MICROBIAL FRUITS of ISTANBUL
Biennial #empathyrevisited
129 · MICROBIAL FRUITS of istanbul New rituals in civics to revisit empathy ABSTRACT5th Istanbul Design Biennial, Istanbul Microbial Fruits of Istanbul is a platform that narrates the complex histories of Istanbul’s community gardens (called bostans) from the microbes’ point of view. This is a garden of gardens, a cross between a soil microbiology laboratory and a fruit tree showcasing microbial cultures collected in this historic gardens for more than 1500 years. Drawing its inspiration from the kiosks scattered around the streets of Istanbul, the MFoI platform stands in the middle of Özgürlük Park like a strange figure piquing the curiosity of passers-by, inviting them to meet these other “neighbors” in the city. MFoI is a meeting-place for humans and microbes, a nexus between History and bio-geo-histories; between the Istanbul molded by generations of its human inhabitants and the other, parallel Istanbuls that exist under our feet, in the soil, and that (as Isabelle Stengers put it) are the “product of a history of co-evolution whose first craftsmen and true authors throughout were the innumerable populations of microorganisms.” When the kiosk opens, unfolding its roof, a chatty robotic parrot tells stories in the form of fables written for […]
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AWOMAWO
ephemeral architecture #awomawo
126 · Awomawo A Wolrd of Many Worlds Design of the Simon Space ar Casa Decor 2020, Madrid ABSTRACT"In the Anthropocene, Humans are now at war not with Nature, but with [...] the Terrestrials. [...] To put it in the style of a geohistorical fiction. Humans living in the Holocene epoch are in conflict with the Terrestrials of the Anthropocene. Bruno Latour, Face to Face with the Planet The 2020 edition of Casa Decor was held this year in an emblematic building designed by the architect José Espelíus Anduaga, located in the Madrid’s upscale Salamanca neighborhood. From this early 20th century building, the Simon space will give Casa Decor visitors pause to reflect on the world to come in the 21st century. AWOMAWO (A World Of MAny WOrlds) is a meeting place for different worlds. The project is set up as a space within another space, a place to experience a world of many worlds, a cosmos that can be transformed through light... Upon arrival at AWOMAWO, the visitor is welcomed by the first zone, an orderly passage of well-defined geometries: this is the space where humans live. Enveloping this first space are a number of diverse, living and […]
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WIRES, BLACK BOXES, URBAN FETISHES
Exhibition #invisible
123 · WIREs, BLACK BOXES AND URBAN fetiShes 'The palace as seen by elii', Centro Centro, Madrid ABSTRACTCuratorship and display design for the exhibition ‘Wires, black boxes and urban fetishes’, CentroCentro, Madrid Since its foundation as a Communications Palace a hundred years ago, Cibeles Palace has served as the setting for many different lives and has often been the focus of gazes. This series of exhibitions, El Palacio visto por... (The Palace as Seen by...) arises from that idea of gazing, of reading from different points of view. Every year, we invite different artists and architects to create an exhibition that includes an informative tour through the archives and history of the building, and to propose a personal reading of the palace. The architecture office elii has participated in this edition of El Palacio visto por... After studying the tender and construction documents for the Palace of Communications, elii has been able to confirm the disappearance, during the building process, of a fundamental element: the wires that were drawn on the plans that architects Antonio Palacios and Joaquín Otamendi submitted for the tender in 1904; a network of cables that started from the central tower of the Palace and […]
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MAD x MAD
urban strategy #veranosdelavilla2019
117 · mad X mad Distributed festival Urban strategy for Veranos de la Villa 2019 ABSTRACT* The Urban Strategy for Veranos de la Villa, Madrid was recognized with the FAD Award, category - Ephemeral Interventions (2020) and the COAM Award 2018, Colegio Oficial de Arquitectos de Madrid (2018). Mad x Mad is a strategic project to turn the Veranos de la Villa into a distributed festival. As in the last three editions, VdV activities spread out over the 21 districts of the Villa of Madrid to bring it closer to the people. On one hand, the festival travels around the city. On the other hand, the people of Madrid are invited to explore different public spaces around town. The project starts off by mapping out the districts for different kinds of public spaces that will be conditioned with temporary interventions to develop the different events at this dynamic festival. The main goal of Mad x Mad is to activate and benefit from Madrid's heterogeneous heritage, opening it up to a multiple, contemporary view. The project develops in accordance with the following methodology: 1. Research. The first step is to get an up-close look at Madrid by analyzing the local historical context of each […]
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THE GHOSTS OF SUSIE SIERRA
exhibition #susiesierra
103 · the ghosts of SUSIE SIERRA The architectures of ‘a good world in common’ ABSTRACTProposal for the ‘The voices of the GPS’ exhibition, in CentroCentro, Madrid This project, developed by elii and choreographer Jonathan Martineu, studies the architectures of car crash test centres as locations where civility is designed. Crash test centres are the setting where accidents are staged. In other words, they are spaces for performances, somewhere between a laboratory, a theatre and a film stage. These architectures are outfitted to represent everyday life: our bodies and their pathologies; our lives and their dangers; day-to-day life and the accidents that threaten it; the cost of anticipation and the price of mishaps; social roles and dissidences; the tolerable and intolerable aspects of our conducts; the discipline and lack thereof of our bodies. In short, they are spaces to portray a ‘good, common and pacified world’ and minimise its hazards. The history of the evolution of crash tests is a history of the evolution of normativity, that is, of the ways in which it is considered that rules (driving codes, but also rules for cohabitation, security, civility, etc) need to be articulated. It would thus be possible […]
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CYBORG GARDEN / IMNA
exhibition #cyborggarden
119 · jardín cyborg / imna Strategies for adapting to climate change ABSTRACTCuratorship and display design for the exhibition ‘Cyborg Garden – Mutant Institute of Environmental Narratives’, Matadero Madrid “Your attention please. You are now entering the Mutant Institute of Environmental Narratives. A platform for generating knowledge and artworks as a means to address the challenges presented by the climate crisis in the 21st century. A place for communicating with other species, for learning from ants and many-headed slime mould and for talking with humans who have not as yet been born. We invite you, firstly, to a preview of the prototypes of the future Cyborg Garden now being developed by a team of artists, designers, architects, scientists and specialists in various fields and which will soon be planted in Matadero Madrid. After that, you will be able to visit the exhibition Eco-visionaries. Art for a Planet in a State of Emergency, in which over 40 creators tackle climate change through art. We also encourage you to take part in the various activities that will be held in this mutant space over the coming four months. Welcome.” - The exhibition ‘Cyborg Garden – Mutant Institute of Environmental Narratives’ shows […]
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ECOVISIONARIES
Exhibition #ecovisionaries
118 · ECOVISIONARIES 'Art for a planet in emergency', Matadero Madrid ABSTRACT * Ecovisionaries, exhibition design for the 'ECO-VISIONARIES: Art for a planet in emergency' exhibition at the Matadero Madrid. Shortlisted - FAD Award, Category - Interior Design (2020). Exhibition design for the 'ECO-VISIONARIES: Art for a planet in emergency' exhibition at the Matadero Madrid ECO-VISIONARIES brings together the work of more than forty artists and architects who reflect on the urgency of the environmental crisis the planet is experiencing. Curated by Pedro Gadanho and Mariana Pestana, this is a living exhibition that is updated at each location by adding the works of new artists to the exhibition. On this occasion, it will be featured at the Matadero, Madrid's centre for contemporary creation, under the subtitle 'Art for a planet in emergency', along with an exhibition called 'Jardín Cyborg - Instituto Mutante de Narrativas Ambientales' (Cyborg Garden - Mutant Institute of Environmental Narratives’). Together, both exhibitions feature am ensemble of works by contemporary artists that address climate change as a crucial challenge of our time. As regards the expository conceptualization for Matadero Madrid, the project is based on the use of the remains found in Hall 16: ECO-VISIONARIES unfolds […]
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OKI
#refurbishment everyhouseisatheater
106 · oki Complete makeover for home and office ABSTRACT* Finalist Premios Cerámica Arquitectura Interiorismo ASCER 2019 (Asociación de Fabricantes de Azulejos y Pavimentos Cerámicos). Complete makeover for home and office The project involves the complete rehabbing of a flat in the southwest of Madrid. A young person decides to renovate the family home where he grew up and lived for many years to turn it into his new home and professional office. The project starts off with a review of memories, experiences and life lessons, to rethink the present and imagine a future for this new stage of life. The challenge lies in designing a space that facilitates, accelerates and accompanies this process; to devise a sort of home catalyst, located in the heart of a residential building in the neighborhood of Las Aguilas in the district of La Latina. The first step consists of reprogramming the pre-existing dwelling: a flat loaded with memory, built in the seventies of the last century reflecting a generic typological scheme based on standardized domestic criteria. Accordingly, there is an open central space semicircular in shape, around which the rest of the rooms orbit. This provides a flexible scheme that fosters cross […]
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TENSEGRITY
reforma #clínica #fisiotierapia
091 · TENSEGRITY Reforma de piso para Clínica de fisioterapia, Madrid Intervención reversible ABSTRACTThe aim of this project is to rehab an old flat in Madrid's fashionable Retiro district and turn it into a physiotherapy clinic, but on the condition that the space can be returned to its original state at any time. The strategy in mind is based on the following minor interventions: 1. Reorganizing the layout. A new arrangement is proposed to optimize the use of space to fit the new program, thereby ensuring proper pathways for patients and personnel as well as laying out public and private areas. It incorporates moveable room dividers to split up the space to suit the week's activities, adding a new flair to each place. 2. New furnishings. New furniture, such as a reception counter at the entrance, to welcome everyone who comes to the clinic. These furnishings contrast with the staid, classic nature of the property and add a refreshing, innovative language into the spaces. Nevertheless, being covered in mirrors, they play on different reflections and perceptions and even become invisible in certain positions. 3. Lighting project. The new lighting project makes the best use of natural light and ensures […]
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LETTO
Refurbishment #domesticfictions
095 · LETTO Refurbishment of a home in Madrid ABSTRACTRefurbishment of a home in Madrid Project for the refurbishment of an old flat in downtown Madrid, for ‘anonymous’ residents that will be sharing their domestic space in the future. The proposal is arranged around six strips with alternating living areas and service areas. This arrangement optimises the floor space while also guaranteeing the utmost functional flexibility and the incorporation of other possible programmes, such as co-working spaces, a study, offices, etc. A wooden box is installed on the entry axis to divide the space into a public area and a private area, although the system employs a number of swivelling and sliding doors to improve the choice of circulations within the house so that it is possible to lead independent lives while sharing the common elements. The living room and the kitchen-dining room are configured by means of a piece of furniture that acts as a filter with the street: it is used to sort the accesses, lighting, the technical functions and the storage functions, as well as the library for both rooms. There are even some hidden compartments and a fold-down table. Simple changes of material in the paving, […]
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