“Stoepplantjes”//”Roadside Flowers”: An Ode to Immigrant Resiliency and Embracing the Unexpected Presence of Cultures in a Local

Dalhousie University (formerly Technical University of Nova Scotia) Faculty of Architecture and Planning, Halifax, Nova Scotia

Idea projektu

‘Stoepplantjes’ // ‘Roadside Flowers’ takes on a theoretical approach to designing systems and architectural elements within the Confuciusplein neighborhood that could potentially lead to multi-species co-habitation.

Beginning with an analysis of the existing site, its history, composition, and array of characteristics, it is recognized as a place of diverse narratives; the project takes on the task of enriching these stories, while introducing new ones, and facilitating their co-existence within the neighborhood. Starting with the idea of ‘wilderness taking over,’ embracing spontaneous flora, resilient and radicant, as a parallel to the site’s immigrant population, the project eventually shifts towards introducing a “new regime of plant maintenance,” - “an urban (re)wilding act.” One that will potentially result in the migration of more non-human species to the site, to coexist among the present occupants.

In this manner, the project attempts to create a space where humans, non-humans, and plants can actively co-exist, interact, and exchange knowledge and memory, while learning to live within ‘liminality’ or a ‘state of suspension’ and to ‘stay with the trouble’ of the unraveling climate crisis.

‘Stoepplantjes’ // ‘Roadside Flowers’ strives to create an ‘Other Space’ for ‘Othered Beings’ (Immigrants//Nature//Non-Humans).

Popis projektu

The project consists of three introduced/design (infrastructural/urban) interventions, unfolding across the Confuciusplein neighbourhood of Amsterdam's New West region:

1) The "Cow-Sheep Ha-Ha" acts as a new streetscape, connecting Confuciusplein to the neighbouring park, forest, and the 'children's farm' present within this forest. In this intervention, the previously wide but relatively quiet car-way is narrowed down, giving way to a new grass path for pedestrians and non-humans to inhabit, including the farm animals, now being welcomed to take "strolls" throughout the "Ha-Ha" actively interacting with their human neighbours. The grass plane slopes down towards a gabion wall planter, separating the shrinked car-way from the "Ha-Ha," while allowing for various vegetation to grow within its (the gabion wall's) seams , and for various plants (herbs, produce, etc.) to be planted on top (planters), providing a welcoming habitat for pollinators in the process. Adjacent to the gabion walls now stands a water trench, connecting to a larger water system, mitigating flooding and aiding in water collection and utilization for various uses, while also accelerating the growth of fodder within the trench for wandering animals to "feast on."

2) The "Migrant Gaieta" attempts to "revitalize" the neighbourhood's central square, a space that has gradually become obsolete throughout the years, standing primarily empty and used as parking space, while this intervention also acts as Confuciusplein's primary water collection vessel- a water collection, filtration, and distribution system providing (grey)water for residents to use for cultivation, cleaning, cooking, and other purposes. Encompassing the form of a large tree/mushroom structure, it provides a seating space on its bottom, allowing passersby to rest and interact with the various non-human species inhabiting/exploring the structure, and the diverse vegetation growing in and around the "Gaiaeta's" structure. On its top, the "Gaiaeta" holds a water vessel, collecting water which is then directed underground to a biodigester septic tank, and a water filtration and distribution system for the neighbourhood- In case of overfilling (in the vessel), excess water is directed to the "Cow-Sheep Ha-Ha's" trench through the designed "Waterslide Columns."

3) The "Flood Bunkers" act as extensions/additions to the existing town houses of the neighbourhood, providing residents with exterior and semi-exterior spaces (stoa, balcony, and terrace levels), while also acting as buffer spaces for wind and temperature, aiding in the creation of varied micro-climates. Essentially expressing "scaffold structures," the "Flood Bunkers," apart from standing significantly porous, allowing for natural light penetration in the interior spaces and preventing the creation of stark shadows, are highly modular/flexible/adaptable, allowing each resident to modify them to their needs- in this manner, shifting/folding/and sliding vertical trellises allow users to add or remove privacy and element protection from their different spaces, while the users are also able to add "programs" to the terrace level of the "Bunkers" (e.g., exterior kitchen, BBQ, gardens, greenhouses, etc.), depending on their passions and preferences.

Finally, as something that was worked on during an architectural technology course, the "Janus Block" presented as a material prototype for the project, works on the overall project's ideas at a smaller scale. In this manner, this block looks at the cultivation of moss within a material module. The result is a "two-faced" clay block, holding phase-change material (e.g., wax) within its designed cavities on one side, allowing for improved thermal heat storage within the clay, while welcoming moss to grow on the other side, improving air-quality and aiding the environment (carbon storage). The two sides are thermally separated through an interstitial air gap, allowing for the moss side to stay cool, favouring growing conditions for the organism, while the PCM side stays warmer, maintaining as much of the stored heat as possible for as long as possible. This block, proposed to be used in the project for exterior structures (e.g., bus-stops, pavilions, kiosks, etc.) calls residents to engage with it for its proper use- in this manner, by keeping the wax side exposed to the sun throughout the day, heat is stored within the block, optimized by the presence of the phase-change material (wax), while the moss is turned inwards (relating to the enclosure of the structure) during daylight hours, maintaining a cooler temperature favoured by the moss. At nighttime, residents are called to rotate the blocks, arrayed together as a wall assembly of an overall (wooden) frame and vertical rotating rod members, allowing for the wax side to face inwards, releasing its stored heat towards the interior, while the moss side looks outwards now that the sun has set (darker spaces are favoured by moss).

Technické informace

All of the interventions follow the idea of "Deconstructing the Cage" as a means of construction. Apart from representing the symbolical "breaking out of captivity and oppression" (relating to the 'othered' nature//immigrant populations//non-humans of the region) and physical deconstruction of the cage structure existing in the neighbourhood's central square, desertifying the space and establishing it as an obsolete "no-man's land," this idea ["Deconstructing the Cage"] also speaks to the "scaffold" nature of the designs.

In this manner, the Deconstructed Cage is morphed into a Gabion Wall Planter in the "Cow-Sheep Ha-Ha," a container for local rock fragments, allowing for vegetation to flourish within the seams, and for vegetation to grow in the soil planters above, reinforcing natural presence in the neighbourhood, and creating a more welcoming habitat for more than just humans (e.g., pollinators, insects in general, various existing species like bats and birds, etc.), while the gabion wall also acts as a safety barrier between the communal grass public path and the car-way. The overall interaction of the undulating grass plane, the gabion wall, and narrowed-down road creates a more diverse circulation space across the neighbourhood, while the introduced water trench connects to the project's overall water infrastructure, mitigating flooding, and aiding in rainwater distribution for vegetation and other purposes.

In the case of the "Migrant Gaiaeta," the Deconstructed Cage acts as a trellis for vegetation to grow and climb across the structure, providing an inviting space to non-humans, while the trellis morphs into a pocket for the water vessel on the top, collecting rainwater which is then directed to an underground water collection/filtration/distribution system for the neighbourhood (+ biodigester septic tank).

In the "Flood Bunkers," the Deconstructed Cage is "Scaffold," introducing exterior and semi-exterior spaces to the existing townhouses, while contributing to the creation of various micro-climates- these, along with the spaces within the "Bunkers" themselves can be adjusted, changed, and modified by the users by adding or removing screens, trellises, and various elements depending on their preferences for shade, element protection, privacy, and programs. With significant porosity, this intervention allows for light penetration into the interior spaces, and for the prevention of stark shadows whether in the interiors or the neighbouring spaces (street, other houses, parks, etc.).

Finally, the Janus Block is an introduced material prototype, looking into ways where various elements and functions can be combined in a material module, refining and optimizing processes such as thermal heat storage, filtration of air and increase in its quality, cultivation of flora within materials and structures, etc. In this manner, the two introduced elements (phase-change material/wax and moss) co-habit the block and work harmoniously to increase spatial qualities wherever they are present. While favouring opposing characteristics (PCM: sunlight and heat, Moss: shade and coolness), these elements, present on opposing sides, work together to heat-up the space (PCM side turned inwards at nighttime after having stored an optimized amount of heat during its prior exposure to the sun) when the sun is down, and improve air-quality (Moss' natural air-filtration function) during the daytime (Moss is turned inwards to be protected from the sun and thrive), while also sequestering carbon (natural ability of Moss).

In a general sense, relating to construction, technologies, systems, and technical details, this projects consists of "scaffold structures" serving varied functions, while being connected and integrated into an overall system looking into rainwater collection, filtration, and distribution, flood mitigation, the flourishing of vegetation within urban spaces and structures, the creation of welcoming habitats for pollinators and non-humans, and improving the overall housing conditions that are present for existing human residents, while reinforcing the overall sense of a multi-species community.