Modern Ruins
Team
Name: Cheung Wing See, Kyo
Nationality: Hong Kong
Institution: The University of Hong Kong
Name: Hong Sum Ho, Angus
Nationality: Hong Kong
Institution: The University of Hong Kong
–FINALIST of Re-Nature Rome Competition
Rome is an eternal city that sees little change throughout the years. While its structures are not segregated from nature as gardens permeate the city, nature is domesticated. We propose a vision where we embrace the marks and weathering of nature and time, of which we need to surrender to ruins and the uncontrolled to truly co-exist with nature.
Choosing the area around the Piazza del Popolo, once travellers’ first view of Rome upon arrival before railroads, our scheme is envisioned as a self-initiated enhancement. Embracing the aging of buildings, broken structures are reinforced with timber frames where plants will grow upon. From the corners to the facade, the structure thus forms urban pockets where residents’ daily lives and nature intertwine.
The city is a living monument and a ruin for the past it represents. Inspired by Piranesi’s etchings and Gandy’s Bank of England, we imagined the existing Rome as ruins of the future. The hand drawings thus intersect the past, present and the future, and portray the city in a more organic and humanistic way. Where the presentation drawing juxtaposes the plan and perspectival view, the concept drawing showcases the stages of transformation of different building elements through time.
#Abandoned buildings and site, #Ruins, #Co-existence, #Wabi-Sabi, #Organic
