[ ALENA TKACHENKA ]
master projects university of Liechtenstein
[ Dietrich Schwarz Studio ] 2015-2016
[ ICELAND ]
[ Into the Labyrinth of the Past ]
The project is a research work, based on the desire to understand how the heat spreads out in the different layers of a building. The philosophical concept is in the idea of a labyrinth as a way of organizing space. “If we willed and dared to an architecture according to the kind of soul we possess, the labyrinth will be our model”. Niezsche Well established world is a prison for creativity and imagination. Responsibility of imagination – go away of the tyranny of reason. The will was to create a building which shows the way to the inner world – as a time window. The building which helps people to understand themselves better, through the path they will come through. The metaphoric path: -the ghosts of time. They are mute and still. Forgotten runes lead to the forgotten world. It’s a road which helps to go through the wild landscape. The nature is unstopped, chaotic. It represents unstoppable blind force. Rune I which means power in piece is the only one which can stand if front of this force. It leads through the storms of men’s unconscious forces which pull into Chaos… -if you go further, it’s not easy to understand, because runes don’t want to talk. Deep under the the layouts of culture there is an entrance to answers about forces of Chaos and Order. People can walk along it, can climb, but all they want to gain they see through the layouts. Is it possible to see the clear image? Runes talk – beware of blind hard earth forces under layers. -the stripes of runes. That is a place where ideas are born. Inguz – a sign of fertility – gives an ability to open the shield of knowledge. -is it easy to get the treasures of knowledge? What is the price for that? “A gift waits for an answer”. Everything must be paid… -shelter place. Peace. Protection of the gods. -a wild world needs human identity.
[ Alena Tkachenka_Plan\facade; source: Alena Tkachenka archive ]
The project of library in Surtshellir lava caves of Iceland is an alternative to regular touristic paths through Iceland. It deals with human fears, beliefs, trust, and welcomes to play the game with people’s own mind. The building is barely seen from the earth, but has an ability to show the cave and all its layers in a safe way. The first part of a building is a labyrinth - as a rememberance of old labyrinths which existed in Icalend for religious purposes. The walls of it are made out of glass with vacuum inside. The labyrinth has an “onion” structure: each inner part of an onion has more heat in comparison to the outer one. The heat amount is calculated by TRNSIS. The second part is a stair which is a “trunk” , a basement of the building. it connects the world of reality outside and the world of fairy-tales inside the cave. The stair allows to go into “in-between” spaces, which are functionally the library rooms. Each of them has its peculiarities how to go in, what to read and what to think of in there. Some of the rooms have access to the balconies, which are a metaphor of a balcony of non-real world, as they are underground. The stair goes to the ground of the cave where people
[ Alena Tkachenka_facade detail; source: Alena Tkachenka archive ]
[ Alena Tkachenka_detail; source: Alena Tkachenka archive ]
A research project about the spiritual and physical understanding of stone through architecture. Transmissions of heat, a use of labyrinth as a forming structure. [ Alena Tkachenka_section; source: Alena Tkachenka archive ]
[ ISRAEL ]
[ Storytelling Playground ]
Romema storytelling playground is designed for ultraorthodox community in the middle of housing complex, Jerusalem, Israel. The motivation of the project was to empathy happiness of orthodox children playing same games as in other cultures. Dealing with childhood was important as a strong tool to resist adult conflicts, as children don’t know about it. The main topic of the studio was cultural concentration and transformation, therefore the project deals a lot with signs, symbols in the daily life of religious Jewish people. Jewish culture understands physical space as a space of a text, which is full with paths, aims, it has density and philosophical content much more than European understanding, for instance. Creating a mythical space, information for children and dealing with their daily life needs were the main ingreidents for the project. The main problematic of the site was that it is a non-space. Physical space is neglected, in comparison to a mental space. The duality in creating an appealing space for rest, as people don’t want that others with another religion will use their playground. The solution was to create a hidden library, as a container of information, buried in the exhisting slope. It has a symbolic meaning – a fundament of the community – with symbols from jewish culture. Ornamentic basement for design was dictated by desire to follow nonverbal sources of information for children, to create them possibility to think creatively, but within their culture. The project is also partly urban – it solves the conflicts between different members of the community, when ones need silence simple walking through the garden , others can play big games without disturbing each other. From ecological point of view, project uses only natural materials, it also has low-tech ventilation and cooling systems.
[ Alena Tkachenka_Plan\facade; source: Alena Tkachenka archive ]
The library in ultraorthodox community is designed specially for children. It deals with the conflict of the separation of jewish culture from the globilising “outside” world. The building represents the basement of the culture. The gallery connects two blocks of a library and two existing religious buildings. With this path the problem of dividing play and quiet space is solved. The library is created only from ecological materials and with old technologies: clay floors, lime stone walls, arches as a ceiling. The project deals a lot with symbols of jewish culture - the best way of communication for children. It will help them to go deeper in understanding of old symbols without language. The playground itself also reminds of the archeologial camp - as a reminder about the amazingly old history of Jerusalem. The main story of the playground is about culture that grows from the ground. The seed of it lies in a small library hidden in the slope. This is the core part of the building. It has only artificial light inside. The second layer of rooms is already with light and contains two reading halls - for boys and for girls; reading rooms and a room for a teacher. Two reading halls are made from clay walls with holes, small entrances, shelves for books of different shape and stairs. It’ s a magical world of children. The third space is a semi-opened terrace, hidden from the sun. The peculiarity between the two spaces is that it has two entrances; one is shifted according to another. There are two reasons: one is a mental play on the idea of entrance which is the main part if a building. The second is that the small entrance allows to go out of the “world of stories” to the real world in a very slow motion, without tearing down the “magical” mental space of children. The exit opens the doors to the “clay playground”, which reminds the letters of hebrew language.
[ Alena Tkachenka_facade detail; source: Alena Tkachenka archive ]
[ Alena Tkachenka_detail; source: Alena Tkachenka archive ]
[ Alena Tkachenka_section; source: Alena Tkachenka archive ]