Kuno Mayr, Christoph Gapp, Claudia Kaufmann.
Competition

2013

1st place

The task in the Urban Image of Silandro contest was complex: To think in a large scale, integrate the old and the new, and to consider the visual aspect of the town as the sum of historical context and contemporary needs.

The idea behind public space regeneration is to REDEFINE the FLOOR SURFACE. This new shared element is taken from its technical purpose and transformed into the "COMMON GROUND" hosting and underlining people's diversity in relation to the historical and physical context. The design is based on two compositional principles. RADIATION: Objects such as a house or a chapel have an influence in their environment by radiating towards the public space. The same way shadows extend into the floor, also facades, arcs or small chapels along a historic trail can transform a transition passage into an assembly place around urban happenings. THE GRID: a regular grid adopting parking space dimensions to overlap the square geometry. Parking is reinterpreted and transformed from a synonymous of individuality into a multipurpose frame that refers to the spontaneity of modern life.

By the radiation principle, the urban space is enhanced by its own cultural, historical and built environment. The grid orients towards the future, similar to a "playground" it represents contemporary life.