Nguyen Hoang Long, a K24 student of Construction Architecture at the DTU Faculty of Architecture & Applied Arts, won the first prize in the Quick Design B section with his work “Connected view of urban space” at the XIIIth National Architecture Festival 2022 in Phu Yen, which had the topic “Ayaru-Phu Yen cultural journey”.
Hoang Long (white shirt, third from right) and his group with the work “Connected view of urban space”
“For this year’s contest, I prepared myself with a lot of specialized knowledge, such as of planning parameters and criteria and from documentation on the contest topic, including on culture, people, and architecture,” Hoang Long explains. “I furthermore spent time researching hand drawing skills, presentation skills, and particularly teamwork skills.”
Hoang Long and his teammates linked the keyword of this year’s Festival, “heritage”, with other keywords like “view”, “connection”, “space”, and “journey”. The observation that the Ho Son park will play the role of the modern heart of Tuy Hoa city, connecting the different junctions of the city, gave the group the idea for their work “Connected view of urban space”. They chose to keep the main features of the park (square, parking lot) unchanged while proposing to add a space with a human viewpoint over the values of the city by connecting the shapes of the city with its traditional heritage values. This approach creates a link between present, past, and future and brings people closer to past and present culture.
The work won a first prize in the Quick Design B section
The group also proposed to build a cultural park for pedestrians and cyclists, consisting of two stories and two sections connected by a bridge, with food and exposition areas close to a newly renovated residential area. The park would operate on the city’s main thoroughfare Dien Bien Phu street and the view would be created by the location of flexible spaces shaping and renewing people’s activities over time. This would create a journey of culture and arts discovery through music, food, festivals, architecture, and the more or less unique Cham values of Phu Yen. These cultural values are suggested or shown through flexible and movable modules (shapes like a pillar with round base where people can sit). When space is needed for an event, modules in the exposition space can be reconnected to create a space of flexible use.
“This was the last Festival I could take part in as a student,” Hoang Long confides. “So when I entered the contest, I had this feeling I had ‘nothing to lose’. (Laughs.) I had to do my utmost to obtain the best possible result. When I heard my group’s work got the first prize, I almost felt like crying, glad not only because of our achievement, but also because my two years of efforts in the previous and this Festival paid off their worth. I am deeply grateful to the support from the lecturers in the Faculty and to my teammates for the team spirit and the joint effort that led to this prize. My next goal is to compete for the Loa Thanh awards.”
Hoang Long always actively participates in activities at and outside university
“This year’s contest gave me a lot, from professional experience to personal relationships,” Hoang Long explains. “The contest turned strangers into rather intimate friends and we worked together very well. In particular, I learnt more about the meaning of this year’s contest topic: it wasn’t a mere journey through ordinary heritage, but I gained an understanding of the Cham people, culture, food, and customs in Phu Yen.”
Besides his passion for architecture, Hoang Long very actively takes parts in Faculty and university activities. He is currently the head of the Faculty of Architecture & Applied Arts Enrollment Advice and Support Group and a coorganizer of several contests launched by the Faculty. For Hoang Long, extracurricular activities are, besides studying in the classroom, good opportunities for unceasing self-development.
In the 2022 enrollment season, DTU offers a 30% reduction of tuition fees for the entire course for successful applicants to architecture minors.
(Media Center)