Beschreibung
des Entwurfs-programmes |
After a previous semester dealing with Empty Lots in the city, we will now take a closer look at the potential for densification on built plots in Zürich. While the term Blind Spots refers to commonplaces that are, as of now, overlooked, Untied Knots suggests a continuation of the urban fabric, underlying the relevance of what was before. The semester proposes to explore the possibilities of existing structures while critically assessing the conservation of their function, the value of their features and their spatial qualities.
Strategies of Continuation will be explored on three different scales: in a first 1:1 exercise, a physical object will be extended and completed. The second project will complement an urban space, with a small, public infrastructure. In a third and larger project, work will be carried out in groups of two. Students will examine a building or a situation and formulate a strategy within the feasibility of the legal framework. The level of intervention is to be determined according to an understanding of the site and existing structure. Criteria will be defined to develop an attitude for the interventions—whether it is through an extension, an addition, a reprogramming, an interior adaptation or another approach. Ultimately, new architectural and spatial qualities are achieved.
A series of curious situations, busy intersections, underused structures and areas that obviously do not live up to the potential of what they could be, have been collected as starting points for the semester work.
How could these spaces be continued while keeping existing qualities and sensibly tying additional knots?
- What is the potential of a gas station in a W5 Quartiererhaltungszone or a kiosk in an infrastructural intersection?
- Could a huge one-story socle in Niederdorf accommodate more than just an unused terrace?
- How could a Provisorium, in a prime location, be given a second life?
- Can an existing garage hall be used for something else, other than being replaced by a high-end Ersatzneubau?
- Could an outdated but centrally located workers’ settlement be brought to a contemporary standard of living while preserving its identity?
- Can the over-dimensioned backyard of a housing development be used in favor of its inhabitants?
- Could a suspended youth center have a bigger impact on its neighborhood other than just covering a parking lot?
The degree and the synergy of the interventions with the existing will be explored through conceptual physical models, investigating formal aspects such as the articulation of volume, the expression of mass and composition. Spatial form and structure will be developed through large-format images.
The semester is structured and complemented by workshops and talks. Discoveries and new outputs will be discussed in regular plenary sessions. The studio encourages the questioning of conventions and the formulation of strong spatial intentions. The focus is on large-format images, project-specific drawings and conceptual models—ultimately they result in valid contributions to the discourse on densification. |
Thematische und methodische Schwerpunkte |
Entwurf, Staedtebau, Handwerk, Visualisierungen |
Lernziele |
To improve skills in finding, developing, and representing an architectural concept by:
- Formulating and designing spaces that challenge conventions and lead to concrete, coherent, and radical visions
- Understanding the specificities of a site and a built structure, and establishing a critical attitude
- Using knowledge in a project-relevant way by collecting, curating, and producing significant material for such
- Expressing and representing ideas coherently and efficiently |
