Rules

Organising the competition in this format builds on the similarities in context across the three neighbouring countries, encouraging participation on a wider scale and thus contributing to the development of a multilateral dialogue about the future of the profession.

Because the Beta Awards builds bridges between architects and the general public in the Euroregion, it is a good way to get your work recognised nationally and internationally and to get closer to potential clients and the communities you are part of.

The Beta Awards creates an environment for dialogue about architectural practice in various forms both in the Euroregion and by opening up to an international jury and audience. We raise questions and open discussions about how architecture might restructure the ways we perceive and create our environment, and the cities we all live in.

For ten years, Beta has been recognising quality architectural initiatives and projects in Romania, Hungary, and Serbia. The international jury for each edition is made up of renowned architects, and the prizes awarded reflect our determination to promote authors and projects with a beneficial impact on the built environment.

For the first time in this competition, we have introduced the Public Prize, through which we want to improve the architects' connection with the general public, highlighting the importance of architecture that directly addresses the values and needs of society.

We all live and use the city and the spaces that architects design, so we want to recognise the preferences of the general public in the Beta Awards. The Public Prize is our way of bringing quality architecture closer to the general public and promoting those architectural projects that make us proud of the cities we live in. Each person can vote for one project in the categories of Built Space, Interior Space, Public Space, Graduation Projects, and Endeavours.

Public voting will be open when the shortlisted projects are published and will run until the end of the competition when the project with the most votes will be awarded at the Beta 2024 Awards Gala.

Jury Conferences are a series of presentations given by jury members, to inspire the local community and open up discussions about current trends and architectural practices.

Through the interactive nature of the venue, participants in the panel conferences are encouraged to explore new perspectives and collaborate to develop their profession and professional practice.

In the Built space category, outstanding individual and collective housing projects, restoration or extensions, and interventions on existing buildings, commercial, industrial, service, institutional, or cultural buildings, completed in the last two years (July 2022 - July 2024) can be submitted.

In the Interior space category, outstanding residential, commercial, service, institutional, cultural, or industrial interior design projects and temporary stage design, interior lighting, and exhibitions completed in the last two years (July 2022 - July 2024) are eligible.

In the Public space category, outstanding urban design projects, urban studies, or temporary installations in public spaces can be entered.

Namely: urban and landscape planning, restructuring of urban/rural areas, squares, pedestrian areas, parks, accessibility works, technological infrastructure, transport networks (including depots and garages), road networks (streets and road profiles, bridges, road passages, footbridges), urban strategies, master plans, general urban plans, spatial planning, urban revitalisations, urban strategies completed or in the process of implementation/approval from July 2022 to July 2024 or tactical urban planning projects, temporary urban installations, pavilions, works of art in public spaces in the field of fine arts, visual arts, decorative arts, lighting installations in public spaces.

The Graduation projects category is open to students who have completed their studies in the field of architecture, urban planning, landscape design, interior design, or restoration, and who have completed their studies between July 2022 and July 2024.

In the category Endeavours can be submitted visions, initiatives, and experiments in the field of architecture and related fields, which through their activities participate in increasing the quality and understanding of the object/practice of architecture. Projects realized or speculative from July 2022 to July 2024 can be entered, among which cultural projects, architectural education, participatory initiatives, public policies, new materials, material studies, object design, guided tours, summer schools, creative camps, and research projects.

In the Text category, one can enter works that question, have a theoretical and critical discourse around the theme of the current biennial cover me softly.

This year's theme is based on the idea of the cover and questions the concept of originality A cover is a musical interpretation based on an existing recording. Cover also means shelter. To protect or hide. To conceal or disguise, to extend in time or space. To run for cover, to cover oneself. At best, a cover is an authentic piece based on a previous authentic work, a unique form of dialog, varying from homage to parody, from interpretation to allusion, from imitation to transformation. The more you think about it, the harder it is to define: there are no set rules, no instructions, but many unique exceptions. The theme questions creative processes and originality, what is the boundary between a copy and an original product when you start from an existing one.

In the Photography category, we are looking for a series of four photographs that manage to treat, through a critical observation, the theme of this year's biennale cover me softly.

In the three editions held between 2015-2017, the Octavian Radu Topai Award aimed to both pay tribute to the young architect and question aspects of modern and contemporary Romanian architecture. Octavian Radu Topai was a young architect and photographer who died in 2014 in a tragic mountain accident. Starting with the Beta 2020 edition of the Competition Exhibition, the Photography category was introduced in his memory. We want to integrate this year, in Beta 2024, the category dedicated to architectural photography, which will be open to Romania, Hungary, and Serbia.

If you are not a resident of Romania, Hungary, or Serbia you can participate in the Beta Awards in the following cases:

• For the categories Built space, Indoor space, Public space, Endeavours, the project location must be in Romania, Hungary, or Serbia, or you have a permanent residence or university degree in one of these countries.
• You can enter the competition for the category Graduation projects if your project was completed in a university from Romania, Hungary, or Serbia.
• You can participate in the Text or Photography categories if you are a resident or graduated from a university in Romania, Hungary, or Serbia.

You can enter several different works in the same category or multiple works in different categories.

You cannot enter the same work in more than one category, except works in which different areas of intervention can be delimited, belonging to different authors (e.g. an individual dwelling entered in the Built Space category cannot also be entered in the Interior Space category if both were created by the same author/collective). If a work is submitted in more than one category, it is up to the organisers to decide on its classification (whether to keep it in all the categories in which it was entered or to exclude it from some categories).

You can submit projects completed between July 2022 and July 2024.

In the Beta Awards 2024, the Built Space category is open only to architects.

In the Interior Space category, you can enter projects if you work in one of the following fields: interior architecture, design, furniture, decorative arts, scenography, and lighting.

In the Public Space category, Urban Design and Urban Studies subcategories, you can submit works if you are an architect, architect conductor, urban or landscape architect, or public administration representative. In the subcategory Temporary Installations / Art in Public Space, you can submit works if you are an architect, designer, artist, representative of public administration or civil society.

The Graduation projects category is open to all graduates of higher education universities/faculties/departments of architecture, urban planning, interior design, or art (provided that the graduation or master thesis is related to the built or urban environment).

Endeavours, Text, and Photography categories, are open to all those interested in architectural practice/discourse/photography.

Registration for the Beta Awards will be done by filling in the online form for each category (application forms open on 12 June).

To make the application process easier, we have prepared an application guide. With it, you will be able to prepare all your materials in advance.