The world of architectural visualization has gone through some quantum leaps in recent times, and what better way to showcase the powerful new tools and materials available to artists today than to hold a contest!

And so when Ronen Bekerman pitched the idea of a sprawling three-month contest to see who could present the most potent vision of a ‘cabin in the wilds’, we knew it would be the perfect showcase for today’s most powerful tools, and well as earth’s largest scan library: Quixel Megascans.

Thus began the journey of “Cabins”, Ronen’s seventh architectural visualization challenge.

Rules recap

Let’s quickly recap the rules for Cabins. Artists were to visualize a pre-fab cabin (existing or an original design) in a location of their choosing, recreated in full 3D to be experienced in VR. Contestants were to use Quixel Megascans assets and materials in the software programs of their choice — to deliver a 360 degree VR tour via Yulio VR.

Jury panel

The jury comprised of Teddy Bergsman Lind (Co-founder and CEO, Quixel), Ronen Bekerman (Co-Founder and Manager, The Craft), Peter Guthrie (Co-founder, The Boundary), Gianpiero Monopoly (Co-founder, State of Art Academy), Andreas Landgren (Co-Founder, Tomorrow AB), and Lasse Rode (Creative Director, xoio).

Quixel is proud to have been the marquee sponsor for the challenge — having provided over 200 contestants with access to the Megascans library!

Reflecting on Cabins, Teddy said: 

“It has been a privilege and a thrill to follow contestants from start to finish as they harmonize architecture with natural scenery in astonishing ways. It’s also been eye-opening to see scans put to such serious creative use.

Judging the winners and honorable mentions turned out to be a real challenge, and there are many more entries that will stay with me besides the ones that ultimately made it to the very top.

Thank you, everyone, for your hard work and final submissions — and for everyone in the community it has inspired!”

And so after 105 days, 444 contestants, and 24 finalists, here are the winners of Ronen Bekerman’s Cabins: Architectural Visualization Challenge VII!

First place: “Northern Wisps” by Bartosz Domiczek

Bartosz’s unreal “Northern Wisps” was an early favorite, and we’re thrilled he takes home first place!

Read jury comments and see more of Bartosz’s entry, here, discover his work on ArtStation, and have a look at his comprehensive breakdown: The Making of Northern Wisps!

 

Second place: “Inside Out” by Jamie Holmes

The serene and mesmerizing “Inside Out” by Jamie Holmes takes second place. “Megascans is awesome. I’ll be definitely using them in the future.” — Jamie Holmes

Read jury comments, see more of Jamie’s entry, and have a look at his comprehensive breakdown: “Making of Inside Out”.

 

Third place: “Australian Forest” by Sergey Ferley

At once one with nature and distinctly solitary — Sergey Ferley’s “Australian Forest” takes third place!

Read jury comments, see more of Sergey’s entry, discover his work on Behance, and check out his comprehensive breakdown: “Making of Australian Forest”.

 

And here are three honorable mentions:

Honorable mention: “A+A Frame” by Yarko Kushta

Yarko Kushta’s “A+A Frame” is wonderfully rustic and true to its environment. 

Read jury comments and see more of Yarko’s entry, here, and discover his work on Behance.

 

Honorable mention: “For the Family” by Alex Leiva

Easily one of the strongest interiors in the contest, Alex Leiva’s “For the Family” is a wonderful study in angular spacial design and exquisite material selection.

 

Read jury comments and see more of Alex’s entry, here, and discover his work on Behance and ArtStation.

 

Honorable mention: “Inspired by Simplicity” by Ana Camargo

Ana Camargo achieves both realism as well as a surreal whimsical quality in “Inspired by Nature”.

Read jury comments and see more of Ana’s entry, here.

 

Head on over to the Cabins page for the full contest breakdown.

And join the conversation at talk.ronenbekerman.