Black Spectacles, who has teamed up with the Chicago Architectural Club, has recently created The Un-Competition Project. Invent a project, design it, and post your design on our Facebook page, with a 60 second video. They want to hear how you came up with your project, what your design is, and how you are going to get it built.

So, no, there is no competition brief, and no, they’re not going to get your project built. You make the project up yourself, big or small- you sell it, and you figure out how to get it built. Then document it in a video, and they’ll show it to the world. More information on the competition after the break.

Competitions serve an important purpose in the design community- they give designers a framework for exploring their own ideas and a way to refine their skills. But, most competitions are wasteful. Rarely does anything useful or truly meaningful come out of them. There is generally a good reason for this- it takes a lot of hard, gutsy work to bring something to reality.

That’s where we come in. We want to inspire you to bring your ideas to reality. You need a framework to explore your own ideas. You need to get something built. Your community needs the design ideas you have spent so much time and money developing, and you want to make a name for yourself.

Then, after all of the results are in, Black Spectacles along with the Chicago Architectural Club who will host an event that expands the dialogue about design entrepreneurship that the Un-Competition Project initiates. The winners will be presented, and the event will explore alternate methods of getting work, getting it built, and establishing yourself in the profession. If you don’t happen to be in Chicago at the time of the event, you can watch live as we stream the event on our website.

Submission Details

Your 60 second video should include the following:

1. How you came up with your project, and why you think it needs to be realized.
2. Explanation of your design idea, (include 3D and orthographic drawings/models).
3. Explanation of how you intend to get (or already have gotten) the project realized.

Registration & Submission: The registration fee is $50. Early registration is $35 and closes on October 3.

To register and for more competition details, please visit here.