May 1st, 2009 was the close of our first 3-D design competition. We had a great level of participation, with 41 entries being submitted. More importantly, the quality of the entries was generally very impressive and the competition was very close, as several of the winners won by the smallest margin possible. Participants succeeded indeed in capturing the pioneering spirit of seasteading and expressing a vibrant, lively feeling through beautiful architecture.
We look forward to using these amazing designs in upcoming promotional materials to convey to people the exciting potential of this new way of life. A Number of media outlets, such as National Geographic, Archiworld, and Bloomberg Markets, have picked up the story.
Our heartfelt congratulations to the winners! If you like their work, please join The Seasteading Institute to support future projects. All design contest images and models on this page are under the Creative Commons Attribution License. It means that you are allowed to redistribute and modify images and source files but that you must attribute the original designer when doing so.
Winners
Download high-resolution images of all winners.
| Overall Winner | Best Picture Category Winner | Aesthetics Category Winner | Personality Category Winner | Community Choice Category Winner |
See also the runner-up entries
Overall Winner
The Swimming City — András Gyõrfi
| Title | The Swimming City |
| Designer |  András Gyõrfi |
| Images | See more images and videos. |
| 3-D source file | Download source file |
| Designer website | http://www.pic-studio.com |
| Prizes won |
|
| Seastead function | Recreational resort |
| About the designer | András is a 27 year old architectural graphic designer, living in Eger in Hungary. |
| What inspired you to participate in this contest? | “It’s a challenge to take part in an international competition. (And win it as well :))” |
| What makes your design unique? | “Check the pictures, and decide yourself! :)” |
Best Picture Winner
Oasis of The Sea — Emerson Stepp
| Title | Oasis of The Sea |
| Designer |  Emerson Stepp |
| Images | See more images |
| 3-D source file | Download source file |
| Designer website | N/A |
| Prizes won |
|
| Seastead function | Resort |
| Tell us something about yourself. | “I am 23, living in Minneapolis, MN. I will be attending Graduate school at the University of Minnesota for Architecture.“ |
| What inspired you to participate in this contest? | “I thought the challenge of designing a seastead would be exciting and the idea of pioneering ocean living is intriguing. The fact that it is for a non-profit organization was very appealing as well.” |
| What makes your design unique? | “I designed my seastead to be visually appealing yet at the same time able to withstand the harsh atmosphere that comes with maritime architecture. I tried to make the design mimic the environment yet remain a separate entity, and I also utilized alot of lush vegetation to ensure that the seastead lost the feel of just being on a large boat. I tried to make the areas around the structure seem as much like a beautiful urban park as possible to help people acclimate to the new setting.” |
Aesthetics Winner
SESU Seastead — Marko Järvela
| Title | SESU Seastead (SElf-SUstained Seastead) |
| Designer |  Marko Järvela |
| Images | See more images |
| 3-D source file | Download source file |
| Designer website | http://www.hirvesoo.ee |
| Prizes won |
|
| Seastead function | Mini society |
| Tell us something about yourself. | “I was born on December 17, 1966 (age 42), currently living and working in Tallinn, Estonia. I have graduated with the Master of Architecture degree from the Department of Architecture, Tallinn University of Fine Arts in 1992, and have done some post graduate studies in the Royal Technical High School, Stockholm, Sweden in 1992…1993. Since 1993 I have been working as an architect in Hirvesoo Arhitektibüroo architectural design office. I am interested in sustainable design. My hobbies include gardening and cooking.” |
| What inspired you to participate in this contest? | “The idea.” |
| What makes your design unique? | “The main objectives of the design have been aerodynamics, hydrodynamics as well as the capability to sail the open sea and withstand harsh weather conditions. The layered interior is derived from thermal and functional zoning. Passive solar design principles have been employed and vegetation is used extensively to control indoor climate and provide food for the inhabitants.“ |
Personality Winner
Rendering Freedom — Anthony Ling
| Title | Rendering Freedom |
| Designer |  Anthony Ling |
| Images | See more images |
| 3-D source file | Download source file |
| Designer website | http://renderingfreedom.blogspot.com/ |
| Prizes won |
|
| Seastead function | City |
| Tell us something about yourself. | “I am 22 years old. I was born in Porto Alegre, Brazil, where I still live. I am a 4th year architecture student. I study economics as a hobby, being very close and engaged to the Brazilian libertarian community.“ |
| What inspired you to participate in this contest? | “My belief and desire to help the Seasteading Institute’s ambition to create places where freedom can be entirely expressed.” |
| What makes your design unique? | “It’s a highly dynamic platform where spaces may be constantly adapted to the inhabitants needs and desires. It’s freedom in architecture.“ |
Community Choice Winner
Refusion — Team 3DA
| Title | Refusion |
| Designer | Team 3DA |
| Images | See more images |
| 3-D source file | Download source file |
| Prizes won |
|
| Seastead function | Research facility |
| Tell us something about yourselves. | Zachariah Muñoz Twenty-seven year old intern architect currently employed as a 3D artist in Las Vegas, NV. Interested in the intersections between art, architecture, and technology. Portfolio. Timo Harrison 3D artist with an architecture education employed in Las Vegas, NV producing architectural visualizations. Interested in visionary art, graffiti, and irrationalism. Jason Gibeault 3D artist living in Las Vegas, NV. Portfolio. Eldridge Felder 3D artist working primarily in 3D Studio Max, with experience in Maya and a large number of plug-ins and rendering engines including V-Ray and Mental Ray. For work most of my models are architectural, but I’ve recently expanded my field which involves visual effects and characters. You can view a few of my hobby images. Charles Crochet 3D artist. |
| What inspired you to participate in this contest? | “The idea of designing an isolated structure in the middle of the ocean initially piqued our curiosity because of the unlimited range of possibilities and purposes.” |
| What makes your design unique? | “We believe our design is unique in that it challenges people to think beyond the modern-day practical implications of a seastead, but instead towards a visionary promise of the possibilities afforded by absolute independence.” |
Runner-ups
The following runner-ups will be rewarded for their valuable contribution with a free Seahorse membership for The Seasteading Institute’s membership program and a The Seassteading Institute t-shirt.
| Overall runner-up | Title: Seagull Hotel Function: Six stars hotel Designer: Matias Perez Website: www.coroflot.com/antena See more images Download source file |
| Aesthetics runner-up | Title: Entwined Dragon Seastead Function: Hotel/museum Designer: Patrick Kenny Website: N/ASee more images Download source file |
| Personality runner-up | Title: The Arch Function: Observatory Designer: Rory O’Hagan Website: N/A See more images Download source file |
| Best Picture runner-up | Title: La gallerie de la mer Function: Gallery Designer: Hakeem Bux Website: N/A See more images Download source file |
| Community prize runner-up | Title: Micro city community Function: Independent community Designer: Ettore Mele Website: N/A See more images Download source file |
If you have any questions, please contact .
If you enjoyed these visions, please consider joining The Seasteading Institute to support projects like this!
All design contest images and models on this page are under the Creative Commons Attribution License. It means that you are allowed to redistribute and modify images and source files but that you must attribute the original designer when doing so.
