This year’s Association of Jersey Architects (AJA) Architecture Week 2026 Open Exhibition will explore the theme ‘A Sense of Place’, inviting entrants to consider what gives Jersey’s built and natural environment its particular identity and character.
Architecture can never escape its context. It both responds to and shapes its surroundings. How a place is made, who makes it and who it is for can tell a wider story through its materials, resources, history and people.
A sense of place is not limited to landmark buildings or familiar views. It might be found in the corner of a restaurant, a room, a shaded courtyard, a new piece of street or a subtle addition to the background of everyday life. It can be a physical quality defined by architecture and landscape, or simply a feeling created by our surroundings.
Through ‘A Sense of Place’, the AJA is asking entrants to explore what the idea means in the context of Jersey today. The exhibition will bring together different perspectives on the Island and consider how individual spaces, buildings and experiences contribute to something greater.
The open exhibition welcomes work in a wide range of formats, including architectural models, drawings, sketches, photography, mixed-media images and collage. Entries may examine completed projects, developing ideas or existing and discovered places.
All eligible entries will be exhibited at ArtHouse Jersey at Capital House and considered for the Architecture Week 2026 prizes and commendations. These include an overall first prize and runner-up, alongside commendations recognising drawing, sketching, photography, model-making and student work.
A successful entry will demonstrate a clear relationship with the exhibition theme. The title, accompanying text and submitted work should combine to communicate a thoughtful and distinctive response to ‘A Sense of Place’.
Submissions must be received by Friday 11th September 2026. The exhibition will open with an awards event at Capital House on Wednesday 30th September 2026.
Architecture Week is an opportunity to bring architectural ideas into a wider public conversation about Jersey: the places we value, the qualities we risk losing and the environments we want to create for the future. Details of the wider Architecture Week programme, including further events and announcements, will be published and kept updated here.
