Functional futurism: architectural competitions in Antarctica

Historically, the built environment in Antarctica focused pragmatically on the protection of the occupants from the surrounding harsh natural environment. They weren’t winning any architectural prizes. This approach changed with the 21st century and the British Antarctic Survey’s call for submissions to design Halley VI. With the instigation of the architectural competition to design research stations, the process provides value towards aesthetics as well as bringing a new cognisance of life in Antarctica to a broader audience. The methodology for this research builds upon existing case study analysis, with further data collection through interpretive-historical approaches. Looking at the history of architecture in Antarctica as a whole, there is a marked shift in station design during this time. There are some outliers to this hypothesis, these cases are still noticeably different from their predecessors with the inclusion of architectural firms and the addition of a ‘design process’ to their development. It is the instigation of design competitions that created more public knowledge of Antarctic programs, research, and habitation. Pulling the design of research stations out of the traditional institutionalised approach and bringing it to the doorstep of architectural firms fundamentally changed the image and awareness of the built environment in Antarctica.