2.2

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*ger. anschluss (annexation) + schloss (castle)Konrad Koltun |11071356| White Water portfolio

ANSCHLOSS2.2

2 Introduction

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intro duc tion

This project was set in Graz, Austria and in-volved designing a kayaking centre adjacent to River Mur. I would like to initially thank my tutor Dominic Sagar for enabling my imagination and at the end teaching me how highly conceptual ideas become concrete in architecture.

My approach to the project was affected heavily by my research and observations which told me how such a complete city like Graz has potential to go wrong. My idea was based on manifesting the problems of the community of Graz and tackling possibilities of solving them through controversy in-spired by Günter Brus - an artist introduced to us during the visit in Graz.

Konrad Koltun

4 Contents

cont ents

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Site analysis 6Immediate context problems 8Wider context problems 10‘Beach for the Rich, extreme sports and hip-hop 12

Key processes 14Concept 16Subverting a message 18Duality of expression 20Masterplan development 21More Precedents 22Design process collage 24

Proposal 26Masterplan 27Roof plan 28Section AA 30Section BB 32Hybrid Concept 34Elevations 36Plans 38Sequentials 46Model 58Technical resolution 60

References 68

6 Site analysis

Site analysis

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8 Site analysis

Immediate context problems

Right from the beginning I wasn’t concerned that much with the immediate historical and UNESCO heritage context, the site spoke the language of misery hidden within this fine city and revealed the true nature and barely noticeable social problems.

[1, 2, 3] The projecting of voices was very evident and found throughout the entire site. There was a combination of graffiti writers just tagging short statements or sticking posters and stickers around the site with more organised messages. Lastly the graffiti artists also contribute with pieces of deeper meaning like the piece talking ab about gold seekers (ironically the river has traces of them, but not enough to provide big enough income).

[4] Hobos’ cave made me realise that even in a city with rich historical and cultural heritage people still face the same problems as anywhere else.

[5] Alternative sculptures summarised the awkwardness of a site dramatically differ-ent from a much more conservative city centre.

[6] Taking over the fabric by people made me think about transforming of the public place by people and unification.

[7] Franciscan priest who stepped up against the Nazis, teaching his students about their evil nature for which he was killed. This is significant amongst the voices on the site side which told me that wasn’t exactly over with.

[8] Climbing wall seemed important to me because it reminded me of the strong ties between extreme sports and hip-hop cul-ture across central and eastern Europe.

[9] At last this picture shows me interview-ing people on the site from whom I gathered that they felt the tension between two city sides (conservative and rich against young, foreign and poor).

[1]

[4]

poor young foreign

richold conservative

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10 Site analysis

Wider context problems

OF AUSTRIANS VOTED FOR FAR RIGHT WING PARTIES in 2008

I think it’s quite noticeable that apart from pragmatic site analysis my attention was drawn to wider urban and even national scale problems which were key and informed a lot of decisions during th design process.

This statistic is scary as that kind of figure was enough for the Nazi party to gain power in Germany in 1930s. The motives seem exactly the same: economical low and the blaming of foreign for all the country’s job issues.

This diagram explains the connection between the legal and illegal far right wing/Social Nationalist movements and organ-isations made by the Burschenschaften (a secretive organisa-tion).

legal

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The big Austrian Lie

30%

After the WWII the Allies and Austrians con-sidered themselves

and therefore of that many Nazis in Austria were never prosecuted. As the result of that modern artists such as

expressed what they considered a Nazi spir-it in the nation through often ‘outrageous’ performances. They believed that it still had a huge effect on the society and I think it causes the problems in the city considering all the evidence in form of what is projected on the site.

victims of Nazi aggression

Günter Brus

dailymail.co.ukRolf Steininger(20012), Arnulf Meifert

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MASTERPLAN

0 1000 m

MASTERPLAN

0 1000 m

This diagram visualises the mapping of foreigners on the city sides and we can notice that the west has a higher number of them and in that more of them are EU which only reinforces the discriminate comments I had been hearing from people.

This diagram mapped the amount and density of young peo-ple around the city and I found that they seem to be longing for the spot in the centre. It looks like a rat race imposed by the system to become successful and non-collective.

Foreign Young [10-29]

70 10 000+30 1 000% of EU Actual amount of young

districts means

districts means

Proving unbalanced - Visualising population statistics

12 Site analysis

‘Beach for the rich’,extreme sports and hip-hop

When we asked about the site in summer we got a lot of criticism that it is oriented for the ‘rich kids’ of Graz. The extreme sportsmen act barely as secondary entertainers and graffiti artists as decorators for ‘rough and uncomfortable’ concrete surface.

I think that this site should be more than just a place where people get entertained throughout the year, it should be about development of self and expression which is exactly what hip-hop and sports en-courage.

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In eastern and central Europe

the ties between hip-hop and ex-

treme sports movement are

strong as they came from USA

simultaneously.

JWP a hip-hop group from Warsaw, Poland in a video with several ex-treme sportsmen.

Our site occupied during summer with possibilities to extend it’s ‘noble’ func-tion throughout the year,

14 Key processKey process

Key pro cess

separated despite bridges

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kunsthaus

hauptbahnhof

university venues

kayaking centre

what seems to be Graz authorities’ solution

I noticed that Graz authorities strategically plan the new developments to stitch the city together. However most of the time the developments are to increase the land value around the development (like Kunsthaus) and move the problematic, poor community away from their COMFORT-ABLE city rather than actually SOLVE THE ISSUES.

16 Key process

‘Polska Walcząca’ (Fighting Poland) on a brick wall on Oddolańska Street in Mokotów district, Warsaw, 1945 r. (photo Eligiusz Brudziński)

Concept

Graffiti was once one of the weapons against the Nazis in a limited arsenal during the occupation of Warsaw. I saw the same kind of opportunity in the graffiti movement in Graz - in similar kind of people wanting better future for themselves and their children free of Nazi terror. Nowadays the terror translates to subtle discrimination and tensions more than anything, but young people with pro-globalisation mindsets usually are key in changing this.

I thought this was a good reason to preserve and enhance the roughness and contrast the bottom of the site creates in opposition to the top of the site. Apart from that the idea is to spread it over there too.

Graffiti traditionally used to happen and still usually happens in semi nich-es, non-places, places of transition where the piece is visible and makes a statement but also where the writer isn’t necessarily seen making it for obvious reasons.

Niches, extending the canvas

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If advantage or profit is to be found in it, then the old is swept away. (...) what had been annihilated in the earlier frenzy of growth now be-comes an object of adoration. And former objects of utility now pass for rare and precious works of art.

Precedent: East Side Gallery, Berlin | budgettravel.com

One of the initial sequential ideas envisioning the extension of the canvas for graffiti writers to project more and more.

18 Key process

Subverting a message

‘The one who does not remember history is bound to live through it again.’

- George Santayana

The intent was to organise the niches in a geometrical or-der on the site, I thought this also needed to have a strong message that sparked a lot of ideas. The idea was to base the niches on the swastika plan and break it up so the ac-tual message wasn’t visible in order to express the traces of the ideology that still fundamentally influence lives of Austrians and in this case those who live in Eastern Graz.

The controversy

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Side A Side A

Side ASide A

Uncomfortabletopic

Uncomfortabletopic

Side B Side B

Side BSide B

Side A Uncomfortabletopic

Side B

The graffiti and a misted message that I am trying to convey are meant to reflect a simple model of human interaction in which when an uncomfortable topic arises, when the two sides of the discourse don’t interact it is impossible for them to stay close, as there will be more and more uncomfortable topics that will emerge. The graffiti helps

in this process as it is not afraid to rise difficult topics, and so don’t I.

20 Key process

Duality of expression

Precedent: East Vietnam War Memorial, Washington Precedent: The Academy of the Jewish Museum, Daniel Libeskind

In the brief for the Vietnam War memorial there was supposed to be no political message, however many thought that ‘memorial says one thing: only the dead, nothing besides, remain. Its purpose is to impress upon the visitor the sheer human waste, the utter meaning-less of it all.’

The winner, then student Maya Ying Lin managed to subvert a message and cause a debate by playing in my opinion on the ‘no political message’ requirement. She designed an experience that moves through very simple mean of reflection and listing the names in a chronological order of death.

In my case I wanted to express the devastating effect the Nazi spirit still has on the society, but with the programme that formed from my research I could also express the extreme experience where the perspective is broken and procession almost un-comfortable.

An obvious precedent for that was Daniel Libeskind, he also proved useful for his approach to memory and masterplanning linked to that subject.

Message

Expression of devastation

Graffiti Kayaking/Extreme sports

Expression of extreme experience

The justification

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Masterplan Development

MASTERPLAN

0 1000 m

Masterplan DevelopmentMasterplan Development

0 500 km

Graz

Jerusalem

Mecca

45°

45°

38°

0 500 km

Graz

Jerusalem

Mecca

45°

38°

six degrees of separation

Looking deeper at the precedents I realised that the expressions I want and metaphysical ways of connec-tion need a framework. Six degrees of separation idea came after watching a document on Nazism and the story of Hermann Goering’s brother Albert who used his name and obvious connection to rescue Jews during ‘The Final Solution’. This grid of interrelation informed a lot of design decisions later on.

Precedent: Alexanderplaz Masterplan

Precedent: Sacred Geometry

Stitching the city

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More precedents

Tito’s sculpturesThis is a selection of structures commis-sioned Josip Tito throughout the 1960-70s to commemorate sites where WWII battles took place, or where concentration camps stood. The enlarged one on the RHS is my main precedent as it’s a town hall with simi-lar scale and desired detail. I looked at them because of overlapping history and proxim-ity to Austria and what I wanted to achieve.

cracktwo.com

Sculpture park

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Verticality and expressiveness of staircase responds to the Franciscan church, reinforc-es the procession of vertical circulation and allows for climbing.

This one perfectly reflects the idea of split-ting the building into it’s functions and al-lowing activity and circulation through and outside it at the same time.

This detail expresses the roughness and contrast of ‘light’ material against the heavy concrete so that the composition isn’t boring despite desired graffiti.

Details

dequalized.com

dequalized.com

architectuul.com

24 Key processPrecedents

Design Process collage

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Apart from paper and model design and arrangement I did a lot of computer testing nearly every time I made major changes to the design in order to ensure high quality and integrity of all the requirements which was a time consuming process sometimes.I do not regret it, howeverI would probably do it by handbefore going to draft-ing next time. The advantage of using CAD wasquick 3D output.

26 Proposal

Pro posal

Masterplan

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28 Proposal

Roof Plan

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30 Proposal

Section AA

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32 Proposal

Section BB

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34 Proposal

Hybrid conceptHibernation - Environmental stance

summer

The idea emerged in Graz when I thought about the different climate we ap-proached there. The pro-grammatic design in this case meant that no kaya-king would be happening during winter when it’s too dangerous to teach it and therefore some of the parts of the building would be un-used.

Programming other spaces for that time would mean that more people would be directed in them and there-fore less heating would be required.

Also the initial idea of gain-ing power from water was wiped by lack of relevant detail for such a centre and instead I decided to make use of large areas of steep roofs.

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winter

36 Proposal

ElevationsTo show the levels

South West

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North East

38 Proposal

Planslevel -2

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[1] Female wet area[2] Male wet area[3] Storage[4] Kayak landing[5] External staircase tower[6] Elevator

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[7] Semi-outdoor race/DJ hub

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42 Proposal

Ground Level

[8] Foyer[9] Kitchen/reception[10] Disabled toilet[11] Office 1[12] Storage[13] Speakers’ corner

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[10][10][10][10][10][10]

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44 Proposal

level 1

[14] Multifunctional area[15] Link corridor[16] Unisex toilets[17] Office 2

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[15][15][15]

[16]

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46 ProposalProposal

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The approach to the site happens outside the city centre.

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The approach to the building. Sculpture park, project voices.

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50 ProposalProposal

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Entrance - where two sides of the argument potentially meet. Graffiti happens in niches

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Main area - canvas further extended, grid imposition.

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54 ProposalProposal

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Tower - more niches, more activity, overlapping backgrounds.

56 ProposalProposal

Controlling and dividing the competition area from preparation. Putting on spot.

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58 Proposal

1:00 massing model.

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1:00 massing model.

60 ProposalProposal

Technical resolutionStructure

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62 ProposalProposal

Environmental control

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64 Proposal

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Detail Structure, envelope

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Detail stairs, structure, finishes

68 References

Reference list

Arnulf Meifert. Gunter Brus (Monographies). Centre Georges Pompidou Service Commercial, n.d.

“BBC NEWS | Programmes | More Or Less | Connecting with People in Six Steps.” Accessed De-cember 3, 2012. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/more_or_less/5176698.stm.

“BBC NEWS | World | Europe | Austria Still Haunted by Nazi Past.” Accessed December 1, 2012. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/Europe/7283899.stm.Daniel Libeskind. Countersign. London: Academy Editions, 1991.

Daniel Libeskind. Radix-matrix: Architecture and Writings. Munich: Prestel, 1997.

“European Election Database - Austria.” Accessed December 1, 2012. http://www.nsd.uib.no/eu-ropean_election_database/country/austria/.

Gavin Stamp, and Heinz Gallery. Silent Cities: 1914-1919: An Exhibition of the Memorial and Cemetery Architecture of the Great War. London: Royal Institute of British Architects, 1977.

James Edward Young. At Memory’s Edge: After-images of the Holocaust in Contemporary Art and Architecture. New Haven; London: Yale University Press, 2000.

Jan Birksted. Landscapes of Memory and Experience. London: E. & F.N. Spon, 2000.

Jan C Scruggs, and Joel L Swerdlow. To Heal a Nation: The Vietnam Veterans Memorial. 1st ed. New York: Harper & Row, 1985.

Kimberly Elam. Geometry of Design: Studies in Proportion and Composition. 2nd ed. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2011.

Kimberly Elam. Geometry of Design: Studies in Proportion and Composition. 2nd ed. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2011.

Malcolm Green. Writings of the Vienna Actionists. London: Atlas Press, 1999.

Neil Leach. Rethinking Architecture: a Reader in Cultural Theory. London ; New York, NY: Rout-ledge, 1997.

Nigel Pennick. Sacred Geometry. Newbury: Capall Bann Publishing, 1994.

Plowman, John. The Sculptor’s Bible: Surface Effects and How to Achieve Them. London: A. & C. Black, 2005.

Rolf Steininger. Austria, Germany, and the Cold War: From the Anschluss to the State Treaty, 1938-1955. Berghahn Books, 2012.

Sebastien Marot, and Architectural Association. Sub-urbanism and the Art of Memory. London: Architectural Association, 2003.

“The Far Right Is on the March Again: The Rise of Fascism in Austria | Mail Online.” Accessed December 1, 2012. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/moslive/article-1160972/The-far-right-march-rise-Fascism-Austria.html.

“The Vietnam Wall Controversy - About - Overview.” Accessed November 20, 2012. http://digital.lib.lehigh.edu/trial/vietnam/.

Tony Deifell. Seeing Beyond Sight: Photographs by Blind Teenagers. San Francisco, Calif.: Chron-icle; Enfield: Publishers Group UK, 2007.

Media

“1.jpg (JPEG Image, 2912 × 4368 Pixels) - Scaled (20%).” Accessed February 22, 2013. http://www.planetfear.com/images/cms/Articles/Weight%20Man-agement/1.jpg.

“131.jpg (JPEG Image, 2048 × 1536 Pixels) - Scaled (58%).” Accessed Feb-ruary 22, 2013. http://www.adventurouskate.com/wp-content/up-loads/2010/12/131.jpg.

“25 Abandoned Yugoslavia Monuments That Look Like They’re from the Future | Crack Two.” Accessed January 10, 2013. http://www.cracktwo.com/2011/04/25-abandoned-soviet-monuments-that-look.html.“All Sizes | Arena Outside | Flickr - Photo Sharing!” Accessed February 22, 2013. http://www.flickr.com/photos/rabbiteyemovement/3263329664/siz-es/o/in/photostream/.

“Anti-Nazi_graffiti.jpg (JPEG Image, 440 × 294 Pixels).” Accessed February 22, 2013. http://www.executedtoday.com/images/Anti-Nazi_graffiti.jpg.

“Berlin Wall Art - My Budget Travel Photo.” Accessed February 22, 2013. http://mybt.budgettravel.com/_Berlin-Wall-Art/photo/15883759/21864.html.

“Bunker 599 | Architectuul.” Accessed November 10, 2012. http://architectu-ul.com/architecture/bunker-599.

“CityBeach Graz » CITYBEACH Best of 2010.” Accessed November 10, 2012. http://www.citybeach-graz.com/CBW/wordpress/best-of-2010/.“Dequalized.” Accessed January 12, 2013. http://www.dequalized.com/page/10.

“Histmag.org » Kotwica – Symbol Polski Walczącej, Symbol Nadziei.” Ac-cessed December 21, 2012. http://histmag.org/Kotwica-symbol-Polski-Wal-czacej-symbol-nadziei-6492.

“P1030211.jpg (JPEG Image, 2560 × 1920 Pixels) - Scaled (46%).” Accessed February 22, 2013. http://www.climbingoutdoors.com/wp-content/up-loads/2011/06/P1030211.jpg.

“Prince-charles-030609-xlg.jpg (JPEG Image, 614 × 600 Pixels).” Accessed February 22, 2013. http://www.esquire.com/cm/esquire/images/BM/prince-charles-030609-xlg.jpg.

“The Academy of the Jewish Museum Berlin by Daniel Libeskind.” Accessed December 10, 2012. http://www.dezeen.com/2012/11/21/the-academy-of-the-jewish-museum-berlin-by-daniel-libeskind/.

“Whitewater Kayak Rodeo, Part 1 of 2 - YouTube.” Accessed November 10, 2012. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQ1bRbGIoY4.

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