Recycling the Identity and Reconciling Egypt- Azbakeya Area

The American University in Cairo Department of Architecture and Construction Engineering AENG 490 – Architecture Thesis I Report

Recycling the Identity and Reconciling Egypt Azbakeya Area Course Coordinator: Dr. Amr Abdel Kawi Group Advisor:

Group Members:

Dr. Zeinab Shafiq

      1

Amira Badran Aya Fayez Layla Sabri Lobna Houta Mona Serag Salma Samir

Abstract With the current situation raising numerous questions about the appropriate way for reconciliation and the future of the country, the importance of cultural elevation of the society started to take shape. The Azbakeya area as historical cultural hub and location of a non-dividing but initiating crack provides a large potential of a new, reformed cultural hub reelevating the society and country. The research of the area opened up the idea of an integration of art, creativity, local potential, culture and economics to revive the area. With that thought present and approach based on Creative Economy was soon to emerge and to guide the building functions and master plan design.

“Shifting the medium for an aspiring future: from a Sprawling Fracture to a Cultural Foster�

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Acknowledgments 

Cultural Documentation Authority, Dr. Sowheir Hawas



Azbakeya street Vendor, Al-Kazafi

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Table of Contents Abstract ................................................................................................................................................... 2 Acknowledgments................................................................................................................................... 3 List of figures ........................................................................................................................................... 6 Problem Definition .................................................................................................................................. 9 Site Selection ......................................................................................................................................... 11 Overview of Azbakeya........................................................................................................................... 12 Location ............................................................................................................................................. 12 History ........................................................................................................................................... 12 Social and Demographic Situation ................................................................................................ 15 Site Analysis .......................................................................................................................................... 17 Building conditions survey ................................................................................................................ 17 Building heights survey ..................................................................................................................... 19 Land use map .................................................................................................................................... 22 Solid and Void ................................................................................................................................... 29 Street Network .................................................................................................................................. 30 Infrastructure .................................................................................................................................... 31 Appeal to remove Al-Azhar Bridge................................................................................................ 32 Kevin Lynch Analysis ......................................................................................................................... 33 .............................................................................................................................................................. 33 Activity patterns and social behaviours ................................................................................................ 34 Possible Design Approaches ................................................................................................................. 45 Heritage Approach ............................................................................................................................ 45 Architecture Approach ...................................................................................................................... 53 Economic Approach .......................................................................................................................... 62 Azbakeya: A new creative habitus .................................................................................................... 71 Precedents ............................................................................................................................................ 72 Master Plan Objectives (Action Plan) ................................................................................................... 79 The Master Plan .................................................................................................................................... 82 Urban Framework ............................................................................................................................. 82 Main Components................................................................................................................................. 85 Conservation Area............................................................................................................................. 85 Streetscape ....................................................................................................................................... 87 Main Development Strategy and Themes ............................................................................................ 91

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Development Plan ................................................................................................................................. 94 Concluding Map .................................................................................................................................... 95 References ............................................................................................................................................ 97 Appendix A- Surveying Maps and Buildings Lists .................................................................................. 98 Appendix B – Development Opportunities ........................................................................................... 99

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List of figures Figure 1: Current Situation .................................................................................................................... 10 Figure 2: Proposed Situation ................................................................................................................. 10 Figure 3: Medium Needed .................................................................................................................... 10 Figure 4: Site Selection Map ................................................................................................................. 11 Figure 5: Location Map of Azbakeya ..................................................................................................... 12 Figure 6: Map of historic change from 1475 to 1869 ........................................................................... 12 Figure 7: Deterioration from 1969 till today ......................................................................................... 14 Figure 8: Timeline of architecture change ............................................................................................ 15 Figure 9: Social change in Azbakeya over time ..................................................................................... 16 Figure 10: Change in Social Groups at Azbakeya .................................................................................. 16 Figure 11: Building conditions survey map and analysis ...................................................................... 17 Figure 12: Residential/commercial building in Khazidar square. (Please refer to building 52 in Appendix A) ........................................................................................................................................... 18 Figure 13: Abandoned building in Ataba square. (please refer to building 71 in Appendix A) ............ 19 Figure 14: Opera Cinema. (please refer to building 3 in Appendix A) .................................................. 19 Figure 15: Building heights survey map and analysis ........................................................................... 20 Figure 16: Building heights survey for El-Gomhoreya Street ................................................................ 21 Figure 17: Difference between FTF heights in adjacent buildings ........................................................ 22 Figure 18: Land use map and analysis .................................................................................................. 23 Figure 19: Most frequent model of mixed-use developments in the area. (commercial on lower floors then mixed residential and office units) ............................................................................................... 24 Figure 20: Faisal Islamic Bank, 26th of July st. (Please refer to building 25 in Appendix A) ................. 24 Figure 21: Ministry of International Co-op, El adly st. (Please refer to building 22 in Appendix A) ..... 24 Figure 22: Attaba post office building. (Please refer to building 64 in Appendix A)............................. 25 Figure 23: National theatre for Children (Please refer to building 35 in Appendix A) .......................... 25 Figure 24: El Tali'a and Puppet theatre. (Please refer to building 58 and 59 in Appendix A) ............... 25 Figure 25: El Ataba parking lot .............................................................................................................. 26 Figure 26: El Opera parking lot ............................................................................................................. 26 Figure 27: Approximate presence of street vendors ............................................................................ 26 Figure 28: Contextual architectural style map ...................................................................................... 27 Figure 29: Modern Building .................................................................................................................. 28 Figure 30: mixed use building (Modern Style) ...................................................................................... 28 Figure 31: Central bank of Egypt (Neo-Islamic style) ............................................................................ 28 Figure 32: Mixed use building (Islamic style) ........................................................................................ 28 Figure 33: Tiring department store building ( Neo-classic style) .......................................................... 28 Figure 34: Sidnaoui Building (Neo-Baroque style) ................................................................................ 28 Figure 35: Solid and Void Map .............................................................................................................. 29 Figure 36: Existing Street Network ....................................................................................................... 30 Figure 37: Existing Infrastructure .......................................................................................................... 31 Figure 38: The existing infra and super structure of the area .............................................................. 32 Figure 39: The proposed infra and super structure of the area ........................................................... 32 Figure 40: Kevin Lynch analysis map ..................................................................................................... 33

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Figure 41: Collage showing social and behavioural patterns on site .................................................... 34 Figure 42: Study map locating informal bus and microbus stops on site ............................................. 35 Figure 43: Products informally sold in Azbakeya .................................................................................. 36 Figure 44: Vendor's profile.................................................................................................................... 37 Figure 45: Street section locating the venders ..................................................................................... 38 Figure 46: Street vendor selling school supplies by the square ............................................................ 38 Figure 47: Street section showing the locations of the venders along the street ................................ 39 Figure 48: Sketch showing the vendors occupying the area in front of the theatre ............................ 39 Figure 49: Sketch and visuals showing the market under the Azhar bridge......................................... 40 Figure 50: Street section locating the street vendors along Gomhoreya street .................................. 41 Figure 51: Sketches and visuals showing the Azbakeya book market area .......................................... 42 Figure 52: Diagram showing the nodes and connecting paths identified on the site .......................... 44 Figure 53: Orchestra in the Sheraton Front yard .................................................................................. 45 Figure 54: Process of Planning within cultural Heritage ....................................................................... 48 Figure 55: Existing Buildings under NOUH ............................................................................................ 49 Figure 56:Mahmoud Basounee Street rehabilitation project ............................................................... 49 Figure 57:Building reconstructed in Ramses Street .............................................................................. 50 Figure 58: Haussmann Plan of Paris (right) versus Plan of Cairo (left) designed in 19th century ........ 53 Figure 59: Continental Hotel built as part of khedive Ismail’s Cairo project ........................................ 53 Figure 60: Tiring Department built during the Belle Epoque periord ................................................... 54 Figure 61: Difference in Plan of Paris to Cairo's ............................................................................... 55 Figure 62: Portico at building ground level for shaded pedestrian path ........................................ 55 Figure 63: Modern style Buildings ..................................................................................................... 56 Figure 64: Integration of local elements into building's architecture............................................. 57 Figure 65: Plastered buildings ........................................................................................................... 58 Figure 66:Use of cladding and stone pattern on facades ................................................................. 58 Figure 67: Street vendor's Textile structure ..................................................................................... 59 Figure 68: Allignment of building shape to corner or square .......................................................... 59 Figure 69: Arched portico ................................................................................................................... 60 Figure 70: Architectural Elements ..................................................................................................... 60 Figure 71: Graph showing the current unemployment rate in Egypt ................................................... 62 Figure 72: Unemployment Vs. employment in Egypt ........................................................................... 63 Figure 73: Graph showing the rising labor force in Egypt ..................................................................... 63 Figure 74: Graph showing the inflation rate in Egypt ........................................................................... 64 Figure 75: Collective Graph ................................................................................................................... 64 Figure 76: Egypt's GDP .......................................................................................................................... 65 Figure 77: Egypt's GDP and Umemplyment rate .................................................................................. 65 Figure 78: Azbakeya as a Cultural Industry Node ................................................................................. 69 Figure 79: Intial design program for Azbakeya ..................................................................................... 72 Figure 80: Plan of the project ............................................................................................................. 73 Figure 81: Different function within the complex ............................................................................ 73 Figure 82: Facilities and buildings in the complex ........................................................................... 74 Figure 83: Vehicular and Pedestrian Circulation ................................................................................... 75 Figure 84: Vehicular accessibility and circulation ................................................................................. 75 Figure 85: Public Transportation and Parking ....................................................................................... 76

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Figure 86: Environmental Factors ......................................................................................................... 76 Figure 87: Environment and Fauna considerations .............................................................................. 77 Figure 88: Today's work and facilities based on historic buildings functions at Pueblo ....................... 78 Figure 89: Pueblo Creative Corridor analysis diagram .......................................................................... 78 Figure 90: Master plan action plan diagram ......................................................................................... 79 Figure 91: Proposed Master Plan Functions ......................................................................................... 82 Figure 92: Master Plan Character Zones Plan ....................................................................................... 83 Figure 93: Potential Plots ...................................................................................................................... 84 Figure 94: Chosen Plots ... Refer to appendix B for development opportunities that examines the characters of the building plots and areas in more details. ................................................................. 84 Figure 95: Conservation Plan Map ........................................................................................................ 86 Figure 96: Existing Streetscape map ..................................................................................................... 87 Figure 97: Proposed Streetscape .......................................................................................................... 89 Figure 98: Map showing the proposed pedestrian network ................................................................ 90 Figure 99: Map showing the current economic distribution ................................................................ 91 Figure 100: Graph Showing the econimic status before and after the application of the creative industry model ...................................................................................................................................... 92 Figure 101: Map showing the effect of each project on the surroundings .......................................... 92 Figure 102: Future development plan .................................................................................................. 94 Figure 103: Concluding map ................................................................................................................. 95 Figure 104: Potential Investors map ..................................................................................................... 96

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Problem Definition The Project outline identified certain key points in explaining the current situation and problem Egypt is facing. The keynotes are found in expressions such as: Political and social divides, building a new future, developing a new identity versus bringing back the old, using what already exists and refitting.

Looking at the scene in Egypt for the past few years it is evident that the theme of politics has become the new trend and prevailing topic of discussion and has ultimately resulted in this social divides even within families.

After research of different theories and attempts of explaining the current situation such as the theory of paradigm shift and others, we have reached an explanation based broadly on a theory of change.

Undoubtedly, this country is undergoing a change of some sort, whether in a political or social dimension. Furthermore, this change has brought divisions and even clashes played in the political scene. Therefore it became evident that to deal with these divisions, we needed to understand the source of such deep differences.

These divisions are not merely based on political arguments, but are routed in a much deeper ground and are traced back to the history of this country. Consequently it becomes necessary to understand the history, learn from it and see how it can be used as a guideline, knowledge or simply an experience to build on so as to complete this phase of change successfully.

Building on this strain of thought, we went back to the most recent period of Egyptian flourishing and the first signs divisions within this society, tracing the history back to the khedival Cairo. The Khedival Cairo was marked by strong architectural work, intellectual rise even if only within certain social communities and cultural unfolding. Though other policies and approaches, economic and social aspects of Khedive Ismail can be discussed and doubted but he chose a new approach – modernization- to elevate the importance and place of Egypt in the world. Looking at the scene during that time period and the current one a remarkable difference can be identified. This difference lies neither in the political approach nor in the social dynamic of that time but in the basis and ground layer of both these themes: the culture. For it is the culture, which creates the binding factor of a society whether in language, values, traditions or other cultural aspects, and which differentiates the countries from one another. Therefore, we have to the conclusion that the political and social divides are playground on which profound differences and problems are carried out but are not actually the root of them. The root lies within the culture of this country whether it is the change of the culture, lack of culture or other deficiencies. Furthermore, we needed to analysis the old to understand and create the new future.

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Figure 1: Current Situation

Figure 2: Proposed Situation

Figure 3: Medium Needed

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Site Selection

Figure 4: Site Selection Map

With a study of the overview political, social and cultural area of tension, several areas were considered. However, going back to the most recent period of Egyptian flourishing and the first signs divisions within this society, tracing the history back to the khedival Cairo, Azbakeya Area was selected.

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Overview of Azbakeya The Azbakeya area is a neighborhood of Cairo with a deep historical value as well as a strong variety in social, cultural and economic factors.

Location Azbakeya is located in the heart of Cairo, in the Cairo downtown area. It reaches from north at the Ramsis street until Abdeen palace in the south. As seen in the image, the size of the area required a limitation of the site within the Azbakeya as explained later in the report.

History

Figure 5: Location Map of Azbakeya

The Azbakeya area is marked with a flourishing history and strong heritage. Up till the 19th century the area was marked by a large lake at the location, where the Azbakeya garden is found today. Since 1475 with Azbak settling at the lake and cultivating the area, Azbakeya was a neighborhood filled with palaces and high income groups mostly tradesmen. Though over the years several rulers initiated changes to the Azbakeya area such as Mohamed Ali, Napoleon and others, it was not until Khedive Ismail, when the area was designed based on the Haussmann’s plan of Paris.

Figure 6: Map of historic change from 1475 to 1869

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Khedive Ismail was determined to turn Cairo into a European city on African ground.

Khedive Ismail was even quoted reassuring this fact saying: “The country is not in Africa anymore…It is a part of Europe now.”

The design of the area was based on network of boulevards, squares and straight street at right angles to each other. The Azbakeya area became a cultural centre for Egypt with the building of the Opera house in 1869. In addition, Khedive Ismail ordered for the design of a large garden replacing the remains of the Azbakeya garden historic known as the Azbakeya Garden. Soon the neighbourhood became a node for intellectuals to converse in the many cafes, restaurant and elite hotels such as the Shepherd and Continental hotels overlooking the Azbakeya Garden.

The era of khedive Ismail was followed by the “Belle Epoque” period, which lasted till the revolution in the early 1950s. The “Belle époque” was a time of continued flourishing for Egypt and particularly the Cairo downtown and Azbakeya area.

With the revolution of 1952 many of the palaces, shops and buildings constructed by khedive Ismail and his followers were demolished and the remaining ones were nationalized by Abd el Nasser. The nationalization as well as fixing the rent resulted in the deterioration of most buildings as well as major socio-cultural changes in the area.

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Figure 7: Deterioration from 1969 till today

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The following is a timeline of the architectural building style history.

Figure 8: Timeline of architecture change

Social and Demographic Situation

The downtown area and Cairo in general went through a large increase in population since the 1952 revolution.

However, the increase in population of the downtown area was not free from any social changes. On the contrary, the downtown area is marked with a significant change in the social group living and using the area.

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Figure 9: Social change in Azbakeya over time

Figure 10: Change in Social Groups at Azbakeya

This social change occurred primarily after the 1952 revolution. With the nationalization of several properties and the fixation of rent as mentioned before, many high income groups started to move out with the loss of their property or property value being gradually replaced by social groups of lower income. This was accentuated and increased with the following deterioration of the buildings and area.

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Site Analysis Building conditions survey

Figure 11: Building conditions survey map and analysis

The study regarding the condition of the surrounding buildings revealed an identifiable pattern; the eastern side of the Azbakeyyia garden showcases a distinguishable increase in building conditions in the overall picture. This observation can be attributed to one of 3 probable causes: 

As this side of the site contains more rebuilt plots than the other side, the conditions of the buildings might be merely due to the chronological building date.



Whilst the Eastern side of the Azbakeyyia houses mainly middle-income residential housing, institutional offices and governmental buildings, these buildings are more

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attended to than those of the Western side which are predominantly low-rise commercial plots and low-income residential buildings.

In addition to revealing such a pattern, the study also gave rise to the identification of some buildings as potential plots. Such buildings were considered based on the very poor condition they are in, which classifies them either as negative pockets or as potential hazards to the area. These proposed potential plots are: 1. Mixed use building -structurally unsound, El Khazindar square. (figure 1) 2. Opera Cinema-burnt, Opera Square. (figure 2) 3. Mixed use building -abandoned, Ataba Square. (figure 3)

Figure 12: Residential/commercial building in Khazidar square. (Please refer to building 52 in Appendix A)

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Figure 14: Opera Cinema. (please refer to building 3 in Appendix A)

Figure 13: Abandoned building in Ataba square. (please refer to building 71 in Appendix A)

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Building heights survey

Figure 15: Building heights survey map and analysis

Unlike the building condition map, the heights map did not reveal a certain pattern, but in fact showed the diversity in heights within the contextual surroundings. Although the predominant building heights ranged from ~12-28 meters (4-7 floors), buildings on site were found to reach up till 25 floors high (such as the tower of the Opera telecom building) as low as 1 floor high commercial strips.

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Figure 16: Building heights survey for El-Gomhoreya Street

In addition, it was also noticeable that the datum lines for adjacent buildings were almost always different, which is probably due to the varying floor-to-floor heights. Whilst the older buildings had floor-to-floor heights of up to 4.5 m, the newer ones had significantly lower floor-to-floor height (as low as 3.3 m).

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Figure 17: Difference between FTF heights in adjacent buildings

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Land use map

Figure 18: Land use map and analysis

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As is expected of a city center, the land-use in the Azbakeya-Ataba area features a mixture of service uses along with residential and commercial ones.

It can be seen from the first glance that the most frequent land-use are mixed use developments, mainly being commercial shops on the first 2 floors and a mixture of residential and office units on the upper floors.

Found less frequently are office buildings which do not also house residential units, these buildings are usually occupied by only 1 company only.

Besides

mixed-use

developments,

service

buildings and governmental office buildings are also found in high frequency within the area, these range from syndicates, ministries, and banks.

Figure 19: Most frequent model of mixed-use developments in the area. (commercial on lower floors then mixed residential and office units)

Figure 20: Faisal Islamic Bank, 26th of July st. (Please refer to building 25 in Appendix A)

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Figure 21: Ministry of International Co-op, El adly st. (Please refer to building 22 in Appendix A)

Figure 22: Attaba post office building. (Please refer to building 64 in Appendix A)

Although not occupying a high percentage of the land-use, recreational facilities are also very visibly present in the area, mainly as cinematic complexes, but also found in the form of theaters, cafes and restaurants. While many of the once functioning cinemas are now out of use, a few of them remain opened such as Diana cinema. Three theatres are currently in use, namely: 

Puppet Theatre



El Tali'a Theatre



National Theare for Children

Figure 24: El Tali'a and Puppet theatre. (Please refer to building 58 and 59 in Appendix A)

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Figure 23: National theatre for Children (Please refer to building 35 in Appendix A)

In order to service the flow of daily incomers for this high variety of uses, 2 main parking lots can be found in the area, namely El Ataba and El Opera

Garages.

Both

structures

are

independent, above ground parking structures with around 1400 parking spots each.

Figure 25: El Ataba parking lot

Although both parking structures greatly service the area, they are found to be very imposing within the surrounding context both by residents and employees frequenting to the area on a daily basis. Shall these parking lots be removed in order to allow for another land use, alternatives providing the same number of parking spots must be proposed.

With respect to the commercial landuse, almost all mixed-use buildings are occupied by commercial shops on the ground floor. In addition, there exists 2 main, multi-level

Figure 26: El Opera parking lot

department stores (Sidnaoui and Tiring department stores) and a mall with 5 commercial levels and 5 office/residential levels (Opera mall, Opera square). Found less frequently are 1 storey high commercial strips, present in 3 areas. (Please check appendix A for their exact location.)

In addition, the value of the commercial land-use can be almost doubled when the area occupied by street vendors in taken into account. Such activity is found in almost all main streets in that area, but the primary focus is found at the entrance of the mousky, at El ataba and Khazindar squares.

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Figure 27: Approximate presence of street vendors

Contextual architectural style

Figure 28: Contextual architectural style map

With regards to the over-ruling architectural styles, the Neo-classic styles and modern style are found most frequently, with Islamic/ Neo-islamic and Post-modern buildings found less frequently within the studied area.

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Figure 34: Sidnaoui Building (Neo-Baroque style)

Figure 33: Tiring department store building ( Neo-classic style)

Figure 32: Mixed use building (Islamic style)

Figure 31: Central bank of Egypt (Neo-Islamic style)

Figure 30: mixed use building (Modern Style)

Figure 29: Modern Building

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Solid and Void

Figure 35: Solid and Void Map

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Street Network

Figure 36: Existing Street Network

The street network of the area is fairly developed in terms of grid and general urban fabric.

Accessibility to various points is available. However, traffic congestion is one main problem which the area is known for. In order to solve such problem most of the streets are one way streets which creates another accessibility problem for the different area, increasing the loop it is required to reach a specific area.

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Infrastructure

Figure 37: Existing Infrastructure

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Appeal to remove Al-Azhar Bridge

Figure 38: The existing infra and super structure of the area

Figure 39: The proposed infra and super structure of the area

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Kevin Lynch Analysis

Figure 40: Kevin Lynch analysis map

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Activity patterns and social behaviours Figure 41: Collage showing social and behavioural patterns on site

This picture is a collage of all the different activities and behaviors that occur in the area.

During the day, the busy streets are overwhelming, where people are either painfully trying to reach their destination, or attempting to cross the chaotic street, or buying goods from the busy vendors. From microbuses going in the opposite direction of the road, to pedestrians walking in the middle of the crowded street, vendors selling goods on the sidewalk, on wooden tables, or on movable carts, kiosks on the corner of the streets, under the bridge and in the middle of the street, it seems like these streets never sleep. However, although dynamism and livelihood of a street are always crucial when it comes to establishing a successfully planned neighborhood, this one is far from achieving that. All these street activities are obstacles that prevent people from experiencing a healthy environment. The traffic in the streets can only be described as chaotic, and the street vendors only add to the

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traffic crisis by occupying parts of the street and creating crowded nodes. There are no usable pedestrian walkways for people to use instead of walking in the middle of the street.

Informal bus stops on site: Figure 42: Study map locating informal bus and microbus stops on site

Almost all the site streets are congested with microbuses and buses stopping in the middle of the road to pick up or drop off passengers. They constitute one of the major causes for the traffic issue seen not only on this site but everywhere in Cairo. On this particular map for our site, their stops and parking spots are mainly located on Gomhoreya street, right in front of the Azbakeya garden’s fence, and around Khazendar square, where many other private vehicles also use the location as a parking area.

Informal street vendor activities on site:

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The site is full of street vendors occupying almost all the streets surrounding the main squares and monuments. They differ in the type of product they sell, the “exhibition� space they have, the tools or equipment they use for showcasing their goods. Some of the goods that can be found in the area are:

Figure 43: Products informally sold in Azbakeya

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Figure 44: Vendor's profile

The list goes on since the variety of the products exhibited is very wide. Below is an analysis of the different vendors occupying different areas on site:

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1- Khazendar Square

Khazendar is mainly occupied by vendors selling school supplies, and instead of exhibiting their products on or by the sidewalk, they are forced to occupy a large area of the street

Figure 46: Street vendor selling school supplies by the square

Figure 45: Street section locating the venders

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2- Bostah Street

Bostah street is almost entirely occupied by street vendors, from Khazendar square, to ataba garage, to the area in front of the theatre and in ataba square. The vendors are very different along this street, their products ranging from school supplies to food, and home decorations.

Figure 48: Sketch showing the vendors occupying the area in front of the theatre

Figure 47: Street section showing the locations of the venders along the street

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3- Souq under the Azhar bridge

The Azhar bridge in Ataba not only is an imposed infrastructure that forms an obstacle to buildings and pedestrians in the area, but it houses underneath it an informal market, where kiosks are installed linearly along the path of the bridge. The circulation in this small area is problematic since it is always crowded thus making the ventilation very poor.

Figure 49: Sketch and visuals showing the market under the Azhar bridge

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4- Gomhoreya Street

Since the January 25th revolution, street vendors have imposed themselves in this street and have completely blocked it off from any vehicular circulation coming from the Opera square.

They not only occupy the sidewalk in front of the azbakeya garden, but the street itself is filled with kiosks and microbuses parked around the fence (azbakeya garden).

Figure 50: Street section locating the street vendors along Gomhoreya street

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5- Azbakeya book market

The Azbakeya book market was originally one of the most important landmarks in the area. However today the market is practically deserted and closed off by walls, and the books covered and piled up since today’s society and culture is not used to (or doesn’t need to) buying books.

Figure 51: Sketches and visuals showing the Azbakeya book market area

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Nodes study: Identifying the main areas of the site as nodes, this analysis mainly focuses on labeling the node according to either its social, cultural, or commercial value.   

Opera square: “Former cultural activities area” Azbakeya: “Former book market” (now known as souq al azbakeya) Attaba: “Informal wholesale trade node”

Connecting Paths: The connecting paths mainly identify the activities occurring in less dominant areas that can be connected to the main centers or nodes. 

South-East of Attaba square: Mohamed Aly street – Market for musical instruments and leather products

 South of Attaba square: Abd el Aziz street- Major electrical appliances market  North and North-East of Attaba square: El Rowaei street- Market for hardware and tools, paper market. Al Mosky textile market- Wholesale market. Darb Al BarabraMarket for traditional decorations and traditional celebration accessories.

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Figure 52: Diagram showing the nodes and connecting paths identified on the site

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Possible Design Approaches Heritage Approach As clearly discussed above, the chosen site has a deep historic background and thereby a strong heritage. The heritage can be identified in two forms: 1. Intangible Heritage The Khedival Cairo was aimed to be “the Paris of the East”. It has a strong cultural and intellectual depth and manifestation in the area, found in: 1) The Opera House 2) The Azbakeya Garden with its music kiosks, ponds and cultural settings 3) The second hand book market at the Azbakeya wall 4) The cafes and restaurants flanking the opera square for intellectuals to converse These aspects raised the cultural value of the area to Figure 53: Orchestra in the Sheraton Front yard

an international level and created a cultural center for Egypt combining all classes and serving the society.

2. Tangible Heritage The physical heritage addresses the architectural monuments and urban plan of cultural heritage. When developing an area with such context it becomes important to understand different methods of treating the existing cultural heritage. The Department of Interior of the United States defined a number of approaches to these monuments, which were taken partly or completely by several other countries: 1) Preservation Preservation is a method that “places a high premium on the retention on all historic fabric through retention, maintenance and repair. It reflects a building’s continuum over time, through successive occupancies, and the respectful changes and alterations that are made.” (Department of Interior) 2) Rehabilitation This approach focuses on retaining the materials and structure of a historic monument or landscape, while adding height to the building so as to add levels and spaces to the

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primary function. Both the rehabilitation and preservation technique depend on completely respecting the materials, special relationships, features and functions of the heritage buildings, which make up its historical value, and working to preserve and even add to them.

3) Adaptive Reuse The adaptive reuse was defined as preserving the historic structure but changing its function to adapt to current users needs and requirements. However, “the function is the most obvious change, but other alterations may be made to the building itself such as the circulation route, the orientation, the relationship between spaces; additions may be built and other areas may be demolished“. (Plevoets, Van Cleempoel) According to Eugène Emmanuel Viollet – le – Duc “the best way to preserve a building is to find a use for it, and then to satisfy so well the needs dictated by that use that there will never be any further need to make any further changes in the building ” (Plevoets, Van Cleempoel ) 4) Façadism This approach is based on demolition the building but maintaining the façade to preserve the existing historic context within the streetscape, while adding a new structure behind it.

5) Restoration The restoration approach “focuses on the retention of materials from the most significant time in a property’s history, while permitting the removal of materials of other periods” (Department of Interior) 6) Reconstruction The reconstruction method allows for the rebuilding of a “non-surviving” landscape, building or structure in new materials and modern forms.

After identifying the different approaches to dealing with cultural heritage in a specific site it becomes essential to undergo a prominent analysis of the “intangible cultural heritage” as well as the current prevailing language and culture. The intangible culture is defined by UNESCO as “customs and oral traditions, music, languages, poetry, dance, festivities, religious ceremonies as well as systems of healing, traditional knowledge systems and skills connected with the material aspects of culture, such as tools and the habitat” (Bouchenaki).

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The redevelopment of a site of cultural heritage must “safe-guard” the existing heritage in any form discussed earlier by integrating the heritage into the new plan – the Integrated Approach- . The approach “serves in the first place to link, balance and coordinate the needs of the tangible cultural heritage with the socio-economic and ecologic needs of the “users of the historic urban area” (Scheffler 4) This is where the mental heritage is combined with the physical to identify the suitable approach within the society and prevailing culture to from it in a way that targets the current language.

So that it is possible for example to take the approach of reconstruction to revive the idea of the opera house in a modern environment. Afterwards, the approaches and concepts are implemented architecturally whether in a. Contrasting manner Contrasting the new developments to the old ones to emphasize each one of them and set it of b. Blending manner This way the new structures blend with the heritage surrounding creating one entity so as to create the same context

c. Harmonious manner The harmonious form maintains historic aspects of a building with contemporary features Thereafter, the new development can be established based on the previous analysis.

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Figure 54: Process of Planning within cultural Heritage

Azbakeya The azbakeya area located in downtown Cairo symbolizes an era of cultural flourishing and international recognition for Egypt. It was an area filled with elegant cafes, shops and hotels.

It was the place for international intellectuals and figures to converse with its Opera House overlooking the square, the Shepheard hotel and the many restaurants. Khedive Ismail meant to create this modernized neighbourhood relating to Europe. He created a cultural hub of social events, entertainment, cultural educations and a recreational park – Azbakeya Garden. The era of Khedive Ismail was followed by a period of continuing cultural enhancement and architectural blossom. All “the buildings of central Cairo represent a rich architectural heritage. Most date (back)(…) to a time when Cairo was a meeting place of civilizations and a center of culture and the arts. The architecture reflects a wide variety of European styles, including baroque, neoclassical and art deco.”(keeping cairo) When looking at the Azbakeya area today some of the remains of this architecture can still be found hidden under the layers of history, change as well as social and cultural deterioration.

Most of the 450 palaces surrounding the Azbakeya Garden and the square have been

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demolished over the years while only a few buildings remain protected by the National Organization for Urban Harmony (NOUH).

Figure 55: Existing Buildings under NOUH Over the past few years there have been several approaches to dealing with buildings of cultural heritage in the Downtown area.

1. Rehabilitation of Mahmoud Bassounee Street The Ismaelia Real Estate company managed with the help of several investors such as Sameh Sawiris and the Saudi Arabian Investor Sherif Suleiman to buy several buildings in the downtown area such as the Mahmoud Bassounee street. They engaged in rehabilitating the buildings by restoring the historic structure, faรงade, function and details of the building. Their aim was to enhance the architectural conditions of some of the heritage buildings found in downtown Cairo.

Figure 56:Mahmoud Basounee Street rehabilitation project

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2. Reconstruction of Ramses Street A building dating back to the end of the 1920s located

at

the

59

Ramses

street

was

reconstructed to its former glory. In modern times its function had shifted to a building having residential, commercial and business units.

Reconstruction in this case does not mean the complete rebuilding of an old structure but merely the restoration and preservation of an existing building of cultural heritage using modern materials and elements and changing its original function and interior distribution.

Figure 57:Building reconstructed in Ramses Street

Looking at the Azbakeya area and after researching the history and intangible culture of the place it became evident that the main concept of the project as well as the thesis statement would require far more than a preservation or rehabilitation of the buildings. This is further enforced by having several buildings flanking the Azbakeya Garden are already classified as part of the NOUH institution and therefore not within our restoration and work in scope.

Furthermore, to achieve the revival of Azbakeya as cultural centre and vocal point for intellectual and economic flourishing in Cairo within the existing urban conditions, the approach must be one of reconstruction rather than adaptive reuse.

However, the reconstruction in this case will not be such as the example mentioned above occurring within the existing structure nor is it an exact recreation of the old buildings. The reconstruction in our case will have a modified form, which will take on the shape of adding features and components found in history such as the restaurants and cafĂŠs while adding new buildings and functions. These additions while modern will serve reviving the old cultural center with books and institutions serving the current culture and the modern values.

However, it is important to mention at this point that though the Khedival Cairo and Belle Époque of downtown Cairo served as inspiration in its preservation of culture through architectural work, this does not imply a replication of that approach but rather adopting it,

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enhancing it, adjusting it to the current situation and needs of the country and taking it a step further.

Heritage Stakeholders

Stakeholders

The residents of the area as well as the local sculptures, painters and musicians working underground in the whole area are major stakeholders in considering the urban redevelopment of the area







The Azbakeya area is characterized by private small scale investors reaching from the owners of the small shops to the cafes and restaurants found all over the places. Many of the buildings found in Azbakeya today house several functions often commercial alongside the residential There are also large investors starting to find interest in buying buildings and contributing in re-designing the area such as Sameh Sawiris and the Saudi investor Sherif Salah Alongside the investors there are real estate companies with stakes in the building of the area especially the ones of cultural heritage and good condition

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



The non-governmental institutions dealing with historic buildings are primarily the World Heritage Center a council under the UNESCO The governmental institutions dealing with the matter are the NOUH,which has a large share in several heritage buildings in Azbakeya and the GOPP

The primary function of the WHC is identifying buildings of heritage and developing guidelines for their restoration and preservations. Although there is no building in the Azbakeya area classified by the WHC a recent report published by the World Heritage Patrimoine mondial of Cairo in collaboration with the WHC showed an extensive study of the historical buildings in Cairo. The GOPP stands for the Egyptian National Authority for General Organization of Physical Planning. The main role is to set the regulations, monitor and participate in the implementation of urban plans, extensions of urban development’s or designing areas of sensitive conditions in Egypt.

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Architecture Approach The Azbakeya area is characterized by a changing history reaching from its peek as downtown and cultural center of Cairo until now. This history with all its varieties was also reflected in its architecture.

As a result we have a mixture of architectural styles found at the site: 1. Neo-classical Khedive Ismail’s design of Cairo was based on Haussmann’s architecture and urban design of Paris.

The urban design was characterized by a gridiron plan overlaid by large boulevards, streets and squares, such as the opera square with its surrounding boulevards.

Figure 58: Haussmann Plan of Paris (right) versus Plan of Cairo (left) designed in 19th century

The

architecture of the buildings overlooking these squares was constructed in a neo-classical style with very large windows, door, high ceiling and ornamented facades. It is also identified by the vertical alignment of windows and doors.

Figure 59: Continental Hotel built as part of khedive Ismail’s Cairo project

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During the “Belle Epoque� era following the era of Khedive Ismail until the revolution of 1952 was also characterized with that neo classical architecture style, which was found throughout the downtown area.

Figure 60: Tiring Department built during the Belle Epoque periord

2. Islamic Architecture

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Though the architecture of Khedive Ismail and the following “Belle Epoque”, which was greatly influenced by the neo-classical architecture of Europe, it did not completely neglected the local and Islamic architecture of the city. As a result there are architectural styles identified within these buildings associated with the Islamic style. An example of which are the porticos at the ground floor level designed to provide shade for pedestrians while walking through the streets such as found in the Clot Beik street today.

Paris

Cairo

Figure in Plan of Paris to Cairo's Figure 61: 62: Difference Portico at building ground level for shaded pedestrian path

3.

Modern

Architecture With the revolution of 1952 there was also a shift in the architectural style in the downtown area. The architecture became a static high-rise construction with no ornamentation and static regular façades, which served mainly as apartment buildings. During the 1970s the structures became multi-level offices, where the belle époque ornamentations were replaced with advertisements and billboards.

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Figure 63: Modern style Buildings

4. Contemporary Architecture In recent years there has also been a developmenet of a few structures in the area, which though encoorporate elements of the modern architecture also integarate abstracted and developed forms of the local architecture. This can be either in the use of materials or integration of local features such as arches, etc.

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Figure 64: Integration of local elements into building's architecture

The previous analysis of the various architecture styles in the area serves as a possible design guideline or inspiration for the individual design within the Azbakeya, so that the buildings dating back to the belle ĂŠpoque can been taken in terms of respecting the same datum line in the new buildings. More importantly however is the approach to a shaded pedestrian walkway integrated into the building through a portico. This blending of street life and architectural structures is a concept very relevant to our design approach and situation.

Materials and architectural elements

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The architecture of the Azbakeya area is characterized by different types of materials due to change in building styles. However, most of the buildings are coated with a white – if renovated – or other polluted plastering layer.

Figure 65: Plastered buildings

There are also some buildings dating to more recent periods, which are covered by tile cladding or the pattern of stone relating to parts of the belle ĂŠpoque buildings where this pattern can be found.

Figure 66:Use of cladding and stone pattern on facades

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A third material, which was not found in the buildings but nevertheless in the structures located in the area were the textiles used by street vendors to created small shaded spaces, underneath which they can sell their goods. The structures they created using these fabrics served as inspiration for light weight structures, which can be used primarily in the Azbakeya garden.

Figure 67: Street vendor's Textile structure

When identifying the prevailing architectural features found all over the area one can make out several elements primarily ones dating back to the pre – revolution period. These elements are essential in the redesign of the area whether in integrating the elements completely or taking them into consideration.

The first element that is evident: are the building forms. Although the historic buildings as well as the contemporary ones are mainly rectilinear the heritage buildings are renowned for their street alignment. Corner Buildings or buildings overlooking a square such Ataba or other squares in downtown Cairo such as “Talat Harb” square are often designed so that the façade is slightly curved taking on the shape of the square or with a curved corner.

Figure 68: Allignment of building shape to corner or square

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Some of the main features of the area are the arched porticos found in several streets until today such as Clot Beik Street and Mohamed Ali street

Figure 69: Arched portico

The other features are the

windows, doors and domes

with their ornamentation and cornice, which can also serve as inspiration and features to be developed, abstracted and integrated into the design so as to respect the surrounding heritage as well as architectural context. The

Figure 70: Architectural Elements

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These features, architectural styles and elements are all aspects that aid set the design criteria so that the main aim is to create a design that respects the heritage and context of the site whether through a respect of datum line, integration of elements found in the surrounding building or making use of neglected and hidden potential in the area such as the light weight fabric structures or forgotten pedestrian porticos. In all cases, the design though contemporary and fitting to the current needs, must incorporate local architecture and the surrounding architecture of this site with its deep heritage and changing history written on all the buildings.

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Economic Approach

Economic Structure of Egypt Graphs reinterpreted from the Central Agency for Mobilization and Statistics Egypt's economy has been in constant struggle to rise midst all unstable intervening factors in the past few years; such as the political and social venues. Main economic factors that contribute to the mishap of the economic status, in many experts' opinions, are the dramatic rising in population over the past decades that positively introduce high labor force but with minimal industries accommodating which thus was met with a rise in the unemployment factor over the years (See Diagram 1). Nonetheless, the political rise in the past few years has contributed to the economic instability and decrease in several income factors that the nation's economy depended on, such as enterprise initiatives/business startups and Tourism sectors. 

High Unemployment factor

Figure 71: Graph showing the current unemployment rate in Egypt

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Figure 72: Unemployment Vs. employment in Egypt



Rising Labor force

Figure 73: Graph showing the rising labor force in Egypt



Rising poverty line

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In return, inflation is in the rise and poverty is spreading out on higher levels, affecting not only the low income class, but the working, middle, and high-income class and investors in Egypt.

Figure 74: Graph showing the inflation rate in Egypt

Figure 75: Collective Graph

Situation in Al-Azbakeya

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Al Azbakeya is not an exception to what Egypt's economy has been undergoing, in fact Downtown Cairo, which includes Al Azbakeya boundaries has noticed a severe drop in the economic sector in the past few years. Due to the political up rise and instability around Al Tahrir Square, many owners of businesses in the area chose to relocate, either temporarily or permanently in order to guarantee a stable environment where people would come and go safely. Another factor to the decline in economic revenue in the area is, in the case of Azbakeya specifically, an accumulation of many years of neglect; neglect from the government, stakeholders, as well as the public. Along the course of the years the true value and shine of Azbakeya lusted, leaving not only the fading essence and memory of the place but also a declining sect of production standards, quality, lifestyle and target users.

Solutions Although not very rich in GDP or currency value (figure below), Egypt is and will always be well-known for its richness in other maybe double sided factors; the labor force or man power in this country, many believe is its key to development (see fig. 3). The basic and familiar solution is In order to reduce poverty, 'development' is needed.

But what kind of development? This is the question we're posing, the high end scale Figure 76: Egypt's GDP development that reached those privileged or is it the kind of development that reaches rather the poor on the basic level needs, or a different kind of development that reaches both extreme hierarchical statuses in Egypt?

Figure 77: Egypt's GDP and Umemplyment rate

Culture and Economics?

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The relationship between culture and economics has historical roots. Culture refers to “the cumulative deposit of knowledge, experience, beliefs, values, attitudes, meanings, hierarchies, religion, notions of time, roles, spatial relations, concepts of the universe, and material objects and possessions acquired by a group of people”. This is attained over “the course of generations” and “through individual and group striving” (Samovar and Porter 1994). Culture is the outcome of human diligence, the wealth of creations of the human mind, spirit and talent. Culture unites and separates, identifies and distinguishes, characterizes and classifies. Culture enriches.

On another level, one textbook defines the science of economics as the study of “how societies use scarce resources to produce valuable commodities and distribute them among different people” (Samuelson and Nordhaus 2005).

Unfortunately, the beginning of the nineteenth century witnessed the study of economics stripped from its cultural context. It meant the reduction of economics from a human science into a dry discipline that was concerned with calculating abstractions that were void of the human element, and that treated people as a set of homogeneous cultureless agents. Fortunately, the twentieth century brought back the human aspect to the study of economics, along with the revival of the call for economics as a social science and the dissent against the mainstream paradigm.

The study of “cultural economics” came to life with Kenneth Boulding (1972). The science of cultural economics is concerned with the influence of cultural differences on economic thought and behavior. Economic behavior, in turn, is taken to vary according to the cultural context (Chartrand 1990). Culture explains differences in choices, preferences, and achievements of individuals, social groups, and countries.

"The rise of the creative industries suggesting a new kind of relationship between art, culture, industry and everyday life" From 'cultural' industries to 'creative' industries The terminology change was mainly determined to not limit the theory on cultural aspects, culture as a term is a very general yet limiting word, it has unclear boundaries therefore unguaranteed apprehension and results. Terry Flew pinpoints the difficulty of determining the symbolic value of a product or its characteristics as cultural. If cultural industries were defined in general terms as those sectors involved in the production of symbolic goods and services, was it then possible to exclude any activity of industrial production that has a symbolic dimension? The answer depends upon a given definition of culture that tends to equate culture with the arts in terms of an aesthetic definition or, in the case of an anthropological approach, regards culture as an all-encompassing 'way of life'.

While business leaders and entrepreneurs play an important role in transforming the industrial age model of work, they cannot do it alone. Universities must encourage professors to focus on real local problems and create spaces where students can gather, sketch out thoughts and experiment. Think-tanks should sprout in every city and village and people should be empowered to build their own solutions to their problems using local resources. We cannot continue to replicate a model that neglects our values, history and culture. (WAMBA)

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Putting this in consideration, to reach economic development in many dimensions and conform to the new era that cannot possibly omit technological innovations and international trade markets it was of no coincidence that when the Creative Industries Task Force (CITF), founded in 1997, published its Mapping Document, the term "creative industries" was introduced, replacing the word "cultural". These include those activities which have their origin in individual creativity, skill and talent, and which have a potential for wealth and job creation through the generation and exploitation of intellectual property.

'Creative Industries' as a production factor; Conceptually, creative industries combine but then radically transform two existing terms: the creative arts and the cultural industries. This change is important. By bringing the arts into direct contact with large-scale industries such as media entertainment and/or business trade centers, it allows us to get away from the elite/mass, art/entertainment, sponsored/commercial, high/trivial distinctions that bedevil thinking about creativity, not least in the old humanities and social sciences. (Cunningham/Hartley 2001: 2).

The concept of creative industries if understood in this sense is an expression of a synthesis, a circumvention of the dichotomy of art and economy, as well as between high culture and popular culture and thus also the symbol for an increasing degree of democratization. Using the term "creativity", as a characteristic that is inherent to art and economy, would be a possibility of achieving this.

Since there is neither a uniform definition nor a strategy for establishing definitions from the historical perspective of the concept, the creative industries can only be understood and interpreted in their specific local, regional and national context.

If we accept the hypothesis that making use of cultural goods and creativity will create relevant impulses for economic developments in the future, then this sector should obviously be systematically promoted. (UNDP, 20) In economic terms, creative activities are also economic activities that generate income, create jobs and contribute to the foreign trade of their countries of origin. Their contribution to gross domestic product (GDP) can be substantial, as illustrated in the following figures for some selected countries: the share of creative activities in the value added of Bulgaria is 3.0%, of Spain 2.2%, of Portugal 1.2% and of Poland 2.7%. Figures obtained for other developed countries are as follows: Australia 3.1%; Canada 3.5%; France 2.8%; USA 3.3% and UK 5.8% (see UN 2008: 31).

In addition, the creative industries account for 3.4% of total world trade, with exports reaching $424.4 billion in 2005 and an average annual growth rate of 8.7% during 2000- 2005. These impressive figures are attributable to developments in developed and some developing countries in Latin America and Asia.

In Arab countries there has been a widespread impression that there has been a decline in creative and artistic activities which, in turn, has led to a decline in the output of creative industries in those countries. (Arab Human Development Report 2003.)

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These preliminary overall results suggest that creative industries in Arab countries are substantially underdeveloped. They confirm the anecdotal evidence (impression) alluded to above. As mentioned in the Introduction, other countries, both developed and developing, are doing much butter, in relative terms, than the Arab countries under study.

The share of creative activities in the value added of Argentina, for instance, is 6.6% (1993), of Brazil 6.7% (1998), of Uruguay 6.0% (1977), of Paraguay 1.0% and of Chile 2.0% (see World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and State University of Campinas 2002:9).

Arts education, not just in the Arab world, is often embarrassingly technical and uncreative.

Sometimes it really feels like we are training technicians, not awakening artists. Williams and Newton write: “Limiting our educational processes and cultural expressions to rational, linear techniques creates a rational bias. In doing so, we deprive our culture and ourselves of holistic development of our intuitive intelligences and of our ability to transcend basic technique and to express ourselves with creative and aesthetic sophistication in drawing and in other problemsolving activities that require creative thinking.” (WAMBA)

Application The creative industries comprise four groups: heritage, arts, media and functional creations (UNDP). Cultural heritage is identified as the origin of all forms of arts and the “soul” of cultural and creative industries. This group is divided into two subgroups: traditional and cultural expressions: arts and crafts, festivals and celebrations; and cultural sites: archeological sites, museums, libraries, exhibitions, etc.

Arts: This group includes creative industries based purely on art and culture. Artwork is inspired by heritage, identify values and symbolic meaning. This group is divided into two large subgroups: visual arts: painting, sculpture, photography and antiques; and performing arts: live music, theatre, dance, opera, circus, puppetry, etc.

Media: This group covers two subgroups of media that produce creative content with the purpose of communicating with large audiences (“new media” is classified by UNCTAD separately): Publishing and printed media: books, press and other publications; and audiovisuals: film, television, radio and other broadcasting.

Functional creations: This group comprises more demand-driven and services-oriented industries creating goods and services with functional purposes. It is divided into the following three subgroups: design: interior, graphic, fashion, jewelry, toys; new media: software, video games, digitalized creative content; and creative services: architectural, advertising, cultural and recreational, creative R&D, digital and other related creative services.

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How is the Azbakeya a clear potential of a Creative Industry Model?

Figure 78: Azbakeya as a Cultural Industry Node

Our intuitive skills—our ‘cultural’ muscles—are the ones that have atrophied, and no one has described our present situation better than Beeban Kidron, who laments, “Technical access has never been greater, cultural access never weaker.”

Going back to the economic history of the location, Al Azbakeya was centered around the Opera where most of the cultural activities occur, including Arts industry; music shows, performances and all other cultural-based activities, acted as a venue for international and local operas, ballets, as well as musical soirees which were composed, orchestrated and played by world famous artists.

Moving into the Azbakeya Gardens, a public, recreational and cultural park. It boasted ponds and lakes with artificial grottos, music kiosks, promenades and several species of indigenous and nonindigenous trees and shrubs. Radiating from the garden core, one would find the antiquarian book market along the fences of Azbakeya the book industry developing added a further multfunctional nature to the area, where people move around book vendors, buying and selling knowledge. Radiating even more, one would include the Hotel industry, which was Al Azbakeya also known for, many Hotels still stand to our time, while others have disappeared by time.

Moving in time and space, Al Attaba square which has evolved in a different manner, at one point including a Tram way and serving as a node of transportation and another point drifting into the business venue where Small Businesses industry was initiated starting with specialized retail department stores along the ground level and including a couple of fruit and vegetable market,

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florists, plastic industry and so on. Moreover, governmental buildings such as the Attaba Post office building contributed to the economic status of the area.

The current situation is tremendously altered, at this point of time the cultural hub that was once unintentionally economic directed and based, is now intentionally neglected in both cultural and economic sects. The Opera square no longer accommodates the Opera, thus all cultural activities were suspended, and obviously its revenues. The book industry has seen many governmental interventions in terms of its location and maintenance, therefore lost all its value in the market.

Al Attaba, on the other hand has developed into more of a wholesale trade node yet in an informal manner, informal economic markers has developed aka "street vendor industry" that buy and sell diverse types of products.

Leaving the main nodes, and looking into the paths connecting them; some of the main roads leading to the squares are characterized by specialized retail and wholesale market activities. The south-eastern approach to Ataba Square (Mohamed Aly Road), is a market for musical instruments and leather products. Nearby el-Azhar elevated road and street, link the area to Khan al Khalili Bazaar, the traditional craft, jewelry and spice markets, and to other wholesale markets for textiles and furniture. Further south is Abd el-Aziz Street, a major electrical appliances market, as well as el-Ashmawy area for electric hardware and fixtures. North and north-east of Ataba Square, lies a number of wholesale markets, mainly el-Mousky textile market, el-Rowaei market for hardware and tools, the paper market, and Darb el-Barabra market for traditional decorations and traditional celebration accessories. The western approaches to Opera Square, namely Kasr el-Nile, Abd el -Khaleq Tharwat, Adly, and 26th of July Streets, are among the most important and lively service and commercial spines in downtown Cairo.

The issue of “culture and trade” is getting prime strategic significance. Cultural goods and services convey and construct cultural values, produce and reproduce cultural identity and contribute to social cohesion. They constitute a key factor of production in the emerging knowledge economy.

When culture is put on the table, it often prompts lengthy discussions on the relationship between the economic and non-economic value of things, that is, the value attributed to those things that do not have assigned prices (such as identity, beauty or the meaning of life). (Vienna, 37)

The 'Creative' City: There was a hope that the arts and cultural industries sector, embodying cutting edge cultural and entrepreneurial energy, could enhance the wider dynamism of the local economy. The ‘creative city’ idea by Charles Landry saw a vibrant arts and cultural economy as a key element of an intelligent, future oriented urban vision, but it also emphasized the anthropological idea of culture.

Culture as a whole way of (urban) life becomes a resource for the city. Indeed, as deindustrialization set in many Australian, European and North America cities, this local cultural capacity – education, attitude, history and social structure – became seen as a crucial competitive factor. In the early 1990s these various capacities were to be wrapped up in the term ‘creativity’, and it with this new resource that the cultural industries were to re-connect with national cultural and economic policy. (Laundry, 68) What really matters is the native spirit of a city, its breathing architecture, its permeability and inviting feel, art-covered walls, knowledge-soaked libraries, studios, street festivals, theatres

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roaring with applause, opera houses springing with colorful discussions, and all the little things that constitute the soul of a city.

To quote Florida: “They favor active, participatory recreation over passive, institutionalized forms.

They prefer indigenous street-level culture – a teeming blend of cafés, sidewalk musicians, and small galleries and bistros, where it is hard to draw the line between performers and spectators.

They crave stimulation, not escape. They want to pack their time full of dense, high-quality, multidimensional experiences.”

Human-centered cities that fuel their individuals with plurality and freedom are breeding grounds for innovation, and innovation is necessary in order to sustain growth. (Florida, 89) Creative Industry Economic Models:Examining creative industry models by different experts in the field; we touched on the clustering method which identifies a cultural core and radiates including less cultural and more commercial/industrial fields, yet all falling under the bigger umbrella of creative industries. This model was preferred based on the location of Al Azbakeya and how it’s very similar, if not exact, to what the rich cultural center used to be in the past.

Creative Core: all acts of original creation of expressive values.

Cultural Industries: commercialization of expressive product (TV, Radio, Film, Music, Computer Games etc) Creative Industries: combination of expressive and function values (architecture, advertising, fashion, design) Wider Economy: expressive input into manufactured and service goods (Dyson, Virgin) The Will Hutton model: (Chen, 8) Core Creative Arts: Music, Dance, Theatre, Literature, Visual Arts, Crafts, Video Art, Performance Art, Computer and Multimedia Art Wider Cultural Industries: Book and Magazine Publishing; Television and Radio, Newspapers and Film Related Cultural Industries: Advertising, Tourism, Architecture, Design, Fashion The concentric model: (Chen, 10) Core Arts Fields: Visual arts; Performing Arts; Heritage (Sub-sectors: crafts, painting, sculpture, photography) Cultural Industries: Film and Video; TV and Radio; Videogames: Music; Books and Press (Subsectors: Recorded and Live music, Collecting Societies, Books and Magazine publishing) Creative Industries: Design, Architecture, Advertising (Sub-sectors: fashion, graphic, interior and product design) Related Industries: Manufactures of MP3s, PCs, Mobile Phones etc.

Azbakeya: A new creative habitus?

Architectural Program (Initial Proposal)

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Based on previous social, cultural, physical and economic analysis, we concluded a number of suggested building programs that would inhabit the concentric activity core and surrounding in Al Azbakeya, by that establishing a dynamic, well-founded, and culturally-based development program that revitalizes the area of Azbakeya and nourishes its heritage while benefiting the society’s various classes.

An initial Proposal for the program:

Figure 79: Intial design program for Azbakeya

Precedents The following are precedents for the two aspects and approaches to our project, one of which is under construction while the other has been completed. First is a precedents based on the creative industry approach, we have previously discussed.

Masterplan for National Creative Cluster The project is located in the village of Songzhuang, a village on the outskirt of Beijing. The main concept of the project is to create a “knowledge hub�, by constructing a center in China, which facilitates innovative growth and attracts talents and international creative thinkers to encourage a constant flourishing of new ideas.

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The project came to emphasize the districts main philosophy, which was developed around the principal of bringing “industries with shared values and complementary skills and technologies together to help spark new ideas” (Furuto). This concept pf a knowledge hub was implemented by designing the project based on the approach of a creative industry having galleries, museums, institutes for continuing education and venues of social interaction and entertainment. This clustering of the different functions was based on the concept and facilities of a creative industry housing the different facilities defined by the approach. “The district’s diversity of industry, people, and spatial relationships are aimed to foster creativity and encourage an endless stream of new ideas” (Furunto)

Figure 80: Plan of the project

The different facilities found in the complex taken from the creative indurtsy approach.

Figure 81: Different function within the complex

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The Project also incorporates an element, which has a major importance in our own project: the connectivity and integration with the surrounding facilities and elements. There are several facilities around our

buildings

such as the Post office,

Tiring

building

and

others

,

need

to

which be

considered within

the masterplan

design. In the case

Figure 82: Facilities and buildings in the complex

of this project it was an existing Artist Village. As a consequence they integrated the Village in the design concept of promoting and environment to create new innovative ideas and thinkers.

The designed also emphasized the idea of social interaction and an experience in a closed environment as well as in an open space. They build their design around a

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strong landscape and a strong spatial experience so that the success of the project lied in “its openness, where people can interact in both structured and spontaneous ways to exchange ideas and have constructive dialogue� (Furuto). This was achieved by the spatial organization of the different buildings, through a division of vehicular and pedestrian circulation so that the buildings area accessed through a vehicular route on the outside while they are interconnected on the through a pedestrian path.

Figure 83: Vehicular and Pedestrian Circulation

Figure 84: Vehicular accessibility and circulation

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The project also provides a way of dealing with underground metro and parking and its connection to the complex, which is a complex factor we need to deal with in our project as well.

Figure 85: Public Transportation and Parking Figure 86: Environmental Factors

This experience was also emphasized by a consideration of environmental factors so as to achieve a suitable environment within the pedestrian walkway.

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The Chinese culture sets great importance on the environment as well as the flora and fauna.

Therefore, when they designed the complex it was essential to integrate the cultural values and traditions into the building. This approach to cultural context is one we need to integrate and consider in our own project as well.

Figure 87: Environment and Fauna considerations

The second precedent is taken for its same cultural situation combined with the creative industry in the design, for this project was also based around a site with strong cultural heritage, as is the case in our project.

Pueblo Creative Corridor Throughout history Pueblo had a strong artistic value and carpentry with the steel mill found there, “the diversity of arts has its roots in the Arkansas River borderland and the immigration of

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workers to the steel mill” (vimeo, 2:10). Therefore, when they came to design the area they put great value on these historic influences and came up with designing a creative industry based project emphasizing the different artistic and carpentry fields.

Figure 88: Today's work and facilities based on historic buildings functions at Pueblo

In contrast to our project, which is a complex within a site this project extends to a whole district.

The Pueblo creative corridor houses several artistic and cultural industries:

Figure 89: Pueblo Creative Corridor analysis diagram

“The creative corridor is the most recent demonstration of the community support of the arts as a corner stone of our character” (vimeo, 2:31)

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Master Plan Objectives (Action Plan)

Figure 90: Master plan action plan diagram

One: To develop a competitive creative cluster based on the existing culture and trade in the area 

Promote a connective ground of open and interactive spaces

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

Provide a various number of functions that serve both ends, starting from Visual Arts & Performance and ending with Business & Retail Quarters



Promote a sustainable and human (user friendly) redesign of the area

By that we want to achieve a number of goals, including; 

Increasing employment in the cultural and trade industries to a noticeable number,



Increasing the number of active local companies and organizations,



Expansion of existing local firms and products



Branding Egyptian heritage through a PR model



Educating the visitors on the local hand crafts and talent by providing workshops and training centers.



Establish professional business development model



Solving the street vendor issue, by establishing a wholesale trade market to accommodate them.

Two: To help revive and recreate a rich and diverse cultural experience from high to low user groups By that we want to achieve a number of goals, including; 

Establish the creative industry as a regionally significant visitor/touristic destination



Increase the economic revenue by the number of visits to the creative cluster

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Establishing a leading venue for the contemporary visual arts and performances in the region

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Establish a ‘day-night’ economy, offering quality venues, attractions and entertainments round the clock

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Establish the core of the CI as a green, edutainment and recreational center (Al Azbakeya Garden)

Three: To provide an outstanding environment for the habitus through an innovative urban strategy 

Vacant, Poor conditioned and underutilized buildings are to be replaced by major functions that conform with the location and the CI model guidelines



Reconfiguring the vehicular and pedestrian circulation; minimizing on the vehicular and maximizing on the pedestrian.



Build a network of cafes/restaurants local and modern

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

Providing two underground parking lots

Four: To create a mixed-use urban venue through mobilizing the market On a master plan scale: 

Network of visually and/or physically connected nodes i.e Opera Square, Attaba, Khazendar and Al Azbakeya



Pedestrian connection between all.



Vehicular tunnels that cross under pedestrian network



Pedestrian promenades and elevated pathways



Main focal points



Edutainment recreational zones (book market, open mic, etc.) in Al Azbakeya



Open interactive space in Al Opera Square



Open Light market products in Al Attaba Square

On Individual Zones Scale: 

Open Museum: promote cultural heritage and the like.



Visual Arts and Performance Center: promote local and contemporary dance/fitness teams and trainings as well as providing space for exhibiting shows



Creative R&D center: promote innovative research and development opportunities that upgrades Egyptian educational levels



Local Craftsmen and Designs: promote local historical craftsmen skills to produce creative and unique handmade products



Magazine, Book and Multimedia Publishing Center (PR main quarter): Promote the idea of ‘selling heritage’ introduced in the Local crafts and design, as well as, providing a local publishing press for books and magazines in the Azbakeya area



Retail and Business Quarter: trade based community of merchandise and local business startups, workspaces and expansions.

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Figure 91: Proposed Master Plan Functions

The Master Plan Urban Framework Character Zone

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The area covered by the creative cluster can be divided into a series of zones that exhibit of a variety of different characters based on local activities, building quality and the general environment. The creative core is bounded by the Opera Square and Al Azbakeya garden from al Jomhoreya street side and includes the Visual Arts and Performance center, the Edutainment Azbakeya The cultural industry is bounded by the Azbakeya perimeters and includes the Magazine, Book and Multimedia Publishing center The Creative Industry is bounded by the other side of Al Azbakeya, more towards Al Bostah street and Khazendar square, where the Creative R&D and the Local Crafts and Designer centers are located The Wider Economy is bounded by Al Attaba Square and Al Azhar street where the Open Museum, Retail and Business Quarter and main open market are located

Figure 92: Master Plan Character Zones Plan

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Figure 93: Potential Plots

Figure 94: Chosen Plots ... Refer to appendix B for development opportunities that examines the characters of the building plots and areas in more details.

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Main Components There are three main components of the Urban Framework proposed for the quarter 1. Street pattern (Vehicular/Pedestrian) that reflects the grain of the area and links within the cluster as well as to other parts of the city center with a number of public spaces/nodes providing quality venues and interaction 2. A land use pattern to why key buildings are related; connecting to existing historical, commercial, retail buildings, by that bringing together a more mixed-use character to the area, a blend of old and new.

3. New developments that make positive contribution to the character of the area and treat major problems that face the area through the creativity and quality of their design.

Conservation Area Given the rich context of Al Azbakeya, which includes several buildings assigned as cultural heritage by the UNHC, an approach of specific conservation on an urban level is needed. This will include (according to English Heritage Organizations); 

Repairing the fabric of the area; streets and spaces



Restoring authentic details and materials



Secure the continued use of surrounding historical buildings and relating to their uses



Bring under-utilized spaces to their values and vacant floor space into use.



Ensure a high standard of design and materials for development that fill gap sites in key locations

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Below is a list of the buildings to which the creative cluster will attach as part of its future conservation and maintenance plan given the historical background or functional relevance to the overall master plan concept;

Figure 95: Conservation Plan Map

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Streetscape One of the main objectives is to create a user-friendly district; one that provide humane walkways, as well as functional and needed vehicular circulation pattern. Also, creating lively well maintained and paved promenades, along which all functions are connected and put together in Al Azbakeya Area.

The Existing Streetscape;

Figure 96: Existing Streetscape map

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The strategy to our streetscape redesign could be summarized as follows; 

Repairing the urban fabric



Reconfiguring the vehicular circulation and connection between major nodes o Removing Al Azhar bridge and using one of its ground wings as an enclosed pedestrian promenade. o Adding two vehicular tunnels to allow more pedestrian access where needed, (Khazendar square)



Strengthening the routes through the area o Closed pedestrian loop passing by all nodes, buildings and spaces



Creating a streetscape experience, by encouraging high quality architecture design that always invites the passersby.

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Streetscape Proposals Cover; 

Al Opera Square



Al Attaba Square



Al Bostah Street



Street underneath the erected Azhar bridge



Street cutting through post office from opera to Attaba



Cul de sac additions

Figure 97: Proposed Streetscape

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Regarding the Pedestrian Circulation route;

Figure 98: Map showing the proposed pedestrian network

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Main Development Strategy and Themes Themes proposed include: 1. Culture as a ‘Life style’ 2. Establishing a developing economic cluster 3. Leisure and Entertainment (Pedestrian Promenades, cafes, etc.)

4. ‘Selling Heritage’ Concept 

Establishing a developing Economic Cluster

Figure 99: Map showing the current economic distribution

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Figure 101: Map showing the effect of each project on the surroundings

Figure 100: Graph Showing the econimic status before and after the application of the creative industry model

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Architectural Language Al Azbakeya district as mentioned in earlier studies includes all styles of Architecture, starting with Neo-classic, Islamic, Neo-Islamic, to Baroque and Modern, Post Modern styles.

Therefore in our approach to the design, we’ll have a common language rather than style. A language that is defined by its context and surroundings conforms to its standards or contrasts, either way, it should respond to it in a very sensitive manner.

Refer to the Architectural Approach section for more elaboration.

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Development Plan

Figure 102: Future development plan

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Concluding Map

Figure 103: Concluding map

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Figure 104: Potential Investors map

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References Landry, Charles, and Franco Bianchini. The Creative City. London: Demos, 2000. Print.

Florida, Richard L. The Rise of the Creative Class: Revisited. New York, NY: Basic, 2012. Print.

Lee, Peter, Alex Burfitt, and Andrew Tice. "The Creative Economy and Social Sustainability: Planning for Opportunity and Growth." Built Environment 35.2 (2009): 267-80. Print The Creative Economy - A Feasible Development Option. Rep. A ed. Vol. 01. N.p.: UNDP, 2010. Print.

Serageldin, Ismail. Cultural Heritage and Development in the Arab World. Publication. Ed. Hassan Fekri, Trafford Aloisia, and Youssef Mohsen. Alexandria: Bibliotheca Alexandrina, 2008. Web. Harabi, Najib. Creative Industries: Case Studies from Arab Countries. Working paper. Switzerland: MPRA, 2009. Web. Arts and Creative Industries: A Historical Overview. Publication. Australia: Australian Council for the Arts, n.d. Web. Chen, Yawei. Developing Creative Cities through Creative Clustering Strategy: The Case of Shanghai.

Rep. Netherlands: Dleft University of Technology, 2013. Web. An Analysis of the Economic Potential of the Creative Industries in Vienna. Rep. Vienna: European Fund for Regional Development, 2004. Web. Add Article WAMBA

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Appendix A- Surveying Maps and Buildings Lists

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Appendix B – Development Opportunities

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