with MOOMOO architects
stage: invited competition
year: 2007
ActionCreation is an event organised by Architecture Museum in Wrocław aiming to introduce young architectural firms and their practices to broader publicity by a series of workshop-like competitions where the audience chooses best, in their opinion, answer to a problem laid out by the organisers. Each event lasts only one day, takes place in different city and gathers most promising practices from its region. Publicity of the event can wander around architects at work, ask questions and most importantly get acquainted with their workshop and at the very end has the final vote on who has been right. Usually competiton site is a well known problematic area, very specific for the city, being a home for all the participating practices. It wasn't different this time.
As a competition plot, organisers chose cake-shaped leftover of city fabric lying in the exact centre of the Łódź downtown. One could actually copy-paste Flatiron building to that plot if only regulations allowed that (ah, there's no regulations, so feel free if you're a mighty sheikh). Goal of the competition was to reinvent this area, propose a new function which could help the city and its inhabitants.
After rather long brainstorm with architects from MOOMOO, we came up with romantic idea of kinetic sculpture rather than a conventional building, which would lead to a drastic change in people's perception of the plot. We chose a path of innovation with a full respect to history of the place. There was no building, and there is still none.
The non-building would be a free standing structure equipped with series of nozzles shooting out steam coming from on-site rainwater tanks. Citizens would be allowed to climb the structure along its catwalks and watch the surroundings from behind this surreal steam curtain through peepholes pointing their sight to details they have never noticed before. We would play the game of consciousness, show them what they have been finding ordinary or what they couldn't find at all. This way we would create a new landmark for the district, get inhabitants involved and bring back life to the forgotten quarter even without erecting a 'proper building'. City officials would be provided with opportunity to restore the downtown's picture again.
Publicity didn't chose our proposal, we've been only praised by other professionals with a loud applause and couple of good words from the winners.