# OFIS Architects

OFIS Architects is a firm of architects based in Ljubljana, Slovenia and established in 1996 by Rok Oman and Špela Videčnik. The firm has won several prominent tenders, such as the Football Stadium Maribor and the Ljubljana City Museum extension and renovation. Many of their projects have been nominated for awards, including the Mies van der Rohe Award.

## History
### Foundation

OFIS was established in 1996 by Rok Oman and Špela Videčnik, both graduates of the Ljubljana School of Architecture and the London Architectural Association, during a time when most of the larger architectural offices were being closed or scaled down to create space for younger groups of architects to participate in architectural competitions.

### Projects

The firm won a large business complex in Venice Marghera, Italy, and a residential complex in Graz, Austria. After winning a project for 180 apartments in Paris, France, their first large-scale development abroad, they also opened a branch office in France, in 2007.
In 2009 they received a silver IOC/IAKS medal for their football stadium. This was followed by a second large-scale development with the construction of a football stadium for FC BATE in Borisov, Belarus, completed in 2014.
In 2012, they received the Platinum Pen award for their international achievements. In 2013, they received the Plecnik Medal for the Habitable Space Habitable Wheel.
Multiple OFIS projects have been nominated for the Mies van der Rohe award, and their work has appeared on Discovery and RTL. They have exhibited worldwide, including at the Venice Biennale of Architecture, the Architectural Biennale in Beijing, and the Biennale in Moscow. Additionally, OFIS Architects has been profiled on the TV series Deutsche Welle and CCTV in China.

## Awards and recognition

In 2000, the studio won the Young Architect of the Year award in London. In 2004, they were highly commended for their City Museum renovation and extension by the UK Architectural Review's annual AR+D awards. In 2005 their Villa Bled under-extension received an honorable mention at the Miami Biennial.
* April 2013, Plecnik award, Space Habitable Wheel, Ljubljana, SLO
* December 2012, Trend Awards, Space Habitable Wheel, Ljubljana, SLO
* October 2012. Platinum Pencil 2012, the award for extensive architectural achievements, Ljubljana, SLO
* January 2011 - Mies van der Rohe Awards '10 Nomination for Farewell Chapel
* November 2010 - Chernikhov prize 2010, selected nominee, ICIF, Moscow, RU
* March 2010 - ArchDaily Building of the year 2009, Religious, Farewell Chapel
* September 2009 - IOC/IAKS award, silver medal for Football Stadium Maribor
* May 2009 - Mies van der Rohe Awards '08, Nomination for Football Stadium Maribor, selection
* May 2009 - Mies van der Rohe Awards '08, Nomination for Shopping roof apartments
* May 2009 - Mies van der Rohe Awards '08, Nomination for Hayrack Apartments
* January 2007 - Mies van der Rohe Awards '06, Nomination for Housing on the Coast
* December 2006 - European Grand Prix for innovation awards, Monaco
* January 2006 - Bienal Miami 2005, honors for villa under-extension, Miami, USA
* December 2004 - AR+D awards, High commendation for the city museum Ljubljana
* December 2001 - Design Vanguard 2001, architectural record, New York, USA
* January 2001 - Young Architect of the Year Award, winner, YAYA, London, UK
* November 2000 - Piranesi award, honors for housing block 16x68, Piran, SLO

## Publications

Their work is published around the globe in more than 200 international publications a year, including the New York Times, The Guardian, The Independent, El País, Der Spiegel, Die Welt, Bild, most architectural magazines, and various books. In 2000 Zaha Hadid selected them as one of her top 10 exceptional emerging architects for Phaidon 10x10. In 2006, Gustavo Gili published monograph issue 2G on OFIS. The Hinge magazine chose their Farewell chapel as a Stand up building in 2009, Lace and Tetris apartments were announced as two of the Worlds 10 most creative apartment buildings by Oddee and Guardian Arts Critics chose them as an Architectural Office to ˝Look out for˝. In 2011 DAMDI published OFIS_open archive files 98-11, their second monograph issue in the DD series.

## Picture gallery

* Farewell Chapel, Krasnja, Slovenia
* Store, office & shop concrete container, Trata, Slovenia
* Tetris Apartments, Ljubljana, Slovenia