The International Jury of the European Prize for Urban Public Space 2024, meeting on 27 and 28 June, has chosen the 10 finalists of this edition, 5 in the General category and 5 in the Seafronts category.
The projects selected are located in Belgium, Spain, Georgia, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland and Switzerland. Most correspond to mediumsized cities, showing that sensibility and attempts to promote quality public spaces exist throughout European territory, beyond big cities.
A total of 297 projects, corresponding to 35 European countries, were submitted, reflecting the important project activity that takes place in European public space, essential for the development of cities. The European Prize for Urban Public Space is an honorary biennial competition that, since 2000, has recognized the best interventions in the creation, transformation and recovery of public spaces in European cities.
This edition exceptionally incorporates the Seafronts category in response to the particular vulnerability of coastal cities to climate change and in the framework of the Cultural Regatta, the programme of activities promoted by Barcelona City Council to accompany the celebration of the America’s Cup in the city.
On 9 September, the 5 finalists in the Seafronts category, and on 28 October those in the General category will present their projects to the Jury. The winning works in the two categories will be announced on 29 October. All the events will take place at the CCCB and will be open to the public.
In April this year, the Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona (CCCB) closed registration for the 12th European Prize for Urban Public Space with a total of 297 projects entered, corresponding to 35 European countries.
The International Jury has chosen the 10 finalist works of this edition (five for the General category and five for the Seafronts category) in a call for works carried out in 2022 and 2023, a period that, in the case of Seafronts, extends back to 2019.
The winning works will be announced at a public event that will be held at CCCB on 29 October 2024. The 12th edition of the prize received 253 entries in the General category and 44 in the Seafronts category.
The countries with the highest number of works presented are Spain, Poland, Germany, Belgium, Sweden, France, Italy and Romania. The high number of countries represented (35), similar to that of the 11th edition and higher than previous ones, reflects the consolidation of the prize in Europe.
On this occasion, the prize incorporates the Seafronts category into its usual call to highlight the role of coastal cities, laboratories for rethinking the city and ways of inhabiting it in the face of rising sea levels and extreme climate phenomena.
On 9 September, the finalists in the Seafronts category will present their projects at the Cities and the Sea conference, open to the public, which will take place at the CCCB. Then, on 28 October, the finalists in the General category will present their projects to the Jury in a session that will also be public.
Finally, the winners of the 12th European Prize for Urban Public Space will be announced at the awards ceremony that will take place at the CCCB on 29 October. Source by The European Prize and photo Courtesy of POCH·CAPDEVILA.
