This year the course entitled "Innovation and Design with Ceramic Materials" took a more professional route in terms of research applied to architecture. Students worked based on lines of research that were already defined and received support from an expert on patents and utility models. The aim of the course was to provide intellectual property protection for pieces that are of interest construction-wise, architecturally or commercially. This new format means that students can co-author an article on their piece in a specialised journal or participate in a research project.

The students defended the ceramic pieces which they had worked on one by one throughout the trimester. The jury included Dr Juan Domingo Santos, holder of a PhD in Architecture from the University of Granada; Pilar Vélez, Director of the Barcelona  Museum of Design- DHUB; Jordi Riba, an Architect from the "Torner Juncosa" Patents Office; and the architect Clara Vicedo, as a representative of ASCER, the organisation that set up the Ceramic Chairs Network.

Winning pieces:

The jury awarded the three Ceramics Chairs 2015 awards to the following projects:  

1. Prize Category: Extrusion with a Structural Function

Piece entitled "Encofrado perdido ‘M’" by Eduardo Pérez Monreal. 

Awarded because it reminds us of the tradition of ceramic construction and adds functional and aesthetic values.

2. Prize Category: A Compressed Piece

Piece entitled "Al-Remate" by Sònia Gómez Ruiz.

Awarded due to her skill in detecting a regular problem and creating a simple solution.  A simple and versatile concept which resolves the complex problem of stained cladding on a façade.

3. Prize Category: Extrusion Functioning as Cladding

Piece entitled: "Agrowall" by Juan Torres Martínez. 

Awarded for knowing how to reinterpret a classic element and transport it onto an urban scale. A private potted plant became an urban potted plant. The careful details were highly valued, including the edges, the clips used as attachments, and the corners etc.