Il Campionato Mondiale di Umari

This year’s Campionato Mondiale di Umari consists of three categories; participants may enter as many of these as they want. Winners will be declared in all events separately, reflecting the fact that there are many ways to umarell. Winners in all categories will receive prizes, recognition, and bragging rights. 

  1. Sketch: A sketch of a construction site in any medium. We discourage submission of, e.g. a painting, and will not accept photographic sketches, but do encourage digital sketchmaking.
  2. Notes: A written submission of up to 250 words, either in bullet points or full sentences, describing the activity at a construction site, focusing on detail and fidelity.
  3. Open text: A written submission of up to 250 words in any format (prose or verse) about a construction site. Open text entries should focus on artistry more than fidelity.

Each category will be judged in both an open contest (entrants of any age) and for umaretti (ages fifteen and under). For our youngest umaretti we also have a scavenger hunt, which is available for purchase (or free PDF download) here; these will be recognized and praised but not judged.

Entries for all categories should be submitted by 2024-06-10. Submissions can be made using the form below.

This Year's Judges

  • Drew Austin, author of Kneeling Bus, a weekly newsletter about urbanism and technology
  • Geoff Manaugh, freelance writer covering topics related to cities, design, and infrastructure; author of BLDGBLOG and A Burglar’s Guide to the City
  • Henry Grabar, Loeb fellow at Harvard GSD, author of Paved Paradise and columnist for Slate
  • Hillary Predko, founder of Desire Line Studio; longtime contributor to this newsletter
  • Ian Coss, producer at PRX and creator of the Big Dig Podcast
  • Mike Newman, co-founder of SHED Studio and Adjunct Professor of Architecture at the University of Illinois at Chicago

Submit your entry

Use the form below to enter the 2024 Campionato Modiale di Umari.