A bold new vision for Peterhead’s harbour area has earned a young architect a top national award.
Andrew Stewart, 23, who has just graduated from Robert Gordon University, impressed judges with his 21st century take on the traditional fisherman’s cottage and his proposal to revitalise the heart of the town.
Mr Stewart said he was compelled to design his winning entry given the large number of “generic communities” built on the fringes of Peterhead which had left the centre “neglected.”
He said: “Peterhead has experienced decades of residential development that has got progressively further from the town centre.
“This has seen generic communities created on the periphery of the town that has left the centre detrimentally neglected
“I have tried to re-interpret the density of traditional fishing cottages located through the north-east in a way that is appropriate for a waterfront housing development in the 21st century.”
He said he wanted to see his harbour-side townhouses used for both living and working and executive flats which allowed “generous” living spaces flooded with natural light.
Mr Stewart impressed judges in two categories at the awards organised by Architecture + Design Scotland and the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS).
Mr Stewart, who graduated with a Masters in Architecture last month, also won the RIAS Rowand Anderson Silver Medal for best fifth year student.
He was also highly commended in the sustainable design category, receiving praise from the judges for his work examining the regeneration of Peterhead through the introduction of new harbour housing.
He will soon start work at the Aberdeen office of Halliday Fraser Munro, wanted to challenge the perception that suburban living is superior to living in the town centre.
“I was very proud to see that my proposal for an alternative housing typology was seen as a successful alternative,” he said.
Professor Gokay Deveci, of RGU’s Scott Sutherland School of Architecture and Built Environment, said: “We are extremely proud of Andrew’s achievements. These awards demonstrate the quality of architectural education and research that RGU has to offer and that the standard of work produced by our students can compete with that of other universities throughout Scotland.”
All winning work is now on public display at The Lighthouse, Glasgow, until September 28.