Open House Slovenia
Basic information
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Full project title
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Project Description
OHS - Open House Slovenia is an independent platform providing direct experiences of architecture and built environment through its annual festival, talks, guided tours, awards and advocacy programme, bringing experts, decision-makers and general audiences together in an open dialogue about responsible use of space and high quality living based on sustainability, inclusivity and beauty.It is a uniquely independent, apolitical, inclusive programme offering direct experience of well-designed place
Project Region
EU Programme or fund
Description of the project
Summary
Open House Slovenia is the only architectural festival and the biggest online platform of contemporary architecture in the country. Now in its 12th years, OHS acts as a bridge between the professional and the general public promoting responsible use of space by employing sustainable building materials, energy effciency and a high quality living based on sustainability, inclusivity and beauty. It advocates sustainable design, enovations in building and spatial planning by implementing the most recent scientific discoveries and modern technologies to create a better space accessible to everyone. It fosters research and understanding of the importance of architecture and built environment, as well as their impact on individuals, society, culture, economy and sustainable development. In addition to the annual festival, OHS organises lectures, conferences, exhibitions, professional guided building tours, children’s programme (OHS Junior) and offers a dialogue platform for everyone involved in the planning strategies for a green, sustainable, carbon-free future. As a non-governmental organisation OHS connects a cross-section of professionals involved in spatial design: decision makers, architects and other experts, economists, and artists. OHS works together with local municipalities across Slovenia, and with the Ministries of Culture, Environment and Spatial planning, Economic development and technology, Education, Science and Sport, as well as with the Chamber of Architecture and Spatial Planning of Slovenia, Green Building Council of Slovenia, and various NGOs. In the capital city, Ljubljana, OHS cooperates with the Municipal Council for the Elimination of Architectural and Communication Barriers, as well as with several disability associations. Internationally, OHS is also a member of the Open House Worldwide Network, a network of over 45 cities across the globe, including 28 European cities, promoting open, accessible and equitable living.
Key objectives for sustainability
OHS activities bring together three basic principles of sustainability - environment, economy and socio-cultural criteria - in the field of architecture, built space, sustainable construction and integrated renovation of buildings. Sustainable construction, comprehensive renovation of buildings and the circular economy represent a priority strategy for the implementation of the European Green Deal in Slovenia. Implementation of the Green Deal in the field of construction and renovation of buildings with efficient use of energy and resources is one of the key goals of all OHS activities. OHS continuously collaborates with policy makers, which value OHS as an independent platform, to demonstrate green strategies and values like sustainability. OHS mission is also empowering every citizen to make more sustainable decisions about their homes and to become involved in local decision-making concerning architecture and urban design. Through festivals, guided tours and podcasts, OHS enables individuals to learn about, evaluate and make sense of the opportunities offered by quality built or integrally renovated buildings. In this way, OHS raises public awareness not only about the quality of modern architectural production, but also encourage people to participate more actively in the process of spatial design and in a positive dialogue concerning space interventions and buildings.
Since 2016, a special part of the festival programme is dedicated to examples of the most outstanding wooden architecture and construction. Architects, other professionals and building owners present the effects of choosing a sustainable method of construction or renovation on living, health and user experience while OHS communicates key messages and regularly disseminates findings about the sustainable design of living space.
Key objectives for aesthetics and quality
Architecture is a form of art that accompanies us every step on the way. OHS challenges the traditional perception of space and its potentials. It opens eyes, minds and doors. At the heart of the Open House concept is direct experience of architecture and well designed inclusive public spaces. OHS aims to bridge the gap between citizens and the architecture of the city itself by giving people the opportunity to understand and engage with architecture on their own terms. By curating direct experiences OHS creates opportunities for people to engage in dialogue about architecture and share their knowledge about well-designed, sustainable and inclusive built environments. OHS festival gives citizens the opportunity to explore a range of architecture and urban design including private homes, government buildings, schools, cultural buildings, infrastructure and transport projects, landscape and public realm, public art, and future development sites. In parallel to building tours, Open House organises debates, walks, children’s programmes, produces podcasts, virtual presentations of future buildings, etc. A high aesthetic and quality experience is ensured by the selection of projects by an expert jury. The Open House programme also includes annual recipients of the highest cultural, architectural and artistic national awards. OHS Award is the first prize in Slovenia awarded by the general public to authors, owners and builders of realized architectural achievements and landscape projects. All the projects included in the annual OHS festival by its jury are nominated for the award. The OHS festival mission is raising the awareness of outstanding architecture and quality built space among the general public. Therefore, the award is not given by a professional jury, but by the public, which can in this way express its opinion on the Slovenian architectural production and establish a dialogue with it.
Key objectives for inclusion
OHS is an inclusive platform in terms of gender, socioeconomics, age and disability. Through our programme and activities, we create an accessible, inclusive public space of dialogue and architectural culture. Space is where we all live; it enables us to be included on an equal basis. In order to establish an inclusive space, OHS cooperates with various partner disability organizations. The annual OHS festival is open to the general public free of charge and enables the participation of vulnerable groups, e.g. physically challenged, deaf, people with low economic status, … Vulnerable groups and groups with disabilities are both our visitors and active collaborators. Our book "ODPRTO / OPEN", which was published at our 10th anniversary, is planned to be turned into an audio book and printed in braille. Along with the sensory exhibition IGNORANCE = DARKNESS = OBSTACLE on inclusive architecture, we organised experiential workshops for children and a round table on planning an inclusive public space: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z8eP3UtBh6M&t=27s. We participated in two editions of the OVIRANtlon festival in Ljubljana and prepared a video presentation (link added 1st section).Ljubljana is a city accessible to all, and OVIRANtlon is a festival that promotes the awareness of how essential universal accessibility and design are.In 2012 we participated in the Venice Architecture Biennale with the Playful Architecture group and its “SIGHTLESS COMMON GROUND” workshop. We visited an exhibition pavilion with a guide dog and presented the participants’ experience in a short video (link added 1st section). More than 50 volunteers participate in the organization, and the core OHS team consists of experts from various professions. For the last three years, OHS has also been cooperating with the Faculty of Architecture in Maribor, where they are conducting an architectural workshop "Understanding Architecture" with students under mentorship.
Results in relation to category
The value of Open House Slovenia is in its power of engaging the community and empowering them to advocate for a high-quality and sustainable built environment. It has become imperative to ensure citizens have a stake in the development of Slovenian cities and to enable them to advocate for measures that would improve their own wellbeing. OHS creates a community of shared interest, empowers communities and creates a sense of civic pride and active citizenship. It cultivates advocacy coalitions and strong relationships with partners and policy makers to amplify their influence in championing well-designed sustainable spaces. Each year, OHS opens buildings across the country and organizes free guided tours accessible to all (every year with over 3500 vistors from Slovenia and abroad). This raises the awareness of the inhabitants of even small towns and villages that architecture is a fundamental building block of the community and society. New knowledge about climate change and internalization of values empowers them to participate in activities for a sustainable green future. In the last pandemic year, the importance of a common accessible public space has intensified even more. Awareness of what a quality apartment is, what it means to have a balcony or even a garden has also increased. OHS digital platform and its social platform accounts bring together also a community of architectural enthusiasts and professionals. Since the creation of OHS it has established the largest collection of contemporary Slovenian architecture, in which more than 700 architectural and spatial projects are presented. All projects include information about the participating architects, experts and contractors. This has created a useful guide for anyone looking for architects and professionals to plan, build or renovate their property.
How Citizens benefit
The benefits are:
1)Personal experience in architecture: The OHS is a success because it offers all visitors a free, diverse and direct experience of architecture and build space we all share. 2) Dialogue: The purpose of the OHS is to highlight and explore the current problems of the cities, such as housing provision, construction and renovation of infrastructure, energy rehabilitation, health and well-being. OHS are an informal opportunity to learn about architecture, encourage better exchange of knowledge and ideas, and thus encourage people to think about what they have seen, heard and experienced. 87% of the surveyed visitors learned something new about architecture and built space during their visit to the Open House festival.3)Empowerment and advocacy: OHS encourages people to become actively involved in planning and design processes in their environment. Nearly a third of visitors confirmed that they would try to become more involved in local spatial policy after visiting the OHS festival. OHS is an important medium for public policy, as it collects data on people's opinions and responses to specific problems through independent research and surveys. Because the festival reaches the general public, it is an attractive and interesting platform through which decision-makers, architects and experts in various fields can participate. 4)Raising awareness of architecture and sustainable living: 75% of visitors believe that OHS have changed their view of the environment in which they live. 5)Impact: OHS enables a strong link between professionals, decision-makers and policy-makers. They are a key starting point in an inclusive architectural dialogue. OHS has achieved a lot of interest and media attention at the national and local levels. OHS creates a society of common interests. Facility owners and organizations value OHS as an independent programme that demonstrates shared / entrepreneurial strategies and values (as: accountability, sustainability and education)
Innovative character
OHS is an interdisciplinary and inclusive platform: through a unique live experience, it connects the general public with experts in the field of spatial planning (architects, landscape architects, contractors, builders, designers, spatial planners, decision-makers). At each tour, the project is presented by an architect. It also includes a presentation of the experience of investors who describe their understanding of the project. The Open House concept is offering direct physical experience of architecture. Abstract images, such as photographs, are unable to convey the reality of the built environment. Direct experience is key to engaging with one’s surroundings. Physical experience offers a multi-sensory impression of architecture that mediated experience through images, visualizations, the internet, or television cannot. The image is already a curated representation of a building, which discourages critique. On the other hand, personal experience of architecture is different for everyone and never the same. It has a strong role in empowering the general public to enter into a dialogue about planned interventions in space, to engage in public debates and to change the view of the space in which we live. The OHS Festival keeps the public in touch with the state of the art of the architectural production. It offers tours of the highest level of quality architectural projects, led by award-winning architects, and its events include presentations by the investors who describe their understanding of the projects.
