terms of sustainability and how these have been met. Please highlight how the project can be exemplary in this context.
The project demonstrate how the impact of innovative design can strengthen and transform our environment. The project demonstrates how the impact of innovative design can strengthen and transform our environment.

Respecting the site - Adding to a landscape. The choice for the site was guided by a strong desire to respect nature and find a balance within the extraordinary landscape. The pavilion seeks to embrace a sensitivity towards nature instilled in the local culture, and establishes a subtle presence by blurring the physical boundary between man-made structure and the natural terrain and landscape.

The pavilion is anchored in the rocky terrain. Drilled into the ground with 40-mm holes, the foundation is constructed with rock anchors in the exact same way that every typical house in the settlement is. Attached to the upper part of the metal poles is a custom made stainless steel bracket with a circular geometry. The metal bar is fully horizontal and the poles vary in length according to the terrain. The curving walls, constructed in glass blocks, form a linear pathway open at both ends, which serves as entrance to the pavilion.
One of the more distinctive features of the structure is its glass ‘shell’, its play of transparencies, scale and weight, resulting in a feeling of surreality. The Qaammat pavilion can simultaneously alter the viewer’s perspective, merge, and even vanish into the surrounding topography.

Please give information about the key objectives of your project in terms of aesthetics and quality of experience for people (through design, positive emotions and cultural benefits) and how these have been met. Please highlight how the project can be exemplary in this context.
During the survey's early stages, I had numerous conversations with the village chairman, Aron Olsen, who shared stories and Greenlandic legends that are strongly related to the locals’ bond with nature. Based on this, I attempted to construct a feeling of atmosphere in a fictitious geometry that might convey a sensation of mystery as I comprehended his tales, and chose to work with glass to translate the reflection of the immense sense of power in this natural landscape, which also reminds us of nature’s vulnerability.

I decided to work with glass due to its reflective properties, transparency, and seasonal variations in appearance. However the experience of working with glass as structural material is limited in the arctic circle and little was know about appropriate adhesives to bind glass blocks in such extreme climates. The selected glass blocks were handcrafted in Venice, Italy by WonderGlass. Each block is cast in a metal mold that creates a textured surface that causes variability in reflections. Approximately 1200 glass blocks, each weighing about 5 kg form two inclined semicircular structures facing each other. Both structures narrow towards the top. The entire structure has a diameter of 3 meters.

Please give information about the key objectives of your project in terms of inclusion (ranging from accessibility and affordability for all to inclusive governing systems, design for all principles or new societal models) and how these have been met. Please highlight how the project can be exemplary in this context.
Please see attached pdf

Please explain the way citizens benefiting from or affected by the project and civil society have been involved in the project and what has been the impact of this involvement on the project
Please see attached pdf

Please explain how different stakeholders at various levels (local, regional, national, European) were engaged in the design and implementation of the project. Please highlight what the added value of their engagement was.
Architect: Design, development and Constrution, Konstantin Ikonomidis.
Client: Qeqqata municipality, the UNESCO Aasivissuit-Nipisa
Collaboration: Sisimiut Museum

The planning and construction of the Qaammat Pavilion was made possible thanks to the UNESCO Site Manager Paninguaq Flaisher-Lyberth, Qeqqata municipality, the UNESCO Aasivissuit-Nipisat team and the Sisimiut Museum. Kloe Andersen of Sarfannguit assisted the constructing from the first to the last glass block. The local communities, from Sarfannguit and Sisimiut, and local businesses (Sisimiut boat safari, Sirius and VVS metal workshop) provided critical support. WonderGlass, Italy, provided the specific glass blocks at a subsidised price and DOW Inc, Belgium donated a custom made adhesive to bond the glass blocks. Glass researchers Telesilla Bristogianni, Faidra Oikonomopoulou contributed their expertise in glass as a building material. The knowledge acquired while constructing the Qaammat Pavilion was shared in a glass workshop in Sarfannguit with financial support from The Nordic Institute in Greenland. Glass & Construction Analysis was provided with additional funding by Dreyer's Found. The opening ceremony for the Pavilion was held in October 2021, just before the winter season began.

Please explain which disciplines and/ or knowledge fields were reflected in the design and implementation of your project. Please explain how representatives of these different fields interacted with each other, and what the added value of this process was.
Sarfannguit is the only active village at the UNESCO World Heritage Aasivissuit –Nipisat. During the design and construction phases, the local community across all genders and ages has been involved in the project. Locals were introduced to the construction methods and some were trained and later joined the team to complete the pavilion.

Please give information on the results, outcomes and impacts achieved by your project in relation to the category you apply for. This includes also benefits from the project for direct and indirect beneficiaries
According to conversations with the local community and the UNESCO site manager, Sarfannguit village attracts a large number of visitors, both local and international. This benefits the local economy, and the demand for overnight accommodations has sparked interest in establishing a home-stay and a local guest house in the village.

Please provide documents showing the results, outcomes and impacts of your project
Web link
Web link
- https://sermitsiaq.ag/node/232688
Please highlight the innovative character of the project, when compared to mainstream actions in the field of the project
In order to construct the Qaammat, I had to understand the nature of glass as a building material and the specific environment. Finding an adhesive that could meet both the structural and aesthetic requirements was essential for the success of the project. The adhesive had to be fast curing, simple to apply, and long lasting in extreme temperatures.

Please describe the methodology or approach used in your project.
1; spend several months in the community, understand the community needs, culture and traditions. 2; based on conversations with the community and UNECO Team, develop a design. 3. Understand the environment, climate and terrain - Practical research for the implementation of the structure. 4. Form a team from the community to help construct the pavilion. 5. Share the knowledge of the construction to the rest of the community.

The working method for the Qaammat Pavilion evolved from my practical experience working on a research and building project to improve health in sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia through experimental prototype houses. The methodology of these earlier projects sparked my interest in establishing an architectural and creative studio that focuses on architectural innovation through practical and scientific research as well as the application of novel technologies and techniques.

My believe is that the careful planning and successful implementation of this project can inspire future - hopefully larger scale - creative construction possibilities in the Arctic.

Please describe which elements of your project could be replicated or transferred to other places, groups of beneficiaries and context. This may involve for example aspects of the methodology, technology, processes, products, learnings etc.
Please see attached pdf

Please explain what kind of global challenges the project addresses by providing local solutions
Please see attached pdf
Please attach at least 6 high resolution images (or other types of visual representations, if images are not possible) to your application.
If you would like to upload additional documentation, please upload or write below
- 01. Qaammat_Pavilion_Greenland_Konstantin Ikonomidis_KI.pdf
By submitting your application you confirm that you are the copyright owner of the images provided and that they can be used by the European Commission for the purposes of promoting the New European Bauhaus on all platforms (websites, print, social media and other).
Yes

By ticking this box, you declare that you are not in in one or more of the exclusion situations foreseen under Article 136 of the Financial Regulation.
Yes

By submitting this application, I declare that I am not related to the entities subject to EU restricted measures under Article 29 of the Treaty on the European Union (TEU) and subject to Article 215 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU (TFEU)1, and entities covered by Commission Guidelines No 2013/C 205/05), which are not eligible to participate in any capacity.
Yes

By ticking this box, you declare that all the information provided in this form is factually correct, that you assume sole liability in the event of a claim relating to the activities carried out in the framework of the contest, that the proposed project has not been proposed for the New European Bauhaus Prizes in any other category or strand and that it has not been subject to any type of investigation, which could lead to a financial correction because of irregularities or fraud.
Yes

By submitting your application, you guarantee that you are the author or have the rights to proceed with the application and to authorise the use of the project and that you have obtained any necessary consents, licenses or assignments from third parties and included copyright notices when necessary.
Yes

By submitting your application, you understand that all the applications that meet the eligibility requirements will be shared for the purposes of the selection processes, and notably published on the secured platform prizes.new-european-bauhaus.eu and for the purposes of the promotion of these on the New European Bauhaus website and/or other European Commission communication channels. In this sense, the applications would be widely available. Applicants should ensure that they present their projects, in such a way that they could be shared without giving rise to intellectual property related concerns. If your submission is selected as one of the finalists, it will additionally be shared for the purpose of the public vote that will take place. The European Union is granted a licence to use and share your application with the general public and the official external experts for the purposes of the selection process, including the voting. The European Union has the right to use the images and visual materials and the description provided in the application for communication purposes related to the contest and beyond. Rights granted comprise the right to store, reproduce, display, publish and communicate or distribute copies in electronic or digital format, including, but not only, through the internet. Unless you have disclosed your name, the European Commission has no obligation to share your name when using or disseminating your contribution to the public. The European Union cannot be held responsible in case any submitted project, is found to infringe third party’s rights. The European Union shall be neither responsible for the use that third parties may do of the applications or related content.
Yes

By submitting your application, you acknowledge that you read and understand that the ‘Guide to Applicants’ of the NEB Prizes 2023, available online in the website of the NEB Prizes 2023, is an integral part of this application form and that it must therefore be observed when completing and submitting your application.
Yes