Why These People Won Harvard's Brilliant 2017 Richard Rogers Fellows

The Harvard University Graduate School of Design has just revealed the 2017 Richard Rogers Fellows. The six successful applicants made the cut for the residency program for London's Wimbledon House architectural and urban research. Find out here what made them grabbed the prestigious award and other details regarding it.

According to Richard Rogers Fellowship official website, Namik Mackic, Maik Novotny, Jose Castillo, Saidee Springall, Shantel Blakely, and Dirk van den Heuvel all won the award. Each got selected due to their proposed works which highlight the residency purpose.

"The spirit of the Fellowship is intended to carry forward and expand on Richard's deep commitment to cities not as ends in themselves, but as a fundamental means of bettering human life," said Harvard GSD Dean Mohsen Mostafavi detailed. The winners' proposed studies really emphasize this thought.

Beginning with Mackic, his research would center on underprivileged people and their role in spatial development. This will clearly give way to government's better undertakings towards "migrant crisis." Whereas Novotny's work will be about London and Vienna's public housing systems. It will extend the production of more accessible shelters and homes for everyone.

For the other 2017, Richard Rogers Fellowship chosen ones, Castillo will address the connections between food, cooking, and urban development elements. Mexican National Endowment for the Arts was the springboard of this research. On Saidell, her residency will also delve on London public housing but she will also include "social contract" in it.

Blakely, on the other hand, will explore art, architecture, and design towards social harmony. This will be anchored with Herbert Read's life, ideas, and intellects. Finally, Heuvel's 2017 Richard Rogers Fellowship research will further his prior Alison and Peter Smithson investigation. He will go deeper with architecture, planning and housing policies.

Lastly, World Architecture Community stated that 2017 Richard Rogers Fellowship selected the six because of their studies' relationship to UK's architecture, design, and art. Most importantly on its implication on urban development, to take note this is what the awards founders' ideology.