ARBA BAXHAKU
ARCHITECTURE PROJECT AND RESEARCH
CURRICULUM VITAE
PERSONAL INFORMATION Name /Surname: Arba Baxhaku Adress: rr. Him Kolli, 21 Tirana Cell phone: (+ 355) 692089699 E-mail: arba.baxhaku@unifi.it arba.baxhaku@tirana.al ar.baxh@gmail.com Nationality: Albanian_Bulgarian Date and place of birth: 05/12/1986 Tirana, Albania
EDUCATION January 2014 - 2017 Qualification PhD in Architecture XXIX cycle UniversitĂ Degli Studi Di Firenze Department of Architecture, Scuola di Dottorato di Ricerca Research title Suspended identities_Interpretations on the transfiguration of the Architectural Landscape of Tirana after the fall of the communist regime Tutor Prof. Maria Grazia Eccheli September 2006 - Aprile 2013 Qualification Degree in architecture - Curriculum in architectural and urban planning UniversitĂ Degli Studi Di Firenze Facolty of Architecture Title of the thesis Frontier of orient_Reconstruction of the Church of Santa Maria di Deja and the path to the castle Supervisor Prof. Maria Grazia Eccheli Vote 110/110 with honneurs (published: ISBN 9788832800487)
September 2001 - July 2006 Harry T.Fultz international technical school of Tirana Qualification Diploma in business PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE march 2018 - (...) Municipality of Tirana Sector Architecture/City planning Main duties and responsibilities Chief Architect of Public Art projects march 2018 - (...) Polytecnic University of Tirana Faculty of Architecture Sector Teaching Main duties and responsibilities Lector september 2019 - january 2020 Atelier Albania Academy Sector Architecture/City planning Main duties and responsibilities Team leader
august 2018 - december 2018 Academy 100+ Villages Sector Architecture/City planning Main duties and responsibilities Team leader september 2013-june 2017 Facoltà di Architettura, Firenze, Laboratory of architecture design IV Sector Teaching Main duties and responsibilities Lab assistant (cultore della materia) March 2014 - December 2014 M+N Architecture Via Giosuè Carducci, 20, 50121 FIRENZE Sector Architecture/ City planning/ Interior design/ Communication Main duties and responsibilities Architect August 2011 - December 2011 Architecture Studio 10 Rue Lacuèe 75012 PARIS Sector Architecture/ City planning/ Communication Main duties and responsibilities Intern
LANGUAGE SKILLS English (excellent) | Italian (excellent) | French (good) Bulgarian (good) | Albanian (mother tongue)
TECHNICAL SKILLS Cad expert user for 2d design, 3d modelling, rendering and layout with the following software: Rhinoceros Cinema 4D - V-RAY AutoCAD 2D | Photoshop PUBLICATIONS Article in a magazine Baxhaku, A. (2019), ‘Stanze della grande solitudine-La Casa Studio Kadare (Rooms of great solitude-The Kadare House Studio), Firenze Architettura (1, 2019), Firenze University Press, pp 160-165 [ISSN 18260772 (print)/2035-4444(online)] www.fupress.com/fa/ Book chapter Baxhaku, A. (2018), ‘Confine di Oriente’, Baxhaku, A., Cavallo, C. (edited by)
Ombre del Mediterraneo_Alla periferia dell’Adriatico, Quaderni del Consiglio Regionale delle Marche pp 71-105 [ISSN 1721-5269_ISBN 9788832800487] Article in a magazine Baxhaku, A. (2015), ‘Le Voyage d’Orient (commenti critici di alcune opere di LC), Firenze Architettura (2, 2015), Firenze University Press, pp 178-179 [ISSN 1826-0772] issuu.com/dida-unifi/docs/fa2015-2_link Book chapter Baxhaku, A. (2015), ‘ Rindёrtimi i kishёs sё Shёn Mёrisё sё Vaut tё Dejёs dhe ndërtimi i Muzeu të kujtesës e traditës vendase përgjatë rrugës për në kështjellen e Shën Markut’ [Reconstruction of the Church of Santa Maria di Deja and the construction of the museum of the memory and local traditions along the path to St. Mark’s Castle], ‘Arkitektet e rinj për zhvillimin urban. Konkurs arkitekturor për arkitektët e rinj’ [Young Architects for Urban Development. Architectural competition for young architects], Tirana, Maluka, pp 4-7 [ISBN 978-9928-134-67-7] Book chapter Baxhaku, A. (2014), ‘Genia Awerbuch_Nella collina della primavera’, Eccheli, M.G, Tamborrino, M, (edited by)
donnArchitettura. pensieri, idee, forme al femminile, Milano, FrancoAngeli, pp 102-105 [ISBN 978-88-917-0708-6] Article in a magazine Baxhaku, A. (2015), ‘Rreth rindёrtimit tё kishёs sё Shёn Mёrisё sё Vaut tё Dejёs pёrmes njё rrёfimi lundrues mbi Drin’ [The reconstruction of Saint Mary’s church in Vau Dejёs through a floating narration on the Drin], Hylli i Dritёs , e pёrkohshme kulturale - letrare, (3-4, 2015(285-286)), pp 203-209 Conference proceedings Baxhaku, A., (being published), ‘Suspended identity_morphological study of a spontaneous transfiguration in the albanian landscape’, in Tabula Rasa, International Graduate Symposium, Pamplona, 19-22 february, 2015 Publication of project Eccheli, M. G., Campagnola, R., con Baxhaku, A., Galica, K., (2016), ‘ La Piazza degli artisti, Tirana (Albania)’ in Identità dell’architettura italiana [14. Conference Florence, Piazza San Marco, Aula Magna dell’Università degli Studi, 13-14 dicembre 2016] / [scientific and catalog editing by Giulio Basili ... et alw.]
Parma, Diabasis, 2016, pp 66-67 [ISBN 978-88-8103-8299] Publication of project Baxhaku, A., (2016), Progetto per il nuovo auditorium dell’Aquila in Oltre l’apocalisse. Arte, Architettura, Abbandono, Eccheli, M. G., Pireddu, A., (edited by) Firenze, Firenze University Press, 2016, pp 120-123 [ISBN 978-88-6655-919-1] print [ISBN 978-88-6655-920-7] online
PARTICIPATION IN CONGRESSES 19-22 february 2015 Report ‘Suspended identity_morphological study of a spontaneous transfiguration in the albanian landscape’ in Tabula Rasa, International Graduate Research Symposium, School of Architecture, University of Navarra, European Architectural History Network Pamplona, Spain Role Author and speaker
phdsymposiumetsaun.wordpress.com/the-symposium/ 12 june 2015 Report ‘Genia Awerbuch_Nella collina della primavera’, Protagoniste dell’Architettura, 35 ritratti e un solo mosaico a piu prospettive sullo sguardo delle donne in architettura at the conference ‘Architects meet in Selinunte_mash up’ Castelvetrano Selinunte Role Author and speaker 21-22 november 2017 Report ‘Suspended Identities - Readings on the transfiguration of the architectural landscape of Tirana after the fall of the communist regime’ International Forum on Architecture and Urbanism IFAU2017 Tirana, Albania Role Author and speaker
AWARDS March 2015 First price at the Architecture Contest ‘Arkitektёt e rinj pёr zhvillimin urban’ (Young Architects for Urban Development) Chamber of Architects of Albania, Ministry of Urban Development Republic of Albania
2019
PORTFOLIO
INDEX
Project for the new Auditorium in Aquila academic project (2011)
Dor[a]Mar building of apartments, shops, offices and parking Montpellier, France (2011)
Lighthouse sea (landscape) hotel YAC Architectural call for ideas (2016)
Art Hill (La Piazza degli artisti), Tirana (2016)
Frontier of orient (Confine di Oriente)_ Reconstruction of the Church of Santa Maria di Deja and the path to the castle, Graduation Thesis Albania (2013)
Suspended identities (IDENTITĂ€ SOSPESE)_ Interpretations on the transfiguration of the Architectural Landscape of Tirana after the fall of the communist regime PhD thesis (2014-2017)
Art prison YAC Architectural call for ideas
(2018)
House Studio Kadare (Shtepia Studio Kadare) (2019)
Architecture design laboratory IV held by prof. Maria Grazia Eccheli Research and teaching (2013-2017)
Project for the new Auditorium in Aquila academic project (2011) published in Oltre l’apocalisse. Arte, Architettura, Abbandono, Eccheli, M. G., Pireddu, A., (edited by) Firenze, Firenze University Press, 2016, pp 120-123 [ISBN 978-88-6655-919-1] print [ISBN 978-88-6655-920-7] online
The project faces the theme of the reconstruction of the city of Aquila severely damaged by the 2009 earthquake. The new auditorium rises near the fortress, on some traces of the medieval city walls. Water, the building element of the city from which it also takes its name (Aquila_Acqua), is the generator of the concept idea. Born like a geometry of stone immersed in water, shaped by light, inclined towards the landscape; a bathtub in which the horizon blows and reflects the image of the city condemned in ruins. Almost a fragment of the track to the castle; a ramp that draws its reference from the medieval passages for knights; an ancient path, a place to stop, listen to music, contemplate the landscape.
Lighthouse sea (landscape) hotel YAC Architectural call for ideas (2016) Team: Baxhaku, A., Cavallo, C., Pazzaglia, E., Kouklidis, P.,
The project proposes an architecture directed to the enhancement of the site through a less luxurious tourism focused on the discovery of the landscape. The idea comes from the creation of a stopping place for enthusiastic travelers willing to explore the area by walking or climbing the rocky landscape of Sicily or through adventurous water sports. The combination of construction and nature seeks to create a unique and seductive source for each visitor. Architecture tries almost to disappear in a thin mesh of orthogonal lines made by local stone and simple structures of wood (huts) in order to direct the view towards the sea, the sun and the sound waves. The design of the project comes from the traces of the ruins of the Greek-Roman historical cities. As in the ancient traces of the nearby Syracuse, the ortho-
gonal grid marks paths and connects the tissue of residential building complexes with public space under the shape of a rigid geometry that animates the play of solids and voids proposing in a contemporary language, in the center of the settlement also the ancient agora’, a meeting and exchange place of experiences among travelers. The inhabited wall is the regulatory element that runs the entire project, containing the largest number of services for visitors, giving space to the passages, the resting places and the beautiful view of the sea. The typology adopted for housing is a simple one, composed of small closed spaces in order to enable greater contact with nature. The stone walls containing the services, 1.8 meters wide and 4 meters high, are connected to each other by a light structure of wood composed of a step platform, 3.2 meters wide, a minimum glazed
cell screened by wooden shutters and containing the bedroom, always positioned with a look towards the sea and a long rhythm of horizontal beams that recall the Mediterranean shelter or velarium the Mediterranean , a connecting element between civilizations. The shelter, transitional space between inside (the room) and outside (the courtyard, nature) reassembles the inside and the outside in an organic unity, a real container of life, functional to the Mediterranean climate. Thus, universal traditional habitation components are reproduced in a process of abstraction declining new relationships between public and private space, the platform and the wall, only signs of boundary between private and public space of each living cell, become at the same time containers of new bonds with the community .
Visitors who do not stay in rooms can anchor their own tent in the empty spaces of the platform and use the common services of the inhabited wall which invites to follow it’s path through the stairs in order to contemplate magic silver sunsets. The same dimensional module traces also the volumes used for collective activities: kitchen, canteen, classrooms for presentation of the various travel routes or sports included in the program. The entrance path, as long as traditional loggias of the Mediterranean bazaars, is marked by a wall containing the stores (botteghe) that offer local products.
Art Hill (La Piazza degli artisti), Tirana (Albania) Eccheli M. G., Campagnola, R., with Baxhaku, A., Galica, K., (2016) published in Identità dell’architettura italiana [14. Conference Firenze, Piazza San Marco, AulaMagna dell’Università degli Studi, 13-14 dicembre 2016] / [scientific editing and catalog by Giulio Basili ... et alw.] Parma, Diabasis, 2016, pp 66-67 [ISBN 978-88-8103-8299]
In an isolated place, in the hills surrounding Tirana - a missing castle in the system of fortifications that control the valley - the loggia arises as a space inhabited by the artists and their works. A rigid geometry, almost a rule created to counter the expansive chaos of the Albanian capital. Confined to the north by old military barracks, a remote memory of the Cold War, which is used for working spaces, bars and guest rooms. The ‘Stone forest’ turns his back to the city, it portrays in it’s intercolumns a fragment of still uncontaminated landscape.
Dor[a]Mar Architecture Studio Paris
building of apartments, shops, offices and parking Montpellier, France (2011) This project was developed during the internship at Architecture Studio Paris
Located on the edge of Piazza Pablo Picasso, the building is named after Dora Maar, a tribute to the Cubist painter’s muse. It is of a cubist inspiration also the bichromy of colors, (the yellow and blue portraits of Picasso to Dora), a choice that emerges through the facade lining of the duality of public and private functions. The volume comes in a virtuous game of solids and voids engraved by light; the loggias of the apartments bend following the best climatic exposure, the offices and upper apartments while embracing the circularity of the square ‘chase’ the best view of the urban landscape. Through the numerous tests of the 3d model, it was possible to define the architectural language of the artifact, exalting the emergency of the tower and attributing an identity to the office building with the golden penthouse at the top.
Frontier of orient (Confine di Oriente)_ Reconstruction of the Church of Santa Maria di Deja and the path to the castle, (Vau Dejes, Albania) Graduation thesis, being published (2013)
Dagna appears as an ideal place, a miniature that encloses the traces of the whole country, protagonists who hold the character of a people, as a story that runs throughout the Albanian history; rock on the water, castle on the mountain, ruins of the oblivion. A trail in the green, trampled for the last time by ancient steps, exposes the few remains of the Venetian castle of ancient Dagna, Shen Marku. The fortifications of this land, a symbol of a past civilization, seem to vanish over the centuries in towers and walls. Buildings, demolitions, ruins and reconstructions seem to resurrect from archaic stories. At the center of the project there are two abandoned places: the church of Santa Maria di Deja of the 12th century (demolished during the Communist regime) and the remains of the Venetian castle of Dagna (abandoned shortly
after the Ottoman invasion). The path to the castle generates the design of the project. A long wall erected with the ruins of the demolished church re-writes the fence of the holy camp inhabited only by the shadows of mulberry trees recalling the memory of Catholic priests executed during the regime. A cross of walls surrounds the foundations of the demolished church and veils the presence of the building nearby (a church built in 2002) that touches the corner of the ruins. As the transformations and extensions of the first Christian churches teach, this cross of walls is born as a new temple guarding the treasure of ancient foundations by reducing the recent church built nearby in a modest chapel. The new church is a stone sculpture that resumes the dimensions dictated by pre-existence. On the roof of the temple is projected the perimeter of the water tank; The frame
of a heavenly fragment that floods its light into the water. The path continues towards the Silk Museum. The concept of the boundary present on every trace of the project finds its expression in the wall. The path sign connects with the context, turning into solid volumes; there are museum passages, long staircases ces creating occasionally individual places of rest and exhibition spaces.
Suspended identities (IDENTITĂ€ SOSPESE)_ Interpretations on the transfiguration of the Architectural Landscape of Tirana after the fall of the communist regime PhD thesis in Architecture (2014/2017) Study of a possible compositional scheme for the regeneration of regime dwellings
The research investigates the spontaneous transformation of the architectural landscape of the city of Tirana after the collapse of the communist regime (since 1992, the year of foundation of the Albanian pluralist government), paying particular attention and deepening the theme of housing transformation phenomena. The study traces the evolution of the city of Tirana during the 20th century, paying attention to the dialogue between the great transformations put into effect by the totalitarian regimes (strong influence of Fascist Italy from 1925 to 1943 and communist rule from 1945 to 1992 ) and the foundation Ottoman architecture, dialogue through which the signs of western influences architecture overlap the generating traces of the city. The aim of the research is to highlight the possible compositive strategies underlined in
the spontaneous analyzed practices, in order to create a reference support as a possible path to the recovery of housing built during the regime. A practice almost consolidated in the architectural debate which shows examples in analogy with the settlement type of the city of Tirana. Hence the proposal of a possible compositional scheme for the part of the city analyzed (quartier 1 Maji). The idea of the project, starting from the original conformation, accepts the spontaneous additions already made and reconfigures the spaces by entering forms and typologies of Albanian tradition – for example, the fire room – answering the problem of expanding the city with a re-writing operation of the existing one. In the design idea, the seriality of the elements of the Socialist buildings is broken; brought to a sort of crumpled idea, similar to
the traditional use of the house in the Ottoman city. From the geometric rule of the faรงades, of Western tradition, new volumes unfold which respond to inner needs and the memory of the traditional houses whose rooms (oda) protrude from the base of the stone fence, casting its shadow on the road. The transformation of the residential blocks takes shape from the inside of the housing cell, in which the distribution of the spaces is re-drawn. It is evident that the central room of the fire, thetraditional Ottoman sofa, becomes the distribution principle of the various rooms. At the same time, a light volume system of wood is proposed that allows the expansion of the appartments; the volume, an addition to the facade that follows the principle of spontaneous transfigurations. It thus constitutes an additional element of junction between the
Ottoman tradition of the oda that lean on the stone fences and the existing building. New geometries bring their logic to the transfigured faรงades Introducing a new rule.
Art prison YAC Architectural call for ideas (2018) Team: Baxhaku, A., Kapo, D.
The project is inspired by the memory of fortified architectures that develop in steep terrain. The project site, the prison placed in a strategic position that controls the entire island suggests a path that surrounds the existing building. New geometries envelop the hill as an ancient route on the walls of a castle, generating an itinerary in which the past and the present blend; the silence of the Mediterranean landscape becomes the background of works of contemporary art. The project is conceived as an artistic path between closed and open exhibition spaces. The restored rooms inside the existing prison are proposed as closed places to exhibit works of art; the old abandoned cells, the paths, the inner courts and the outdoor terrace become spaces inhabited by art. In these secluded places, the visitor is invited
to a kind of spiritual retreat; to an isolated dialogue with the art spread among the dark cells of light filtered by the fortress loopholes. The new geometries that surround the Fortress welcome a double path disposed on two levels: the path of the hotel rooms developed in the lower level and the exhibition path developed in the upper level, outdoors. The dwellings: the rooms of the hotel, the luxury suites and the rooms-ateliers for artists find their own character, size and disposition in the memory of the Carthusian monasteries. The three types of rooms arranged in a long-line geometry that recalls the inhabited wall of the fortifications have in common a visual dialogue with the landscape; the faรงade is punctuated by openings that frame the Mediterranean in every room. The outdoor exhibition is conceived as a story that starts from within the
existing architecture and spreads in a path of fragments. The new geometries follow the orography of the land, generating empty spaces inhabited by art among the dwellings; panoramic terraces, open-air rooms, places to stop and rest. Like the fragments of walls that welcome the works of art, they become pedestals for the sculptures, provide the background for projections, frame the landscape.
Shtёpia Studio Kadare (House Studio Kadare) Project commissioned by the Municipality of Tirana (2019) Team: Studio Terragni Architetti, Studio Xycomm, Municipality of Tirana (Bashkia Tiranё)
The project was commissioned by the Municipality of Tirana in order to create a memorial site for the most famous Albanian writer, Ismail Kadare. As architect of the Municipality of Tirana, I assisted throughout the process at work led by Elisabetta Terragni, thus covering an important role in the historical and literary research carried out among the archives of Tirana and in the collection of the data exhibited through the testimonies of the various protagonists of the albanian cultural life. During the construction phase, I followed the construction site and the ralization of the exhibition spaces of House Studio Kadare. The apartment is located on the second floor of the ‘Pallati me kuba’, famous in the city for an unusual play of solids and voids on the facade (kubat-i cubi) and for its inhabitants, well-known figures of cultural life in Albania of
the communist regime. Elisabetta Terragni chooses to show the writer’s thought, work and life through a rigorous collection of data: the texts, the titles of the books, the diagrams, the schemes are transformed into a modern wallpaper that narrates the large production, numerous publications, foreign language translations. As in the Ottoman decorations, it is the writing that becomes the only ornament of the House Studio. A first look inside the apartment where Ismail Kadare lived from 1974 to 1990 is possible through an ‘embrasure’ whose cut recalls the archaic gazes of the Albanian towers, geometries of absolute silence, defended by rare ‘lines’ opened for the use of rifles. The modern ‘embrasure’ reveals the mystery of the house of the most famous contemporary Albanian writer.
Academy 100+ Villages (august 2018 - december 2018) Main duties and responsibilities: Team leader of Lot 6 (being published)
Academy 100+ Villages is an enterprise of the Albanian Government, an initiative that implements the National Rural Development Program “100 Villages” with the main objective of drafting development models for each of them, based on the tourism potential. Lot 6 contains 5 villages: Peza, Shesh, Pëllumbas, Shëngjergj (part of the Municipality of Tirana) and Zgërdhesh (part of the Municipality of Kruja). The common territorial and administrative affiliation does not exclude the diverse character that these villages represent, different from each other due to geographical location, population, urban fabric, architectural identity or traditions and customs. It is from these features that the drafting of joint strategies / models of village development as a whole is nurtured. After a dia-
gnosis of the territory, an analysis of the potentials and problems of the region and each village, the final result of the work presented in the six publications is a set of common strategies at the lot level, as well as specific to each village. The analysis of the territory covered by Lot 6 is guided by two main concepts: the Erzen River and the presence of ancient castles, two traces of the architecture and nature of our territory. Erzeni, a waterway that connects the villages: the mountainous Shëngjergj with the constellation of its stone towers, Pellumbas of the prehistoric cave, Peza of the heroic memory and Shesh of the vineyards that see the Mediterranean and that grow under the rays of the sun. The objective of Lot 6 project is to turn the villages into attractive places for all residents and visi-
tors, suitable for living, working and staying. This objective is guided by a specific vision for each village. We aim to transform Peza into a showcase of Tirana’s agricultural culture, which at the same time will emphasize the natural and historical assets of the village. A village, which will enable the promotion of a new identity that represents in the region a center of the agricultural development. Sheshi will represent the escape from the urban noise of the capital, through the use of its natural and architectural potential, combining the agricultural tradition with new innovative spaces. Zgërdheshi, the village of silence, the cultural and artistic realization of the ancient ruins of Albanopolis, connects the past with the present through a center of creation and development of contemporary art. Pëllumbasi, will be a village whi-
ch creates a language of cooperation between the community and visitors through an “exploratory” tourism that exploits the beauties and values of nature. An atmosphere that brings together the enjoyment of all stakeholders, with activities designed in such a way that it meets the needs of the community and tourists at the same time. Shëngjergji aims to return to the mountainous “garden” of Tirana, a rural oasis of agricultural-livestock development and agricultural and landscape tourism, creating a food experience of indigenous products, accompanied by the revitalization of the architectural identity and natural beauties of the Tirana Mountains.
Laboratorio di progettazione dell’Architettura IV, con prof. Maria Grazia Eccheli Universita’ degli Studi di Firenze (Architecture design laboratory IV held by prof. Maria Grazia Eccheli) 2013-2017
During my PhD studies, for a period of three years, I contributed to the teaching activity at the University of Florence, supervising the work of the students of the design laboratory held by Professor Maria Grazia Eccheli. This unique experience introduced me to teaching. The laboratory’s projects reflect the research themes of Professor Maria Grazia Eccheli who are aimed at re-shaping elements of the city and its landscape. The main theme of the course is RE-WRITING: that is a reading of the existent in a continuous dialogue between tradition and modernity, re-building fragments of formal worlds that seem to link together, in an extraordinary affinity and surprising continuity over time, facts and experiences that were at first irreconcilable.