Post-War Building Convalescence Ravi Handa April 1 st, 2008 (Second Draft) While war-torn buildings can be evocative of suffering and loss, they also have the potential to convey healing. Informed by the notion of convalescence, I intend to intervene upon an architectural vestige in Sarajevo, such that the incorporation of a primary school within the ruins will reframe the physical testimonials of conflict. In Sarajevo, ethnic tension stems from the range of interpretations of the war s events. Hearing these readings is an important component of healing, in as much as is looking forward. Design cues will be taken from a body of films on the Bosnian War, particularly in relation to articulating space for layered activities.
2 Thesis Premise: Convalescence Instead of razing war-torn buildings and starting anew, Lebbeus Woods, in his work Radical Reconstruction, suggests acknowledging what has been suffered and lost, and articulating the differences between the old and the new - in a similar way that a scab operates on a healing wound. The notion of convalescence is appropriate for a primary school, an institution charged with the task of fostering the values of a young, pluralist, post-war generation. Before the war, Sarajevo was hailed as a model for inter-ethnic relations. Today the interpretations of what happened are as varied as the city s ethnic diversity. Gianni Vattimo states that history is more aptly described as histories, that is, stories that have been narrated and whose meaning depends on the perspective [ ] adopted for their narration (Vattimo 152). The commemorative aspect of the intervention (which inherently entails allusion to history) relies on this understanding that there is no single interpretation of what happened or who suffered. The idea, rather, is to heal collectively. Juhani Pallasmas proposes that a positive architectural experience is basically a strengthened experience of self which places one convincingly and comfortingly into the continuum of culture, enabling one to understand the past and believe in the future (Pallasmas 46). Like great film, it turns our attention outside itself. Its value is in the images and feelings that the film entices from our soul. In the spirit of this intimate kinship between cinema and architecture, design cues will be taken from the wealth of critically acclaimed Balkan films on the Bosnian War, such as Pretty Village, Pretty Flame.
3 Primary Area of Study: Sensitive Ruins An intervention attempting to reflect a community s convalescence by reframing the physical testimonials of war must do so with a particular degree of sensitivity. It is paramount to understand the histories of the ruin and the community affected before making decisions. Although not dealing necessarily with the same intent, there are precedents that shed light on the sensitivity required. In Pfalz, Germany, a pigsty damaged during WWII was turned into a showroom. The project, awarded and wellreceived, consists of a solid timber showroom placed within the existing (physically) sensitive ruins (Figure 1). Another example is the Coventry Cathedral, where in the wake of a bombing in 1940, a new cathedral was built entwined and in dialogue with the ruins of the old (Figure 2). The approach adopted for commemoration is overt and on site, as the ruinous courtyard has become a memorial garden (Bevan 190). The City of Berlin has also incorporated war-damaged buildings into contemporary urban works, such as the Kaiser-Wilhelm Gedächtniskirche that comments on Germany s identity after The Fall (Figure 3). Similarly, Matta-Clark s works, such as Splitting or Day s End reveals the remarkable potential of altering seemingly useless, abandoned vestigial structures into spaces that move and inspire (Figure 4). The following secondary sources offer insight on post-war reconstruction as well as provide support for the intent of this intervention: Bevan, Robert. 2006. The Destruction of Memory: Architecture at War. London: Reaktion Books. Hasic, Tigran. 2004. The Reconstruction Business in At War With the City edited by Paola Somma. Great Britain: The Urban International Press. Pallasmaa, Juhani. 2001. The Architecture of Image. Helsinki: Rakkennustieto. Tschumi, Bernard. 1994. Architecture and Disjunction. Cambridge, MIT Press. Vattimo, Gianni. 1988. The End of Modernity. Baltimore: The John Hopkins University Press.
4 Program: The Potential for Layered Activity Recall how the remains of the Coventry Cathedral were turned into a public memorial garden after being bombed during WWII. The intervention was regarded as an opportunity to remember suffering and promote forgiveness. The space is nonprescriptive in nature; visitors can sit and contemplate the past or read the daily news. As such, a layering of activities occurs and the space becomes depoliticized. A similar approach ought to be taken with the incorporation of a primary school within the ruins. Primary schools, where the values of a pluralist, post-war generation are being fostered, are burgeoning with activity. Bustling playgrounds and crowded dining halls dissolve the heavy associations between ruins and war. They are indicative of a society that is healing, in part by re-appropriating abandoned space for the public domain. At night, when the schools public grounds are empty, the place can serve any variety of ends, be it for contemplation, memorial, or an unfinished soccer game. However, such a program can only achieve success on condition that the former building is vernacular. Lebbeus Woods notes how once destroyed, vernacular architecture is less likely to codify the same intensity of meaning and purpose as, say, monumental architecture. In the event of inserting a new program, new meaning is more accessible. This preliminary program illustrates the variety of activities possible: LIBRARY: 70 HALL: 50 PLAYGROUND/PUBLIC SPACE 160 CLASSROOMS: 30 (X60) BATHROOMS: 15 (X3) CAFETERIA: 70 MECANO-ELECTRICAL: 15 TEACHER S LOUNGE: 30 TOTAL: 500
5 Site: Sarajevo s Scars Between 1992 and 1996 Sarajevo was held under siege and as a result, buildings and infrastructure were heavily damaged. Prior to the siege, the city was experiencing exemplary economic growth and development. When war erupted, economic growth and development was stunted along with much of the celebrated harmony among ethnic groups. From the point of view of a tourist, the city has undergone a great deal of reconstruction since the end of the war, in spite of there being buildings and infrastructure still in ruin. Recovering from the conflict is no small feat. Underlying ethnic tensions still exist but are no longer manifested by violent conflict. They are part of a general set of realities alluding to the fact that most healing processes are timeintensive. The outflow of professionals, the corruption and weakness of government institutions and the relatively recent international military presence, suggest that Sarajevo is undergoing a crisis of identity (Tigran 78). While the primary school may only underline the ambivalence of the community s identity, this would be an accomplishment in itself. Incorporating the building within an architectural vestige of Sarajevo would be reflective of the city s healing character and perhaps physically mark the first steps in cultivating a contemporary identity, by acknowledging scars that commemorate the past, yet allow for healing and looking toward the future. In order to find an appropriate site for the school, I have devised a research strategy that includes consultations with the Bosnian embassy in Ottawa and the European Commission Reconstruction Program for Bosnia and Herzegovina, as well as professors of architecture at the University of Sarajevo. A follow-up trip to Sarajevo for the summer of 2008 is planned.
6 Mode of Production: Cinematic and Architectural Space Collide Beyond their concern with temporal and spatial structure, the kinship between cinema and architecture is defined by their primary preoccupation of articulating lived space. In film, however, the director determines how lived space is to be used (and largely perceived) by carefully positioning the camera relative to the activity in question. Architects do not have that luxury. In his book Architecture and Disjunction, Bernard Tschumi states how bodies carve all sorts of new and unexpected spaces, through fluid and erratic motions (Tschumi 42). In his words, action therefore qualifies space as much as spaces qualify actions. In the spirit of conceiving spaces intended for a variety of purposes, I am undertaking a study of how the cinematographer invites layered activity. Critical war films on the Bosnian War, such as Pretty Village, Pretty Flame, address the fickle reality of conflict situations; war can set the stage for the tragic, the absurd or even the euphoric. In this particular film, the filmmaker orchestrates dramatically different activities in the same space. Because the activity is known before hand, there is care taken in calculating spatial conditions (light, shadow, depth, perspective and composition) so as to enhance the activity s effect on the viewer. Such information, extracted from a body of related films, will provide cues to design space that is articulated for varying activities and emotions, depending on variables, such as time of day. In addition, a rigorous photo survey of the existing ruin will lend light as to where these spaces ought to be.
7 Conclusion For many, a war-torn building in Sarajevo is likely evocative of the conflict that occurred not long ago. The idea of incorporating a primary school within the ruins of such a building is inspired by the notion of convalescence. The ruins would undoubtedly acknowledge suffering and loss. However, more importantly the intervention would articulate the contrast between the old and new, thus accepting what has happened while demonstrating the process of healing. This process is appropriate for a primary school, an institution established to cultivate the values of the next generation. This program also invites layered activity that blurs any notion of a prescriptive memorial site. The focus is convalescence; this entails looking forward, in as much as it implies coming to terms with the past. Today s interpretations of the war are as varied as the city s ethnic diversity. Regardless, the intent is to approach convalescence collectively, providing space for all the different interpretations and activities that deal with going about daily life. Considering where cinema and architecture collide, design cues will be taken from the wealth of critically-acclaimed Balkan films on the Bosnian War, such as Pretty Village, Pretty Flame. The purpose is to learn from filmmakers who have succeeded in poetically articulating space for layered activities and emotions, within this particular socio-historical context.
8 List of Primary Sources: Matta-Clark, Gordon. 1975. Day s End. New York: Electronic Arts Intermix [2003]. This film documents Matta-Clark s cuttings of Pier 52 in New York, an abandoned industrial hangar. This work is reference as Figure 4 in the Appendix. Spence, Basil. 1962. Coventry Cathedral in Coventry, West Midlands, England. This church is referenced as Figure 2 in the Appendix. Eiermann, Egon. 1962. Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church in Berlin, Germany. This church is referenced as Figure 3 in the Appendix. Woods, Lebbeus. 1997. Radical Reconstruction. New York: Princeton Architectural Press. Besides Woods theories, this book holds a wealth of his illustrations that aptly convey the idea of a scab. The work also provides insight on experience of Sarajevo. List of Secondary Sources: Bevan, Robert. 2006. The Destruction of Memory: Architecture at War. London: Reaktion Books. Hasic, Tigran. 2004. The Reconstruction Business in At War With the City edited by Paola Somma. Great Britain: The Urban International Press. Pallasmaa, Juhani. 2001. The Architecture of Image. Helsinki: Rakkennustieto. Tschumi, Bernard. 1994. Architecture and Disjunction. Cambridge, MIT Press. Vattimo, Gianni. 1988. The End of Modernity. Baltimore: The John Hopkins University Press.
9 Appendix: Figures Figure 1 Figure 2
10 Figure 3 Figure 4 (Day s End)