Three EMADU students win the "People’s Choice Award" at an international competition

Lina Sefrioui Benzarou, Manale Adnane and Zaineb Baddouri, students in 5th, 4th and 3rd year in Architecture, won the public prize in September 2021 of the international competition “The Oasis Cultural Center of Marrakech”, organized by UNI, one of the largest architecture and design competition platforms, aiming to respond to the challenges of a constantly changing world.   

The goal of the competition was to design a cultural center in Lalla Takerkoust that would combine the concept of an oasis and the cultural identity of Marrakech.  

“Remaining faithful to our identity by representing our culture as humbly as possible was our guiding thread. The hydraulic network of the DAM.MEDINA project is inspired by the local oasis water system and the ancestral systems (Khettarat and Seguia) existing in the region. Thus, with reference to the bordering dam, a veil, a unique reinforced concrete element, acts as the main water pump to irrigate the project's green spaces.

The phenomenology of space and the genius loci are two concepts strongly present in DAM.MEDINA. To allow the visitor to experience the atmospheres of Marrakech’s medina, many sequences were designed. Inspired by Jemaa El Fna square, several platforms dedicated to performance were put in place, thus generating a “multi-level medina” that combines architecture, water and vegetation. The five senses are stimulated there.” Such were the approach and intentions of the three students ".