Maybe photography is the narrative this industry needs more of?

As we are on the brink of inviting entries into our 2021 CIOB Art of Building photography competition, it is a good time to look back over the years to see how things have changed.

Do you remember the old Apple iPhone 3GS? If you placed it alongside your current mobile phone it would look like a teenage version, all moody and not finished growing. Which I guess bucks the trend that technology only ever gets smaller. When the Art of Building started its journey in 2009 that old Apple iPhone was the biggest selling in the market and could conjure up 3-megapixel images, but under the condition you didn’t take many because you couldn’t store them.

Now the top mobile can take 63-megapixel panoramic shots with optical image stabilisation and supported by other technological jargon that most of us don’t understand. What we do know though is that with image filters and photo editing apps we are all armed with a studio in our pocket. And that has made a big impact on our lives and in our competition.

Advancement in camera technology has given all of us greater access to capture that special moment. We are often enveloped in the built world and so the canvas waits for a discerning eye to see an angle, the interplay of light, or an unusual scene taking place.  The story of the built environment has never had so much opportunity to be told.  

Somewhere in excess of 40,000 images have been entered over the years. They have come from all corners of the globe, from the developed and developing world. They have told the story of how a house can become a home, how high-rise living is trying to keep up with growth in our global population, and how our cultures manifest themselves in the architecture around us. 

Construction needs a better profile. It was once said if you know someone who has an important story to tell lend them a camera.  Maybe photography is the narrative this industry needs more of.

Thank you to all of you who have taken part in the competition over the years. Whether you have submitted an entry, voted on a personal favourite or shared the Art of Building with your friends and family. You are part of the conversation and part of its story, so keep sharing what you see.

Visit www.artofbuilding.org on 11 October 2021 to enter into this year's competition. If you can’t wait until then come and discover more amazing photography on our Instagram account.

Photos from the 2021 Art of Building competition. Courtesy of Hadi Dehghanpour and Borna Mirahmadian.