ARCHITECTURE: The Integration of Art and Science

Team Building Kicks Off the Holidays for Kenneth Boroson Architects

Posted by: Erin Michaud - 12/31/18 9:38 AM

Topics: Holiday

What better way for an architecture firm to celebrate the holidays than with a classic gingerbread building contest?

We took a few hours out of our day last Friday to work on the most creative and fun gingerbread structures we could dream up. Four teams were randomly chosen and given the same materials, but varying sites with unique challenges to work with. Each team had to consider the judging criteria that was laid out before the start of the contest. They were evaluated on the following:

• Creativity of Design
• Creativity of Decoration/ Ornamentation
• Site Layout
• Neatness/ Overall Aesthetic
• Buildabilty (i.e. is it still standing?!)

Teams had to work together to overcome the structural challenges of working with cookie and icing instead of steel and wood frames. Despite the differences in materials from a real-world application, we drew on many of the skill sets we use every day on our clients’ projects.

Take a look at the images and descriptions below and let us know what you think!

Fourth Place: It takes a village…

Although, this team came in last, they excelled at and received the most points for their site development and placement. They were the only team to create a public space to be shared by all the structures on the site.

Third Place: Extravagant Castle

This team was the only one to utilize the ice cream cones and cardboard in the building of the house itself. By doing so they created three iconic swirl towers and had the tallest structure.

Second Place:  Kenneth Boroson Architects’ North Pole Office

Not only did they have a fire pit and guest house, but sledding snowmen on the site. They created a multi-gable structure and added dormers to their roof which added to the structural complexity. They received high marks overall and were a very close second.

First Place: Thinking outside the box...literally

The winning team received the highest marks for their innovative use of the gingerbread pieces to create a more contemporary structure. Intersecting partitions, columns grids and flat roofs added to the uniqueness of the overall design. While most teams used more elements of the gingerbread kits as they were intended, this team saw no difference between a “roof” or “wall” piece and really thought outside the box.

Hope your holiday season is as collaborative and fun as we found this contest to be!