Audity Haider - First Prize - Bangladesh

Traditional carved door with metal hardware reflecting the crafts and techniques of Bangladesh by Audity Haider

"Traditionally, doors of the Indian subcontinent were made out of wood, often having intricate hand-carvings as ornamentation and were fitted with metal hardware. Similarly, for this project, I imagined a wooden door with ornate carvings of flower motifs fitted with brass hardware of similar floral details. Rather than a door knob, the traditional doors often had a door hasp and lock, which is what I also incorporated in my design, along with embellished brass door knockers and door handles. The frame of the door is also intricately decorated and indicates a hand-carved house number. Meanwhile, the cornice provides protection to the door while elevating its elaborate design. "

Audity Haider - First Prize - Bangladesh

Traditional carved door with metal hardware reflecting the crafts and techniques of Bangladesh by Audity Haider

"Traditionally, doors of the Indian subcontinent were made out of wood, often having intricate hand-carvings as ornamentation and were fitted with metal hardware. Similarly, for this project, I imagined a wooden door with ornate carvings of flower motifs fitted with brass hardware of similar floral details. Rather than a door knob, the traditional doors often had a door hasp and lock, which is what I also incorporated in my design, along with embellished brass door knockers and door handles. The frame of the door is also intricately decorated and indicates a hand-carved house number. Meanwhile, the cornice provides protection to the door while elevating its elaborate design. "

Envel Ollivier - Second Prize - France

Projet de porte bretonne, ainsi que des détails sur la quincaillerie par Envel Ollivier

"La sculpture de cette porte bretonne rappellera à nos descendants cette légende où une hermine a préférer faire face aux chiens qui la traquaient, plutôt que de se souiller dans la boue, donnant ainsi naissance notre devise : « Plutôt la mort que la souillure ». La porte sera gravée de Liserons des sables, qui ralentissent l’avancée inexorable des dunes bretonnes. La quincaillerie quand à elle, sera gravée d’ajonc des landes de la région. Le heurtoir sera forgé comme un torque celtique, et la clef représentera une croix celte ornée de noeuds, conformément à la tradition."

"J’ai eu à coeur d’imaginer une porte représentant ma région, la Bretagne, à travers les matériaux employés, les techniques
traditionnelles de réalisation et les ornementations. Ainsi, la porte sera orientée vers le midi, conformément à la tradition,
et elle sera encastrée dans un encadrement en granite, pierre locale. La porte elle même est faite en bois de chêne de la région.

La partie supérieure est composée de 2 panneaux de bois sculptés. L’hermine à droite et l’epagneul Breton à gauche représentent la devise de la Bretagne : « Kentoc'h mervel eget bezan saotret » soit « Plutôt la mort que la souillure ». Cela vient d’un jour ou la duchesse Anne de Bretagne, lors d'une chasse, vit une hermine, traquée par les chiens, préférer mourir que de se salir en traversant une mare boueuse. Fascinée, la duchesse lui laissa la vie sauve et fit de l'hermine son emblème.

Entre ces deux panneaux de bois se trouve une rouelle. C’est un motif traditionnel récurrent sur les meubles bretons, réalisé en bois tourné. Le centre de cette rouelle, où se trouve une hermine symbolique, se situe à 2,345m de hauteur. Cette mesure vient des dates de création de la Bretagne : 400 et 938 après J-C. Si l’on fractionne la première date par la dernière, on trouve exactement 2,345.

Sur la partie inférieure de la porte on trouve 4 panneaux de bois, ornés de Liserons des sables.

On trouve ces plantes dans les dunes du littoral
breton. Elle permettent de fixer ces dunes et on les trouve ici comme
symbole de stabilité face au temps qui emporte tout.

Enfin on trouve la quincaillerie. La poignée de la porte représente une
fleur de Liseron des sables. En dessous, la serrure est ornementée
d’Ajonc, une plante aux fleurs jaunes et aux épines vertes que l’on
retrouve dans les landes bretonnes.
Le heurtoir, quant à lui, est inspiré des torques celtes bretons. Aux
deux bouts, on retrouve le chien et l’hermine qui s’affrontent, en
référence à la légende.
Pour finir, j’ai représenté le bout d’une clef. On y retrouve une croix
celtique, symbole de l’union entre la religion celte et catholique qui a
existé en Bretagne. Leur centre est ornementé de noeuds celtiques, et on
en retrouve à travers toute la région."

João Batista - Third Prize - Portugal

"My two entries are two different doors, both following the built traditions in my country, in a more classical and vernacular fashion.
Both entries are original designs, but I took inspiration from doors I have seen through my tours around my homeland (Portugal).

The first one is a door in Sintra, with a romantic archway with limestone blocks arranged and sculpted in a picturesque interpretation of a rusticated arch. The wooden door has three intricately carved panels, two forged iron hinges with vernacular motifs, as well as a door handle on top of an escutcheon (see detail drawing n1).

The second one is a colored pencil drawing of a Renaissance Door, here the doorway is composed of a simple classical granite frame, with a detail very common in northern Portugal during the XVI century, it being the suave curves instead of a sharp angle around the inner part of the doorway. The door itself is composed of various panels with complex geometrical lines, ending in a diamond, another typical motif found in renaissance architecture. The wood is painted green, with forged iron heads that hold up the massiveness of the door. The door knocker, inserted in a escutcheon, also turns, letting the bolt unlock the door after the key is turned, a mechanism found in every part of the country, but now unfortunately largely abandoned, which is a shame since I find it very practical, satisfying and gives an extra layer of security."

Servando de la Rosa - United Kingdoms

Design for a new drawing room door in London by Servando de la Rosa (UK)

"In the same way Georgian builders and craftsmen applied pattern books to construct a beautiful door, a handsome hall or an ingenious frieze, the design for this door has been composed following several pattern books. All of its elements have been taken from architecturally commended precedents: who said a wood carving on a bed in Hampton Court Palace, or a plaster moulding at Kings College, Cambridge, couldn’t lead to a brass knob, or a door carving?

In a magpie-like way, the door is composed of various fragments from London townhouses, palaces and other buildings. There is no use reinventing the wheel when we already have such inestimable wealth across the length and breadth of Britain.

Just as a building responds to its context, a door must respond to its location. The following design has been conceived to be in a new Georgian townhouse in London, one such that Quinlan Terry or Robert Adam might design.

The door opens into a drawing room. Its playful curved design offers an analogy of the two worlds it separates: a concave face represents the drawing room, to which the occupants can withdraw for more privacy, while its convex one opens up to guests as open arms to the much more publicly inclined great chamber.

The design has been conceived as simple in form but with very concentrated ornamentation in specific locations that emphasise its importance in the house. Its material composition is brass for the furniture, and well-seasoned hardwood painted in green with gilded detailing."

Lukas Weidner - USA

"The door serves to both distinguish and unite separate realms. A great door may become a portal, reconciling both inside and outside, giving definition and human passage between the two realms.

The proportion of the door, as any architectural element, must respond to the proportions of man both functionally and aesthetically. This door asks that one engage with it in fullness. The great height pulls the spirit upward. The narrow door panels compel one to open both sides at once, a grand and acrobatic exercise awakening our perception of the passage. Robust timbers, articulate hardware and natural, opaque finish reveal nothing of what lies beyond, but rather demands a bodily venture to cross over and know more.

This design pays homage to Pennsylvania Dutch culture where simple geometric patterns and symbols are commonly placed on barn buildings to bless it and protect against evil spirits. These “hex signs” feature aesthetics unique to the region with many colors and symbols possessing specific meaning and magic power. The four-pointed star is believed to bring good luck.

This door motif honors the architect as the archetypal magician, the principal intermediary between the world of the real and physical and the world of the possible. The Latin inscription “UT SUPRA, SIC INFRA” translates to “as above, so below”, a well-known Hermetic script. Here, the universe is seen as whole, harmonious, and that the celestial plane corresponds to the earthly. Through this lens, the heavens and earth, or spirit and body, are united."

Johan Recén Larsson - Sweden

Ernst Christian Efvergren - Sweden

"As per the directions of the competions I as a participant were to find inspiration from my native country; Sweden.
Sweden as a small northern country has allways been a follower rather than trendsetter when it comes to art and architecture. When it comes to classical, or traditional architecture in the late 18th and early 19th century the style of the french were pretty much the sole authority, except for the
english(Robert Adam etc.).

For the era that inspires me the most, it has therefor been rather hard, if not impossible to find something uniqely Swedish. I begun my reasearch and came upon an old Swedish door, probably from the 16th or 17th century which got me a bit intrigued."

"The door, originating from the northern region of Dalarna had a distinct arcade or niche ornamentation in the top panel, with two adorning rosettes. A quite distinct design that I recalled
from various architecture here in Sweden, especially frequent in the 1920s."

Edgard Jegers - Sweden

"The door is made out of wood. It features all the 25 heraldries of the 25 Swedish provinces. It would have these arms all painted in their correct colors, making for a very colorful composition. The framing is of a classicist nature, not following any particular order, taking inspiration from the Swedish 16th century renaissance style. "

Lucas Marti Guitera - Spain

"The aim was to design a door following the traditions of each country. Being from Spain the possibilities were vast so I inspired myself on the style set by my regions' most important building: The Monastery of El Escorial. The sober architecture of granite is just decorated by geometrical doors made out of solid wood, which imply a high number of nails on the other side to attach the carved panels to the wooden frame. These nails also generate an interesting decoration by themselves. It is very common for these doors to have openings above them with little shutters so as to let sunlight inside in winter and let heat outside in summer. Normally those would have some metal bars to prevent robberies, which I have decided to decorate with an intricate forged iron pattern, which was also common in Spain until more or less recently. As for the decoration in itself, I decided to make it as if the door was the entrance to a Jesuit school, which are quite common and popular still today here in Spain, giving the forged iron the sigil and emblems of this order."

Levin Plump - Germany

"I chose to go with a design that is in many details linked to my heritage Hamburg. The Door consists of three layers. First there is a frame with columns and two decorations. On the bottom you can see a pattern of two fish which can be found on a tile in Hamburg‘s Elbtunnel. On the top you can see engravings of Lions, which are part of the Emblem of the Senate of Hamburg.
The second layer is full of decorations. There are waves that show Hamburgs connection to the sea and shipping. In the middle you can see the emblem of Hamburg with a knights helmet again surrounded by waves.
The third layer is the actual door. You can see a pattern of waves again with an angel looking over a lifebelt. This pattern honours the work of lifeguards who save many people each year from drowning in Northern Germany. The door itself is inspired by a grand woodden door from Hamburg‘s city hall."

Anaïs Pautot - France

Virgil Declercq - Belgium

"L’inspiration de ce mécanisme prend sa source dans la maison villa Gaspar-Thibaut à Charleroi.

Cette porte présente la particularité de s'ouvrir en diagonale, par des battants qui coulissent dans l'épaisseur du mur. La partie gauche sur appuis au sol, vient basculer sur la droite venant à la rencontre de la deuxième partie. Quant à cette seconde partie elle glisse au sol pour venir se caler dans l’interstice du mur de façon diagonale. L’apparence est trompeuse de l’extérieur lorsque la porte est fermée. Ce sont les éléments en laiton reprenant un motif floral et plutôt dynamique qui indiquent une partie du subterfuge.

Le cadre extérieur est élevé en hauteur par des petites pinacles florales, elles renvoient à la finesse, la précision et le dynamisme de l’œuvre."

Riccardo Buratti - Belgium

Louis Menia - Belgium

"Le sujet de ce concours était pour moi un défi, puisque j’ai durant ma vie vécu dans huit endroits très différents, de la Martinique à Bruxelles, en passant par Paris et Milan. Je n’ai donc pas d’attache particulière à un lieu précis, et ai donc cherché différemment. J’ai ainsi puisé dans mes expériences et dans mes origines pour pour concevoir cette porte. Ayant toujours vécu en ville, il était évident pour moi de dessiner une porte à caractère urbain. Ma mère étant française et mon père fils d’immigré berbère, je me suis donné pour objectif de lui donner des caractéristiques issues des deux cultures. Il s’agit donc d’une porte pour une maison de ville, haute, particulièrement adaptée à l’architecture de la Belgique et du Nord de la France, où le découpage cadastral a résulté en la prolifération de maisons mitoyennes hautes et étroites. Sa hauteur lui permet d’offrir une imposte et d’apporter de la lumière naturelle dans l’entrée.

La porte en elle-même est simple et classique, d’un seul vantail, comme il est d’usage pour les maisons modestes. Ce sont les ferronneries, inspirées de l’artisanat du Maghreb qui lui donnent ses particularités. La grille de l’imposte est en fer forgé et forme un agencement de courbes courant en Kabylie. Sur l’extérieur de la porte se trouvent deux bandes de bronze martelé, l’un horizontal accueillant la poignée et la serrure, l’autre, vertical, un frappoir, la fente à lettres et le judas. Le frappoir et la poignée sont travaillés en perles pour y apporter un contraste. Le judas est fermé d’une petite grille et est vitré. Les ferronneries intérieures rapportent en petite touche le bronze martelé, avec la porte pour obstruer le judas, le capot du mécanisme de la serrure et le support de la poignée.

Cette porte n’est en rien un produit fini ou un aboutissement. Il s’agit d’une expérimentation, du début d’une exploration dans la construction d’une architecture personnelle. Une architecture inclusive, curieuse et
sobre."

Fabien Mosen - Belgium

João Tereso - Portugal

" I am from a small village where the first fully gothic building in the country was built, an incredible monastery from the XII century. The cistercian order who built it is known for a great simplicity in detail and restraint in ornamentation, something I tried to follow in this design.
For all the metal work I took Viollet-le-Duc's measured drawings as an inspiration, alongside arts and crafts projects and other references. "