Buildner Announces Winners of 3rd Architect's Stair Competition
Buildner has revealed the outcomes of its third international competition for architectural ideas, Architect's Stair, which encouraged participants to rethink the purpose of stairs beyond mere functionality. Entries ranged from innovative abstractions to nods to historical designs. An international panel of judges, featuring architects from BKSK Architects, Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), and Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF), evaluated submissions based on their originality and clarity of concept. The top honor was awarded to Zuhtu Usta from Turkey for 'A.Q.U.A.LIZER: The Abacus Stairs,' a dynamic stair system. Haoran Yuan from the USA secured second place with 'A stair, a spiral, or a park,' while Ralf Klaus Petersen of Germany took third with '(St)Aircase - From Scrap to Step.' The Buildner Student Award recognized Brad Michael Michael and Ashlie Brooke Boelkins from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette for their project 'Social Play.'
Key facts
- Buildner announced winners of its 3rd Architect's Stair competition on August 05, 2026.
- First prize: Zuhtu Usta (Turkey) for 'A.Q.U.A.LIZER: The Abacus Stairs'.
- Second prize: Haoran Yuan (United States) for 'A stair, a spiral, or a park'.
- Third prize: Ralf Klaus Petersen (Germany) for '(St)Aircase - From Scrap to Step'.
- Student Award: Brad Michael Michael and Ashlie Brooke Boelkins (University of Louisiana at Lafayette) for 'Social Play'.
- Jury included architects from BKSK, Studio Niko Kapa, Nissen Richards, Stephen Taylor Architects, BIG, GAMMA, HAKUTEN, KPF, and Johnston Marklee.
- Competition had no constraints on site, scale, material, or program.
- Buildner's other ongoing competitions include The Oak Moon Pavilion, Museum of Emotions #9, and The Architect's Chair #6.
Entities
Artists
- Zuhtu Usta
- Haoran Yuan
- Ralf Klaus Petersen
- Brad Michael Michael
- Ashlie Brooke Boelkins
- Andrii Kovalskyi
- Ajvi Allmuça
- Alexandra Baidac
- Marios Solomou
- Vasilis Joannides
- Stephani Kanga
- Haram Lee
- Min-geon Jeong
- Bongani Bennedict Radebe
- Beste Aykut
- Niko Kapa
- Pippa Nissen
- Pepyn Nolet
- Gary Polk
- Shinya Sueyoshi
- Takumi Takahashi
- Mengyu Zhao
- Zehua Zhang
- Siyu Zhu
Institutions
- Buildner
- BKSK Architects
- Studio Niko Kapa
- Nissen Richards Studio
- Stephen Taylor Architects
- Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG)
- GAMMA Architects
- HAKUTEN
- Kohn Pedersen Fox (KPF)
- Johnston Marklee
- University of Louisiana at Lafayette
- Università degli Studi di Parma
- Hanyang University
Locations
- Turkey
- United States
- Germany
- Dortmund
- Ukraine
- Italy
- Paris
- France
- Romania
- Cyprus
- South Korea
- South Africa