G7 projects with Nestor Montenegro by alia sabry
research // HOUSING COMMUNITIES CONCLUSIONS
AIR BNB
COUCH SURFING
BEHOMM
unique travel experience
specific community
share your home share your life global community
similar interests offer kindness
belong ANYWHERE
home exchange
social responsibility stay curious
feel safe
leave it better than you found it coexistence
cairo // EGYPT F A S T
F A C T S
cairo // EGYPT F A S T
F A C T S
Egypt is situated at the northeastern corner of Africa and the southwestern corner of Asia. Its access of the Suez Canal gives it critical access to the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea, making it a key player between two of the worlds continents. The land spans over an area of around 1M km2 and has a population greater than 87M, with around 20M living in the capital city, Cairo. Egypt’s official language is Arabic, linking it strongly with the Middle East Arab population, and the official religion is Islam with a around 90% of Egyptians and a minority of Coptic Christians. page 02
cairo // EGYPT THE PEOPLE
Since the start of the Egyptian revolution in January 2011, the segmentation of the population has become more distinct, with four main groups. 1. Underprivileged: Around 50% of the population are poor, living somewhere around the poverty line, fighting for food and work. They are uneducated and sheltered in their communities; they have no exposure to the outside world and are easily influenced. 2. Religious: The religious segment of society is another main segment. They are conservative and set in their ways and reluctant to change. This group grew significantly in the first years of the revolution and they had a lot of influence with the underprivileged, using them to increase their popularity and their voice during protests and elections. 3. Revolutionary Youth: This group was the main initiator of the revolution. They are educated, middle and upper class youth who are non-conformist and eager for change. They were the first people to get in the streets and stand up to corruption. 4. Rich: This is a very small segment of society, comprised of around 2-5% of society. They are well educated and well exposed, but they are not necessarily active. They work in the highest positions of big influential companies, as well as high government posts, and they have a lot of power through their connections.
cairo // EGYPT
PEOPLE PROFILE
WELL - CONNECTED HIGH EDUCATION BILINGUAL / TRILINGUAL MONEY NETWORK INTERNATIONAL EXPOSURE INTERNATIONAL CONNECTIONS
COMMITED TO A CAUSE TOLERANT OPEN-MINDED NON-CONFORMISTS FIGHTERS STRENGTH IN NUMBERS SOCIALLY INVOLVED LOCALS AT HEART NATIONALISTS
The exposure and power of the “rich” and “active youth” present an optimistic potential for Egypt. On one side, we have the rich who are well connected, have gone to the best schools, and the majority of them are either bilingual or trilingual. Because of their access to the best jobs in the country, they earn high salaries and have strong business and political networks. They are also exposed to the outside world, which they regularly go, whether for vacation or for work purposes. These opportunities further strengthen their connections on a global scale. On the other side, there are the active youth. These are middle and upper class people who are non-conformists and are eager for change. They are also generally well educated and have exposure, but on a more local level. They interact with people on the streets and see the many faces and lifestyles that exist. They are committed to ending corruption and are continuously active in fighting for their rights, and the rights of the population.
cairo // EGYPT SOCIAL RESTRICTIONS
TRADITIONAL SOCIETY EMPHASIS ON MARRIAGE RELIGIOUS SOCIETY MALE-DOMINATED SOCIETY LIVE WITH FAMILY UNTIL MARRIAGE Egypt remains slightly stuck between tradition and modernity and this is especially evident with regards to independence and marriage. It is a patriarchal society where men have more freedom and are encouraged to be slightly more involved in the modern world while women are restricted by influences from tradition and religion to a large extent. Independence for women is limited and even with marriage they often substitute one restrictive household (the family) for another (the husband’s).
cairo // EGYPT
EFFECT ON BEING
NO SENSE OF FREEDOM NO PERSONAL SPACE NO PRIVACY NO FULL CONTROL OF YOUR LIFE NO SENSE OF INDEPENDENCE NO VALUE FOR MONEY Family ties provide a double-edged problem; on one hand families are closer but this comes at the expense of personal freedom. Families are highly involved in their children’s lives and often children live with their parents up until marriage. As a consequence personal space shrinks for children as they grow into adults, which leads to frustration due to the lack of privacy. Privacy is not the only problem but extends further into control, where children do not gain full control for their lives even as adults, stifling independence for the youth.
cairo // EGYPT CURRENT CONSEQUENCES OF LIVING ALONE
SOCIAL FRICTION JUDGEMENTS INSECURITY CLASHES WITH PARENTS + EXTENDED FAMILY FROWNED UPON GIRLS PERCEIVED AS “LOOSE” Social freedom in Egypt is restricted but even more so for women. Society as a whole judges and evaluates and quantifies them, mostly from a purely conservative angle. This judgment can lead to clashes with parents and extended family over what is expected of a young woman based on what “other” people could see. A woman’s independence, character and strength could at times be frowned upon and perceived as “loose” rather than any of the former.
cairo // EGYPT
NEEDS TO LIVE ALONE
OPPORTUNITY ACCEPTANCE FREEDOM INDEPENDENCE COMMUNITY OF SAME In a society that is dominated by men, women’s needs become abstract. Expression and independence require an opportunity for these women to evolve and grow without the shackles of society. Acceptance is an important aspect that allows women to not only be given the opportunity, but also the means to be integrated in a larger body of people. This would require a community built from like-minded individuals that could reflect another portion of society. With this independence, Egypt could be granted the freedom to act, live and think independently from societal constraints.
cairo // EGYPT SOCIAL ACCEPTANCE: HOW TO GAIN IT IN EGYPT
In Egypt, it is hard to deviate from what is expected and considered to be socially acceptable. In a society where independence and freedom are hard to come by, traits which are considered outspoken and different get pushed aside. The challenge to break the norms, as well as challenge yourself is often a difficult task. Aside from being faced with the obstacle of having a difficult task to achieve, there is the
“TO BE A CHAMPION YOU NEED TO HANDLE STRESS AND PRESSURE, AND HELMY MY SON YOU SUCCEEDED, YOU HAVE PREPARED MENTALLY & PHYSICALLY FOR THIS.. WELL DONE MY CHAMPION... YOUR NUMBER ONE FAN “ - MOM
added pressure of social rejection. If you are able to break those barriers and achieve what many in society deem impossible, acceptance is given. Acceptance in this case stems from respect and admiration. Social acceptance can be hard to come by for many in Egypt who think or seek different goals from what is perceived acceptable by society. Completing challenges that for some seem distant becomes a source of pride, not just in an individual sense but for the nation itself. People perceive it as a means for promoting Egypt and our brand by sending out great ambassadors across the world through travel. These ambassadors offer different views and unique outlooks on Egypt and the experiences of those who live in it.
cairo // EGYPT
SOCIAL ACCEPTANCE
BY BRINGING PRIDE TO EGYPT
Ideas become part of our culture when they are proven to be successful. Success is often related to pride or recognition that comes back to Egypt. With the recent 60 years of slow downfall, the need for achievement and the feeling of pride in Egypt has been increasing. The decrease in tourism has also given Egyptians less
BY OFFERING
BY PROMOTING TOURISM
A UNIQUE EXPERIENCE
of a reason to feel proud. A big part of the country’s economy relies on the tourism industry, from service jobs to business owners. A project which reverberates to the outside world, about a community and culture that welcomes citizens of the world and creates a direct line of communication between Egypt and the world would increase tourism in Egypt. Not only by attracting tourists but my improving the quality of their experiences. The way to attract tourists is to offer a unique experience and a new way to travel.
cairo // EGYPT
TOURIST PROFILE
The Arab Spring has brought
revenues drop to $5.9 billon.
the Islamic era awaits Egypt’s
about an ebb in the Egyptian
Europe remains the largest
visitors. The Mediterranean
tourism industry over the
market for tourists into Egypt
and Red sea offer two different
past three years. In 2010,
and accounts for about 63%
distinct
Egypt had almost 15 million
of tourism. The reason behind
from white sandy beaches to
tourists and counted around
this popularity is the jovial and
beautiful corals and deep-sea
$12.5 billion in revenue. In
good-humored
disposition
diving. For a country with
2014, the number of tourists
of the Egyptian people. A
a lot to offer, the prices are
has dropped to 9.5 million
history that extends from
considered reasonable with
and consequently has seen
the pharaonic civilization to
beautiful weather year round.
seaside
holidays
cairo // EGYPT CURRENT EXPERIENCE OF BEING A TOURIST IN EGYPT
TOURIST BUSES HOTELS BAD HOSTELS TRAVEL PACKAGES (LESS FLEXIBILITY) CLICHE PLAN
ISOLATED EXPERIENCE LIMITED MOVEMENT LANGUAGE BARRIER CULTURAL/SOCIAL BARRIERS LACK OF INFORMATION NO SENSE OF SECURITY
From the moment you land on this mystical and ancient land you are ushered onto a bus, which
The experience of visiting Egypt could be isolated with little or no interaction with the hustle and
becomes your looking glass for the entire country. Through busy streets in an air-conditioned bus
bustle on the streets, and no feeling for the aroma and ambiance of Egypt. Visits are often spent
you gaze upon ancient temples and shrines that have stood 7,000 years in an unimaginative and
being shuttled around through buses from hotels to museums with little movement or mobility
tepid experience. Chain hotels are your place of stay with their lack of authenticity and personalized
and opportunities to experience. Visitors often feel disconnected from the population by language
atmosphere. Hostels for backpacker travels are often poorly managed or deteriorated, as well as
and cultural issues that augment the isolation. This contained experience offers a sense of looming
scattered. The travel experience in Egypt is underwhelming for a country with so much to offer
threat for incoming visitors who often feel uninformed on the country and insecure to wander
and can often be cliched. Travel packages that include bed and breakfast for a relatively cheap
around.
price unfortunately offer minimal experience.
cairo // EGYPT
TOURIST NEEDS
IMMERSED EXPERIENCE LOCAL FRIENDS EYE TO EYE EXPERIENCE CUSTOMIZED TRIP Travel should be centered around the country and experiencing its many sights, smells and tastes catered for tourists of a different palette. An experience where tourists become immersed in Egypt’s culture of arts, literature, music and food, exhibiting a wide range of norms that illustrate this complex culture. An experience where tourists are shuttled from one conversation to another, to the next restaurant or show a dynamic where Egypt is portrayed in a unique light. A trip that could be tailored for each and every palette to offer not just a hotel, flight and the sights, but an experience of what it is like to be in Egypt.
cairo // EGYPT
THE NEEDS COMBINED
TRAVELLERS NEEDS IMMERSED EXPERIENCE LOCAL FRIENDS EYE TO EYEV EXPERIENCE CUSTOMIZED TRIP
LOCALS
A living space that serves and augments
ACCEPTANCE
Travelers coming to Egypt often spend their time in Egypt riding in a glass bubble oblivious to
OPPORTUNITY
two separate experiences in one, on one hand independence and freedom for locals from societal constraints, and provide an immersed experience for travelers. Locals seek to escape the shackles of Egyptian societal constraints and become exposed to different ideas, cultures and norms.
COMMUNITY OF SAME
the sounds and smells around them, isolated from Egypt and the Egyptians. A living space could
INDEPENDENCE
culture. Interaction will allow travelers the opportunity to
COMMUNITY OF SAME
create a community with different travelers coming and going, exposing themselves to a different
make friendships, as well as get local recommandations for customized experiences. The space is not merely a living accommodation but a community, a social hub fusing both Egyptian locals and travelers to meet, communicate and exchange ideas, and share experiences.
project // SITE C E N T R A L// CSITE AIRO project F A S T
F A C T S
project // SITE project SITE C O N N E C // TIO NS F A S T
F A C T S
project // SITE
F A S T F A C T S POTENTIAL PLOT
project // SITE SITE IMAGES: NILE
project // SITE SITE IMAGES: HOUSES
project // PROGRAM HOME ACTIVITES
As an approach to the program the basic activities undergone in a home were isolated. One activity can occupy a single space, or a collective of actvities can define a space. Playing with program and activities one can learn about privacy and intimacy vs sharing and exposing. In a culture like Egypt where isolating certain activities is a strong part of the culture, this step is necessary in order to redefine spaces and their use. To redefine which specific activities cannot be shared in order to abide by the social and legal laws of Egypt.
project // PROGRAM SPACE REQUIREMENTS
PRIVATE
ACTIVITY
ka ka , pipi
TOOLS
PER PERSON
being inti mate
Brushing Teeth
0.3
WASH BASIN
Washing Hands
0.3
WASH BASIN
Washing Feet
0.2
FOOT TUB
Combing Hair
0.2
MIRROR + SHELF
Putting Make-Up
0.2
MIRROR + SHELF
Reading
1.1
CHAIR
Browsing the web
1.2
TABLE + CHAIR
Putting Shoes On
1.2
CHAIR
Cooking
16.0
KITCHEN
On the left is a first conceptual
Making Coffee
0.4
TABLE
idea of how to move from
Smoking
0.5
OUTDOOR SPACE
private spaces to public spaces
Listening to Music
0.8
CHAIR + TABLE
with gradiation of space sizes.
Meditating
1.0
SPACE
Eating
0.7
TABLE + CHAIR
Showering
1.0
SHOWER
(Kaka, Pipi‌)
1.0
TOILET
Watching TV
2.3
TABLE + CHAIR + 2M IN BETWEEN
Being intimate
3.6
BED
Washing Clothes
1.0
WASHER
Drying clothes
1.0
DRYER + DRYING RACK
Ironing Clothes
1.4
IRON TABLE
showering sleeping brushing te eth washing hands washing fe et co mbing hair putt ing make -up medita ting making ca lls washing cl ot hes dr ying cl ot hes ir oning cl ot hes
viget.com
putt ing shoes on reading
10 people
writing br owsing the web working
M2
+ stud
ying
making co ffee c ooking
Working and Studying 0.7
TABLE + CHAIR
Washing Dishes
1.4
SINK
Writing
0.5
TABLE + CHAIR
wat ching tv
Making calls
0.8
CHAIR
smoking
Smoking Shisha
0.8
CHAIR + SHISHA
smoking shisha
Sleeping
1.8
BED
washing dishes eating listening
to music
PUBLIC
project // PROGRAM SPACE SHUFFLING
working
sleeping DRESSING
private
things
SHOWERING
EATING LIVING
COOKING
HOSTING
HOSTING DRESSING
SHOWERING
HOS TING
sleeping
LIVING EATING COOKIN G
private
things
workingEATING LIVING
COOKING
living
eating cooking
host ing
private
DRESSING things
SHOWERING
working
sleeping
private
working
private
things
working
things
showering dressing s leepin
sleeping
DRESSING
SHOWERING
hosting
livin g cooking
g
eating
project // PROGRAM REFERENCES
Wooden House
Eames House
Moriyama House
Atelier House
Maison À Bordeaux
Kunsthaus Bregenz
I thought of making an ultimate wooden architecture. It was conceived by just mindlessly stacking 350mm square. Lumber is extremely versatile. In an ordinary wooden architecture, lumber is effectively differentiated according to functions in various localities precisely because it is so versatile. Columns, beams, foundations, exterior walls, interior walls, ceilings, floorings, insulations, furnishings, stairs, window frames, meaning all. However, I thought if lumber is indeed so versatile then why not create architecture by one rule that fulfills all of these functions. I envisioned the creation of new spatiality that preserves primitive conditions of a harmonious entity before various functions and roles differentiated. There are no separations of floor, wall, and ceiling here. A place that one thought was a floor becomes a chair, a ceiling, a wall from various positions. The floor levels are relative and spatiality is perceived differently according to one’s position. Here, people are distributed three-dimensionally in the space. This is a place like an amorphous landscape with a new experience of various senses of distances. Inhabitants discover, rather than being prescribed, various functionalities in these convolutions.
In this house activities will be of a more general nature to be shared with more people and more things. It will also be used as a returning place for relaxation and recreation through reading and music and work - a place of reviving and refilling, a place to be alone for preparation of work,and with matters and concerns of personal choosing. A place for the kind of relaxed privacy necessary for the development and preparation of ideas to be continued in professionalwork centers. The occupant will need space used elastically where many or few people can be accomodated within the areas appropriate to such needs. Intimate conversation, groups in discussion, the use of a projection machine for amusement and education, and facilities for the self-indulgent hobbies, i.e cooking and the entertainment of very close friends.
There are more than ten volumes on the site each accommodating different requirements. These volumes are independent from one another and are scattered across the site creating a series of connected individual gardens, open to the surroundings. This group of individually proportioned buildings establishes an independent landscape and atmosphere all its own.
Instead of conventional floors, it consists of five, vertically stacked layers of space used in various combinations to delineate human-scaled, functional areas. Though staggered in section, the project is essentially one room that contains places of different heights and character, explains Fujimoto. Straddling the line between nature and artifice, Atelier/House was not tailored exclusively to the client's needs. Instead, Fujimoto expects his brother to make accommodations to the house. It is precisely this paradox of integrating accidental places and architecture that motivates Fujimoto. Instead of complying with an overriding order, most of Fujimoto's works are compilations of local relationships between one functional zone and its neighbors.
The heart of the house is a 3x3.5m elevator platform that moves freely between the three floors, becoming part of the living space or kitchen or transforming itself into an intimate office space, and granting access to books, artwork, and the wine cellar. The movement of the elevator continuously changes the achitecture of the house. A machine is its heart.
The buildings structure is minimalist and reductive in the sense that only three walls support the museum and all of its floor plates. The three concrete walls enclose the gallery spaces and section off the circulation spaces to the perimeter of the building creating a building of seclusion and openness all in one.
by Sou Fujimoto
by Charles & Ray Eames
by Ryue Nishizawa
by Sou Fujimoto
by Rem Koolhaas
by Peter Zumthor
project // DESIGN APPROACH
ENTER
SLEEP
ENTER
SLEEP
WASH
LIVE
WORK
COOK & EAT RELAX
PROGRAM
WASH
LIVE
WORK
COOK & EAT RELAX
PROGRAM SHUFFLE
WALL FIXATIONS
IMMEDIATE CIRCULATION
CIRCULATION SHUFFLE
project // DESIGN MODULAR COLLECTIVE
ENTER
SLEEP
WASH
LIVE
WORK
COOK & EAT RELAX
WALL THAT EXPANDS HORIZONTALLY
FIXED ENVELOPE
FLOOR THAT EXPANDS HORIZONTALLY
The rules of the complex are that there are opposing fixed walls which formalize the “public” space of the house, what these fixed walls provide are sliding partitions which will allow the house to adapt to the users needs. With this, the architecture of the house as well as the zoning will constantly be changing. The moving of the slab allows the users to share their space of isolate their space depending on the the activities they prefer to share vs the actitivities they prefer to isolate. By extending new spaces are created.
project // DESIGN VISUALIZATION
project // DESIGN F A S T
F A C T S
project // DESIGN FV IAS US ATL I ZF AAT ICO TN S
project // DESIGN FV IAS US ATL I ZF AAT ICO TN S
project // DESIGN F A S T
F A C T S
project // DESIGN F A S T
F A C T S
project // DESIGN F A S T
F A C T S