Image via PXHere
Every city has a story. Throughout history, many natural and man-made changes have altered the way cities were originally laid out. For some, the urban form developed as a result of political disputes, religious separations, or class divides. For others, a more mixed approach has allowed for uniquely mixed cultural atmospheres. And while development of cities is typically slow, occasionally cities experience dramatic and immediate changes to the urban fabric - the results of natural disaster, military conflict, or industrial catastrophe.
What happens next - if anything - can reveal a great deal about not just the city itself, but the local culture. Do cities rebuild exactly as they were? Or do they use disaster as an opportunity to reinvent themselves? The following is a roundup of cities that have moved past catastrophe to be reborn from the ashes.
April 30, 2017
Whether architecture is a form of art or not has often been a controversial topic of conversation within the architecture world. If one goes by the general definition of the word art, architecture could potentially fit within the umbrella term: the expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form such as painting or sculpture, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power. As anyone involved in the architectural discipline probably knows, there is an abundance of varying definitions of the word architecture, so whether its primary purpose is to achieve beauty or to organize space is evidently up for discussion.
May 23, 2020
Kiruna, a Swedish town within the Arctic Circle, has had to relocate owing to geological instability brought on by mining. This unusual circumstance is the focus of Kiruna Forever, an exhibition at ArkDes. Ingenjörsvillan, a house in Kiruna, was one of the structures moved. In the town’s new location, a circular city hall designed by Henning Larsen plays centerpiece. Courtesy Jessica Nilden
Kiruna Forever, an exhibition at ArkDes, traces the town s relocation due to geological instability.
“Kiruna is on the move,” says Carlos Mínguez Carrasco, curator of the new exhibition
Kiruna Forever. Kiruna, a 125-year-old Swedish town that sprouted around the iron mine of the same name, started an official relocation process in 2018 after decades of discussion with the state-owned mining company LKAB. Today, as the expansion of the mine destabilizes the ground surrounding it, nearby buildings are being demolished or loaded onto flatbed trucks and moved to the new city
Courtesy of LRA
Lapo Ruffi, Vanessa Giandonati, Antonio Monaci, Lorenzo Santini have shared with us their winning project for EUROPAN 10 where they aimed to create an attractive density and an urban centrality while integrating with the surrounding landscape in the city of Montreux, Switzerland. They successfully generated an uninterrupted urban pattern with multi-functional environments as they break away from the twentieth century design principles of urban planning.
Europan is a biennial competition for young emerging architects who are looking for innovative housing solutions across Europe. By incorporating social and economic variables for their designated city, their projects become a more holistic architectural experience.