GOLDEN CUBES AWARDS 2023/2026
About the Competition
The Golden Cubes Awards 2023/2026 is the sixth edition of an architectural education competition organized by the International Union of Architects. The Polish edition of the competition is organized by the National Institute of Architecture and Urban Planning. The competition provides an opportunity to promote Polish initiatives and support educators who build awareness of the role of architecture among children and youth up to 18 years of age, helping them understand the processes of shaping the built environment. The education is aimed at young people so that as adults, they can participate in creating intelligent, high-quality architecture – humane, sustainable, and context-respecting. The Team of polish Universal Architectural Education also aligns with this mission.
The competition is also a chance for the exchange of experiences and an opportunity to get inspired from the world. The Golden Cubes Awards is part of the “Architecture and Children” program. It is children who will build the future, and it is important to prepare them for this. Educating children about the built environment, architecture, urban planning, and sustainable development is a priority. Developing their knowledge in those fields will ensure their growth as responsible citizens, capable of expressing their opinions and influencing the political, economic, and social strategies that will shape their cities and environment. People at a young age, are open and imaginative, then it is crucial to equip them with those tools. They will use them later to find a balance between their dreams, the desire for an ideal living space, and what is achievable in the real world. The Golden Cubes Awards competition recognizes the efforts of those who prepare young people for this task. It also aims to stimulate new projects, as creating the cities of the future is an urgent and key challenge. Educating those who will create them is an issue that needs to be addressed here and now. The UIA Golden Cubes Awards is a prize awarded every three years.
Third Polish Edition
The third Polish edition of the Golden Cubes Awards competition concluded on March 3, 2026. The awards ceremony for the international (sixth) edition of the Golden Cubes Awards will take place during the International Union of Architects UIA Congress in Barcelona, from June 28 to July 2, 2026.
Each UIA National Section nominates selected laureates from individual categories for the international competition: institutions, schools, audiovisual media, and written publications.
Starting with this edition, the international jury will also award a Special Prize to one nominated project that significantly addresses urgent global challenges such as war, natural disasters, the climate crisis, or social disruptions.
The evaluation of the Polish edition of the competition and the review of works were carried out by an independent jury consisting of: Tomek Rygalik, Jan Körbes, Agnieszka Rasmus-Zgorzelska, Dorota Sibińska, and Anna Cudny. Out of 32 submissions, the judges selected four projects that will represent Poland in the international edition of the competition. They also awarded two honorable mentions. The surprising number of entries and the interest in the competition indicate how much is happening in national universal architectural education.
Nominees:
Institutions: “ZODIAK Warsaw Architecture Pavilion” / School Tours / Wiola Januszko, Natalia Cichoń
Schools: “Shadow Memory” / Old Town, Gdańsk / Katarzyna Szpernalowska
Media: “I Do Greenery” / Anna Komorowska / robiewzieleni.substack.com
Publications: “Reminiscences of the Remi Family” / Nowy Sącz, Youth Palace / Joanna Paradowska-Prusak, Anna Rejowska-Gomułak, Jan Prusak
Two projects were honored:
Honorable Mention in the Schools category: “Rondo Rataje” – Rethinking Local Space – 14th High School in Poznań.
Honorable Mention in the Institutions category: “Architecture Laboratory” exhibition at the Museum of Architecture in Wrocław.
Profiles of Laureates and Honorees
Behind every architectural education initiative, there is an educator, a scriptwriter, an originator, a person or a team of people passionately sharing their love for architecture and their immediate surroundings. These are individuals who share their sensitivity and infect children and youth with it, teaching creativity and critical thinking. They open themselves to collaboration and encourage participants to cooperate. Thanks to the work of architectural educators, the audience for these activities is constantly growing, and thus, so is the number of people interested in architecture and the built environment.
ZODIAK Warsaw Architecture Pavilion / “School Tours” / Wiola Januszko and Natalia Cichoń
LAUREATE, INSTITUTIONS CATEGORY
ZODIAK Warsaw Architecture Pavilion is a place for architectural discussions. The main elements of our program include lectures, discussions, workshops, and exhibitions. Since 2018, we have been popularizing knowledge about the architecture and urban space of Warsaw. We discuss both history and future projects. We closely follow the changes occurring in the dynamically developing capital. We collaborate with numerous cultural institutions and non-governmental organizations. Zodiak is also a space open to residents’ initiatives and supportive of the education of young Varsovians. We operate within the Bureau of Architecture and Spatial Planning of the Capital City of Warsaw.
Wiola Januszko – a graduate of the Faculty of Architecture at the Warsaw University of Technology. She is an architect, educator, and graphic designer. At Zodiak, she coordinates the educational program and produces events and exhibitions. She is a co-host and co-creator of workshops for adults and youth (including “Z-OD-JAK? Archi-questions to build”), author of the “School Tours” series, and designer of the “Plans for the Future 2024” exhibition. Outside of her work at Zodiak, she creates digital collages – her works can be found on the profile @cotamdziubiesz.
Natalia Cichoń – architect, educator. She is a graduate of the Faculty of Architecture at the Warsaw University of Technology and postgraduate studies in “Archi:culture. Architectural Educator” from the National Institute of Architecture and Urban Planning. She conducted workshops as part of the “Little A” program at the Open Workshop Jazdów. Currently associated with Zodiak, where she co-hosts workshops for children, youth, and adults and produces events and exhibitions. She also collaborates with the Children’s University Foundation.
Katarzyna Szpernalowska / “Shadow Memory” / Old Town, Gdańsk
LAUREATE IN THE SCHOOLS CATEGORY
Katarzyna Szpernalowska is a certified art teacher. Within pedagogical innovations, she conducts architectural education classes. With her students, she implements projects that raise awareness of cultural identity and teach conscious observation of nature and culture. She is a two-time laureate of the Polish edition of the Golden Cubes Awards in the Schools category. She is also a laureate of the Mayor of Gdańsk Award for education workers. She works at Special Education Center No. 2. The school is a modern facility educating students with special educational needs. Art classes hold a special place in the school’s mission and play an important therapeutic role.
Anna Komorowska / “I Do Greenery” / Online Access – Worldwide
LAUREATE IN THE MEDIA CATEGORY
Anna Komorowska – landscape architect, vocational subject teacher, designer of Playgrounds, author, and handicraft enthusiast. She runs the blog and YouTube channel: Robię w zieleni (I Do Greenery), aimed at students and teachers of landscape architecture technical schools and anyone interested in urban greenery.
She created the educational website and YouTube channel: ROBIĘ W ZIELENI, which she directs to all people interested in urban greenery, with a particular focus on students and teachers of landscape architecture technical schools. On the website and in her videos, she explains basic concepts, suggests how to build small architectural elements, invites viewers to virtual garden walks, and discusses how cities are preparing for climate change. In short: She teaches how to create urban greenery – from design to implementation, by hand, with attention to materials and changing urban conditions.
robiewzieleni.substack.com
“Reminiscences of the Remi Family”, Nowy Sącz, Youth Palace / Joanna Paradowska Prusak
with the team Anna Rejowska-Gomułak and Jan Prusak
LAUREATE IN THE PUBLICATIONS CATEGORY
Joanna Paradowska-Prusak – architect and urban planner, educator for the “Shaping Space” program.
“REMIniscences of the REMI FAMILY” is the result of many years of collaboration with Anna Rejowska-Gumulak, a teacher at the Youth Palace in Nowy Sącz, and Jan Prusak – a second-year student at the Faculty of Architecture of the Cracow University of Technology. This relationship is based on partnership and mutual complementarity of competencies: pedagogical, artistic, and architectural. Joint challenges related to the “Shaping Space” educational program of the Polish Chamber of Architects and the annual competition have always been crowned with awards or distinctions. The next stage of cooperation involved original educational projects: “REMIniscences” and “On the Trail of Modernism” – a program implemented as part of the 2025 Civic Budget. The original “REMIniscences” project, carried out in 2024, arose from the need to introduce young participants to the profile of an architect and the local history of the city. The inspiration was the figure of Zenon Adam Remi – the creator of a significant part of the 19th-century buildings in the center of Nowy Sącz and a representative of the well-known Remi family of architects. As part of the project, young people independently developed an original walking tour for city residents, and an architectural game was created – a simple but ingenious map in the form of a leaflet, graphically designed by Anna Rejowska-Gumulak. Participants, following the designated routes, discover buildings hidden in rhymes created by the students. It’s a combination of fun, education, and urban exploration. Today, the brochure with this and other architectural curiosities can be obtained at the Tourist Information Center in Nowy Sącz and on the Youth Palace website.
14th High School in Poznań / “Rondo Rataje – Rethinking Local Space” / Magdalena Jaroszewska
with the team and the support of officials from the Department of Urban Planning and Architecture of the City of Poznań
HONORABLE MENTION IN THE SCHOOLS CATEGORY
Magdalena Jaroszewska is an art historian and romance philologist, a graduate of Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań. She works as an art history teacher in high school, a museum educator at the National Museum in Poznań, and also as a guide for French-speaking groups, whom she guides through Poznań’s remarkable architecture. The project was realized thanks to the substantive support and goodwill of the Directorate and officials of the Department of Urban Planning and Architecture of the City of Poznań. It was implemented by a class specializing in Architecture at the 14th High School in Poznań, which for years, through its artistic and architectural profiles, has focused on shaping the creativity, aesthetic awareness, and critical thinking skills of its students.
Museum of Architecture in Wrocław / “Architecture Laboratory” / Team: Agnieszka Gola, Patrycja Mazurek, Magdalena Strożenko-Polak, Kamila Haja, Blanka Przedpełska, Katarzyna Mizera, Ewa Kuczała, Paweł Mildner, Misia Siennicka,
HONORABLE MENTION IN THE INSTITUTIONS CATEGORY
The Museum of Architecture in Wrocław is the only museum institution in Poland whose activities are entirely focused on the multidimensional perception of architecture. As part of its activities, it organizes exhibitions, conducts popularization and scientific activities, and realizes numerous events addressed to various audience groups. Education is also one of the pillars of the Museum’s activities, especially for the youngest. Familiarizing children and youth with the perception and better understanding of architecture and space takes place on several levels – from workshops for schools and families, through pilot programs in architectural education, to organizing exhibitions such as “Architecture Laboratory. An Exhibition for Children and Adults.”
Agnieszka Gola – a graduate of art history at the University of Wrocław and postgraduate museum studies at Jagiellonian University in Krakow; a medievalist, curator in the Department of Medieval Art, curator of exhibitions dedicated to medieval art and scientific publications related to this subject. For years, she has combined her interest in medieval architecture with activities for universal architectural education; since 2009, she has been the head of the Education Department at the Museum of Architecture in Wrocław.
Patrycja Mazurek – a graduate of art history at the University of Silesia in Katowice (bachelor’s) and the University of Wrocław (master’s), postgraduate studies in pedagogy at WSB in Wrocław, and postgraduate museum studies at the University of Warsaw. Since 2015, she has been associated with the Museum of Architecture in Wrocław, where she co-creates and implements an educational program for all age groups.
Magdalena Storożenko-Polak – architect and educator, advocate for accessibility, actively involved in universal design. President of the board of Places Foundation. Graduate of the Faculty of Architecture at the Warsaw University of Technology and postgraduate studies in Archi:Kultura at the Pedagogical University of Krakow. Author of innovative educational programs that introduce universal design to officials, students, and youth.
Kamila Haja – vice-president of the board of Places Foundation, graduate of the Faculty of Architecture at the Silesian University of Technology and postgraduate studies in Innovation Management at SWPS. Multiple participant, tutor, and organizer of both practical and conceptual workshops for students in the field of architecture and design. Specialist in creating cohesive visual communication. Designer of the exhibition “Architecture Laboratory” and interactive objects within it.
Blanka Przedpełska (Places Foundation) – interdisciplinary artist and designer, specializing in creating innovative solutions in the area of social design. Graduate of industrial design at the Academy of Fine Arts in Łódź. Currently continuing her studies at the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw. Since 2021, she has been an active member of the international initiative Meeting of Design Students, which brings together students and young professionals from various creative disciplines. Designer of the exhibition “Architecture Laboratory” and interactive objects within it.
Katarzyna Mizera (Places Foundation) – graphic designer and artist. Graduate of the Faculty of Architecture at the Silesian University of Technology in Gliwice. In her projects, she most often addresses the issue of social participation in the spatial planning process. Full of passion and commitment to fighting for increased awareness of accessibility and empathy in design.
Ewa Kuczała – designer collaborating with the Museum of Architecture in Wrocław, combining experience in architecture and design with education. Graduate of the Academy of Fine Arts in Wrocław (design major), currently associated with the Wrocław School of Drawing. Creator of educational aids for the “Architecture Laboratory” project and interactive objects at the exhibition of the same title.
Paweł Mildner – acclaimed illustrator and graphic designer; laureate of numerous awards (including The White Ravens, Golden Pinwheel Awards, Klub Twórców Reklamy, Polish Graphic Design Awards). The artist’s clients include The New York Times, Süddeutsche Zeitung Magazin, Pepe Jeans, Bloomberg Businessweek, Anorak, Kukbuk, Dwie Siostry Publishing House, as well as cultural institutions: Museum of Architecture in Wrocław, Krupa Art Gallery (PRIMO Gallery), and others, where he co-creates exhibitions and illustrates publications.
Misia Siennicka (she/her) – producer at the Museum of Architecture in Wrocław; completed master’s studies at the Faculty of Architecture of the Wrocław University of Science and Technology, and the field of Service Design and Artistic Research at the University of Lapland. Previously associated with the embroidery collective Kirjotut Kannat (Embroidered Views, exhibitions including at Suomen Käsityön Museo in Jyväskyla / 2024, Galleri Valo in Rovaniemi / 2025).
Categories
The Golden Cubes Awards competition is divided into four categories. The categories are: School Award, for schools; Institutions Award: for museums, foundations, associations, non-governmental organizations; Written Publications Award: for books, articles, guides, printed materials; Audiovisual Media Award: for documentaries, television programs, films, multimedia tools – for schools, institutions, and creators.
Institutions
The laureate in the Institutions category was the organizer of workshops for schools:
ZODIAK Warsaw Architecture Pavilion / “School Tours”
The jury awards the prize for an innovative initiative involving the adaptation of tours to the needs and perceptual level of children for each exhibition presented at the ZODIAK Warsaw Architecture Pavilion.
Original development of accompanying materials that explain content intended for adult audiences, engage the youngest in the exhibition space, develop observation skills and perceptiveness, support the development of manual skills, and provide enjoyable, intelligent fun based on graphic materials, three-dimensional exhibits, and audio-visual content. A typical tour transforms into an architecture lesson in an attractive format with workshop elements.
Choice of target audience for the initiative.
The tours were intended for school classes, primarily from public schools, and were free of charge, enabling a large number of children to participate in architectural education activities within the compulsory education system.
For the scale of the initiative – reaching a vast number of recipients.
For the effort of translating professional content into the language of children of various ages and for recognizing and utilizing the potential of “adult spaces and content” in educating the youngest.
An honorable mention in the Institutions category was awarded to the exhibition:
“Architecture Laboratory” / Museum of Architecture in Wrocław
The honorable mention was awarded for a universal and inclusive exhibition project addressing extremely important themes related to our contemporary world. It simply helps to understand how space responds to the needs of people with various disabilities, the needs of neurodivergent individuals, or those with sensory overload. It is primarily aimed at children but also helps adults understand their small world and see things from a slightly lower perspective.
In summary, the winners deserve thanks for sharing their passion, creativity in building scenarios, and energy invested in implementing their initiatives.
Schools
The laureate in the Schools category was an initiative conducted with exceptional sensitivity in the surroundings of Gdańsk tenement houses:
“Shadow Memory” / Old Town, Gdańsk / Katarzyna Szpernalowska
The jury awards the prize for addressing the theme of local identity in relation to historical events of World War II, which, in the face of ongoing armed conflicts, shapes youth’s reflection on the impact of war and peace on the urban fabric and the lives of residents. The exceptional use of art – interesting means of communication such as film, photography, etc. – as an educational tool.
From the author: “Students created a series of shadow photographs in the Old Town, a memory game with drawings of tenement houses and their shadows, alternative maps of the Old Town, and clay models of tenement houses for self-assembly of dioramas. They prepared a shadow puppet film with carillon music (characteristic of Gdańsk). We organized an opening reception, a film screening, and an exhibition for the school community and neighborhood residents during the school festival in June. The project showed students the phenomenon of cities changing over centuries, and the catastrophe that war represents for heritage. The project also made students realize that buildings have individual shadows, changing throughout the day and seasons, and at the same time, that light and shadow in the city are part of a broader urban concept. It aided in architectural, regional, social, and historical education.”
An honorable mention in the Schools category was awarded to a school involved in local changes in its immediate surroundings:
14th High School in Poznań / “Rondo Rataje – Rethinking Local Space”
Honorable mention for the instructive process of guiding elementary school students through the entire critical reflection on a part of the city located in their immediate vicinity, including design elements and social activation during the presentation of ideas at a meeting in the town hall.
Media
In this category, the laureate is the creator of the website robiewzieleni.substack.com
Anna Komorowska / “I Do Greenery” / online access – worldwide
The jury awards the prize for developing expert content in landscape architecture in an imaginative and easily understandable way for the youngest – video materials, exercise sheets, descriptions of architectural activities, etc.
Proposals for solutions to typical problems faced by students, such as a lack of interest in historical topics, by suggesting field tasks and exercises that not only increase knowledge but, above all, train observation skills of our surrounding environment.
The use of simple filming and narration methods from behind the camera deserves great recognition and appreciation, giving the recordings the character of a “visual postcard from a friend,” but at the same time proving that sharing true passion does not require specialized equipment or significant financial investment.
Publications
For a publication featuring an urban game that can inspire other cities, the jury awarded the initiative:
“Reminiscences of the Remi Family”, Nowy Sącz, Youth Palace / Joanna Paradowska Prusak
with the team Anna Rejowska-Gomułak and Jan Prusak
The jury awards the prize for an initiative that showcases and promotes the local potential of Nowy Sącz as a place for shaping students’ local identity.
For an architectural education initiative taking place directly in the space it concerns – which encourages children to go outdoors, engage with the built environment, observe, and explore spaces close to their homes.
Introducing children and adults to significant figures in local architectural history.
The format of the initiative – simple, clear, low-budget, well-developed in both content and graphics – can serve as a model for other towns and cities. The proposed initiative can be attractive to both residents and tourists.
Jury
The selection of laureates in the third Polish edition was made by an independent jury composed of architects, animators, and educators. The choice was not easy, as there were many exceptionally interesting ideas, and the works demonstrated great commitment from the educators. The jury consisted of the following five individuals:
Tomek Rygalik – jury chairman
Designer, founder of Studio Rygalik, working on architecture and products for leading companies and Polish and international brands such as Cappellini, Comforty, Moroso, Miloni, Nobonobo, Noti, Ghidini, Paged, Profim, Siemens, Heineken, and Ikea. He teaches the younger generation of designers, with openness, rich experience, and a doctorate, and is a professor at Aalto University. Creator of brands offering interior design products. Co-founder of the interdisciplinary community DesignNature and its creative campus in Sobole.
Jan Körbes – architect, member of the Dutch collective REFUNC, which creates experimental architectural and design projects from recycled waste, rooted in local context. His work explores sustainable living and space design through collaboration, experimentation, and creative innovation aimed at rethinking our relationship with the environment.
Agnieszka Rasmus-Zgorzelska – a graduate of English studies, where she became interested in translation theory as intercultural communication, among other things, and postgraduate urban studies. Co-founder and head of the Architecture Foundation, curator, publisher, editor, journalist, and translator. She manages publishing projects and curates artistic and educational events related to popularizing knowledge about architecture, as well as building bridges between art disciplines and between the world of specialists and amateurs.
Dorota Sibińska – graduate of the Faculty of Architecture and Urban Planning at the Warsaw University of Technology. Since 2004, together with M. Nowosielska and F. Domaszczyński, she has run her own design studio, XYstudio, specializing in designing facilities for children. Since 2009, the studio has been developing the Locomoco brand of certified children’s furniture, a laureate of the “Must Have 2011” award.
Since 2023, she has been a mentor in a mentoring program at WAPW.
Laureate of the Polityka Architectural Award in 2015, Grand Prix of the Polityka Architectural Award in 2020, the Life in Architecture competition in the years 2015-2020 and 2020-2025, Grand Prix of the Architectural Award of the Mayor of Warsaw along with the title of residents’ favorite, title of accessibility leader in the years 2019, 2020, 2021 awarded by the Integracja Foundation, and Architect/Urban Planner 2020. XYstudio projects have received nominations for the Mies van der Rohe European Award. Focused on human needs, she promotes socially responsible architecture.
Anna Cudny – architect, urban researcher, and educator at the Warsaw University of Technology, specializing in urban design and architectural education. She conducts workshops for people of all ages, focusing on neurodidactics and relational teaching, collaborating with institutions such as the National Institute of Architecture and Urban Planning and the ZODIAK Warsaw Architecture Pavilion.
Award
At the turn of April and May this year, the nominated works from the Polish edition will be presented at an exhibition during the Architectural Education Forum in Kazimierz Dolny, then in May in Warsaw during the Polish Architecture Congress. And at the turn of August and September, the works of the Polish laureates, along with the works of the international laureates, will be shown at an outdoor exhibition during the Architecture Weekend in Gdynia.
The laureates of each category will receive a K-dron statuette during the Gala in Gdynia. The K-dron is a solid discovered by designer Janusz Kapusta. The K-dron has two opposite, equal parts that complement each other and are like a spatial equivalent of the ancient Chinese symbol of Yin and Yang. One black and one white K-dron, when joined together, form a cube. Four such cubes create any pattern on a square surface. By rotating them, we can create new arrangements. Four K-dron cubes create 38,416 combinations. In the concept of the statuette, the author used the two properties of the K-dron mentioned above: Yin and Yang, i.e., the combination of opposites, and 38,416 combinations. The most fundamental opposites are: matter – form, reality – spirituality, heaven – earth, and in architecture, project – realization. The first side of such expressed opposition is symbolically represented by a K-dron made of concrete, the second – by a transparent 3D print. If each of the 4 winners can create only 14 flat arrangements with their award – one K-dron cube (see below) – all together with four K-dron cubes – they can create 38,416. This allows for a metaphorical articulation of the meaning and richness of group, collective actions.
The statuettes for this edition are made of wood and copper, using artisanal methods. Wood is an obvious reference to nature, natural materials, and nobility, while soldered copper elements depict the precision of human hands; the void between the edges of the gleaming copper is space for imagination.
Colophon
UIA Golden Cubes Awards, International Competition Commissioner: Mina Sava
UIA Poland Golden Cubes Awards: Katarzyna Domagalska
Golden Cubes Awards Poland, Competition Commissioner: Jagna Badowska
Editorial: Katarzyna Domagalska
Communication: Dominik Witaszczyk, Marta Baranowska, Katarzyna Nestorowicz, Aleksandra Zaszewska