Kontakte – Das Jahrbuch der KIT-Fakultät für Architektur 2023

THE SUPERPOWER OF OUTDATED
INFRASTRUCTURES
Design Studio, Winter Term 2022/23
Introduction
In our studio The Superpower of Outdated Infrastructures
we addressed two pressing matters: the decline of
biodiversity, and the potential of the re-use of existing largescale
infrastructures.
No doubt — with the shocking speed of biodiversity
reduction — we urgently need to rethink how we as human
and non-humans can in the future urbanize in co-existence.
The numbers are shocking: biodiversity as decreased by 75%
worldwide; in the last 30 years we see a 25% reduction of
insects in the Netherlands, and 50% of butterflies have become
extinct. We need to imagine the world to be otherwise.
One way to go is to work with existing building
stock. We chose an iconic parking garage in Amsterdam. It is,
as they often are, centrally located and well connected within
the urban network. These infrastructures, which will become
outdated in the future — offer great opportunities to
re-wire, regenerate the social networks of the city centers.
The Social Condenser, originally coming from
Soviet Constructivist of the 1920s, was designed to encourage
social exchange between humans. The studio sees an
excellent opportunity to rethink the co-existence of all species,
the human and non-human by using the concepts behind
the Social Condenser. By overlapping and intersecting
different programs of circulation and exchange, they offer
the possibility to enhance the dynamics of the city.
Assignment
Located in the center of Amsterdam, the iconic parking garage
Europarking by Piet Zanstra, Gmelig Meyling, De Clerq
K Europarking Amsterdam
L Excursion Amsterdam at the Hotel
Jakarta with Architect Kathrin Hanf
(SeARCH)
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