WEAVING TIRANA - the crossroad between east and west by Rimi Janka

POLITECNICO DI MILANO School of Architecture Urban Planning Costruction Enginering, A.A. 2019-2020 Master of Sustainable Architecture and Landascape Design

WEAVING TIRANA The crossroad between East and West

Supervisor: Gozzi Gio, Co-Supervisor: Pessoa Alves Pereira Henrique Students: Albertazzi Marta (918792), Grilli Alberto (926270), Janka Rimi (918801)

ABSTRACT Tirana is a qiuet young European capital which is under a deep and fast process of transformation, concerning the suburbs as well as the center of the city. Architecture in Tirana tells abount the history of a country that has always been on the boundary between the Eastern and the Western world, the Byzantine Empyre and the Roman Empyre, the Ottomans and the Franks, the communist regime and the fascist one, the Islamic world and the Christian one. The goal of this project is to redesign some fragments within the center of Tirana, which are strategic for a further sustainable development of the city and stressing the historic as well as natural power of its urban landscape. Those fragments need to be linked together by a unique system meant to bring quality of the space, implementing slow mobility against the heavy one, increase the amount of green in order to better reconnect the ecological network of the territory. The main focus on this transformation in the city is a former communist building called “the Pyramid”, which is the strongest witness of the long-lasting regime lead by Enver Hoxha. The presence of this architecture has been fighting with the context of the new, developing Tirana which the current politics want to make match with the image of a contemporary, commercial and mass-tourism-centered city. Through a soft critic of the current project for the pymid, the aim is to propose an alternative solution which fully embraces the historic meaning of the building instead of denying it or hiding. The challenge consists into satisfy the vocation of this building to become one of the main monuments of Tirana, by making citizens to appreciate its hidden beauty and tourists to learn about its history which also can express positive value of the Albanian culture.

INDEX

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

PYRAMID INTRODUCTION

TIRANA EVOLUTION

RELIGIOUS ISSUE

TERRITORIAL READING

TERRITORIAL STRATEGY

FIRST APPROACH

STRATEGY

PROJECT

106

PYRAMID

158

REFERENCES

180

PYRAMID Introduction • PYRAMID HISTORY • NEW FUTURE • CRITIC

The pyramid of Tirana is a structure that has some unique feautures. It was strongly desired by Enver Hoxha, the president of Albania, from the post-war period until the 80s. Originally designed as a National Museum, the new building meant to express the greatness of the nation, that the population no longer felt, given by the detachment of the President from the other Communist groups of the time (Russia and China). For this reason it was decided to build the largest building ever constructed in Albania at the time using an anachronistic shape taken from the pyramids and containing inside the statue of the President as if to sacralise his figure and crystallise it, or rather cement it in time. Its “instructive” function lasted only a few years, and after the death of the dictator, although the regime continued, the building was abandoned and its features, which were initially seen as positive, were transformed into elements that made the figure of the dictator immortal, that like a real pharaoh of the time he had a pyramid built. Commonly called the “Mausoleum of Enver Hoxha” by the Albanians, the building has arrived to the present day in a state of decay, but perceptible only from the outside since it is closed to the public. Nowadays the Pyramid is a symbol of a decadent past and leaves its mark, being located in the heart of Tirana, presenting itself as a splinter in the heart of the capital, reminding it of the mistakes of the past. Citizens amplify this thought every time they visually avoid the pyramid, or rather, the symbol of the former dictator who observes the changes taking place without becoming a change-maker himself. “He died exactly three years after the end of the construction. When sixty days later, the embalmed body was finally enclosed in the sarcophagus after the funeral rituals, the people, tens of thousands of people, stood outside for long hours, their eyes fixed on the mountain of stones. Having taken in the mummy it was meant to house, the pyramid seemed to have reached its fullness’. (Ismail Kadaré - The Pyramid)

PYRAMID HISTORY Time Line

1985

The communist dictator ENVER HOXHA died

1988

Opening of the building as a MEMORIAL LANDSCAPE and MUSEUM of the HERITAGE of ENVER HOXHA

1990

Definitive fall of the socialist empire: the Pyramid was transformed into the NATIONAL CULTURAL CENTER

1991

It changed its function in a CONFERENCE CENTER and EXHIBITION VANUE

1999

During the Kosovo War the former museum was used as a BASE by NATO and HUMANITARIAN ORGANIZATIONS

2001

Since this year, part of the Pyramid has been used as BROADCASTING CENTER of Tirana radio, and the rest of the structure and external part (used as PARKING LOT) have experienced DILAPIDATION and VANDALISM

2010

The Albanian government approves the DEMOLITION of the socialist monument for the construction of the NEW BASE OF PARLIAMENT

2018

After years of rebellion the citizens managed to win against the demolition of the building. A COMPETITION was organized to requalify the monument, and later won by the MVRDV Architecture Studio

Pyramid during the inauguration - Central view

Pyramid during the inauguration - External view

Pyramid during the inauguration - Internal view

PYRAMID HISTORY Building Concept

The team composed by Pranvera Hoxha (the dictator’s daughter), Pirro Vaso (Pranvera’s husband) and Vladimir Bregu under the leadership of Klement Kolaneci, had the task of building the new National Museum by 1988. They started the construction in the 1985 with no time to travel and learn about contemporary constructions and new forms. They take the shape of the pyramid because from the tombs of the Albanian’s ancestors, in the first place without taking up their commemorative function. As a national museum, they made sure that from above the shape of the building followed the wings of the double-headed eagle on the flag, which were to turn into septa, but which folded down to become a roof. The idea of using Mount Dajti as an arketype came later, almost by chance, when they saw the mountain hit by a ray of sunlight. From there, they constructed a form that resembled the shape of the mountain at the back and the sun’s rays at the front. That day, while we were discussing, I remember that it was raining and for a moment a cloud opened up in the sky from where the sun came out. If you looked from the mountains, there was a very harmonious light. (quoting Klement Kolaneci)

SHAPE of the EAGLE

SHAPE of the MOUNTAIN for the Pyramid back

SHAPE of SUNSHINE for the Pyramid front

PYRAMID HISTORY Original Project

The building had to be a shell, conceived as an open space inside, creating continuous communication with the rooms, always lit by natural light from outside, except in the rooms of the underground part. The building consists of 6 floors, for 4 of which there is a continuous pathway designed as an exhibition space from the +0.0m level to the +13.2m level, interrupted by different views of the city at different levels, and which always has a view towards the central part of the pyramid. The basement levels of the pyramid were designed to contain functional parts: the -1.65m level was used for the passage of equipment, while the -4.65m level contains secondary entrances giving access to a library, a cinema room, the museum administration, toilets, equipment storage and finally the air conditioning rooms for the upper floors. In 1988, the greatest work of the communist regime of Enver Hoxha was inaugurated. Contrary to the pharaohs, the spirit of the dictator was already inside the Pyramid, and the Pyramid was meant to be a reminder of its grandeur in the eyes of the Albanians. The idea was to build a functional work, to resist the materialisation of function. (quoting Klement Kolaneci)

PLAN + 13,2 m

PLAN + 9,6 m

PLAN + 5,4 m

PLAN + 0,0 m

PLAN - 1,65 m (Techinal area)

PLAN - 4,65 m

Administrative Room

Meeting room

Functional room

Toilets

Library

Storages

PYRAMID HISTORY Current Situation

The life of the museum was short-lived, as two years after its inauguration, with the fall of the regime, the Pyramid was also abandoned and its long decline began. Over the years, we have seen various attempts to recover this ‘monument’, but also many attempts to tear it down and build something else. This points out that the citizens of Tirana have a controversial relationship with the Pyramid, as they fail to fill it with life when the administrations decide to put new functions in it, but at the same time they do not accept its demolition. This love-hate relationship makes this building unique, very well embedded in the city in a valuable area, and surrounded by a mountainous landscape around Tirana, making it a perfect example of urban landscape creation. Its form dares to impose itself on the site, but fails to enter the hearts of the people who have been betrayed by that regime, as well as by all those promises of grandeur in the period of misery in which the city found itself at the end of the 1980s, when even food was becoming scarce. Since the fall of the regime, it seems that the pyramid has been there, watching, as do those old men who are bound by blurred memories that do not accept change, but rather judge people who try to innovate. If it is true that the pyramid is completed with the soul of the person for whom it is made, we can say that it is the same Enver Hoxha who still holds a part of the city’s soul hostage. 14

External view

Internal view - from the new auditorium

Internal view - From the p + 0,0m

NEW FUTURE MVRDV Project 2018 In order to explain what the pyramid is becoming today, we could take the description of the MVRDV website where, which in a few lofty words, they explain their approach to the pyramid. However, the reality requires a more pragmatic view of the matter, since we are facing a new chapter in the history of the pyramid and Albania, which sees how the state is preparing to become a member of the EU and is being rediscovered by the various states of the world, as will be discussed later, with the approach of parcelling out and “selling” the areas of Tirana, including the area on which there is the pyramid. The project consists in the change of use of the pyramid in a centre for technological education for young people, developed in various clusters, both inside and outside the pyramid, which seek neither to be a graft nor to be part of the pyramid itself. In addition, in order to maintain the custom of climbing the front wings of the pyramid by the most fearless tourists, stairways will be located onto them. After an interview with Professor Saimir Kristo of Polis University in Tirana, it emerged that the government, despite already have a project for the redevelopment of the pyramid, has decided to design another one. The jurists of this second project apparently are not experts of the city of Tirana and of the behaviour of Albanians. The decision is made by the government in a way to baipass them trying to monetise as much as possible from the final project. 16

External view

Axonometry

Internal view - From the p + 0,0m

CRITIC The Pyramid Park - Tirana Architecture Week 2014

The Pyramid Park project, is the latest winner in a series of calls for proposals from the universities, which had set themselves the task of bringing the Pyramid back to life, keeping its memory at the centre. This project monumentalises the pyramid by emptying it from the inside, up to the boundaries of its lot, and keeping the wings as a permanent sign of its importance. The jury chose this project even though it was the most brazen one, because in addition to giving a real green footprint, it gives space back to the citizens, who after years of closure and without knowing what might be inside the Pyramid, would have found themselves walking among the remains of it, no longer caring about it or being afraid of it. The addition of a central ramp then gave the citizens the opportunity to have for the first time a view from the pyramid towards the city and no longer just the opposite. Moreover, the idea of emptying this building of all its past would transform this form into a component of a new Urban Landscape, something for which the city and the citizens of Tirana could be proud, while keeping in mind the dangers of totalitarianism.

External view

Top view

Night view

CRITIC Faith Park - Landscape Competition 2015

In past years, proposals have been made not only for the Pyramid but also for other areas of the city. In particular, the Park of Fate project concerns the design of a minimally invasive pathway centred on the religious theme, featuring areas for contemplation and isolation from the frenetic noise of the surrounding city, but without a church or mosque. The fact that it was considered to focus on a general religious theme and not on a specific religion makes Tirana and the Albanians proud, since it is located in a city where distinctions between Christians and Muslims hardly exist. The route is characterised by refreshment points for body and soul, which have an educational function for tourists and are positioned in fenced-off spots of green areas with historical importance. The intervention is also focused on reducing the amount of cars and pollution for the benefit of more space for inhabitants and greenery. The project also approaches the pyramid and locates a green area all around it, which gives a sense of its size.

Aereal view Contemplation and meditation point Central unit Green area Linear trees structure

Conceptual map

Internal spot view

TIRANA Evolution • HISTORY OF TIRANA • CURRENT SITUATION

It is possible to talk about Albanians without talking about Tirana, but it is not possible to talk about Albania without talking about its capital. Tirana was always a small village until the fall of the Ottoman Empire, and was born in one of the flat areas of the Albanian-speaking territory of the country. The village obtained his strategy position thanks to the passage connecting the heart of the empire to the coastal towns of both present-day Albania and Montenegro, and from this grew. The date that marked the change of this village was 11 February 1920, when the representatives of the newborn Albanian government moved to what was to become the capital of a young country with a centuries-old culture. In order to talk about Albania, it is necessary to refer to the city of Tirana, since every growth and change that the country had during the 20th century passed first through the capital, whose most important remnants of these changes can still be seen today. During the Fascist period of the 20th century, Tirana invested heavily in giving the city a “modern” urban structure, as well as in the construction of large rationalist buildings (which are still in use today), which were intended to give it the identity of a true capital city and made it take a qualitative leap forward. After the Second World War, the growth of the capital continued very slowly, and the city was compartmentalised, reflecting the closure of the country. During that period experiments aimed at giving an idea of the great Albanian state through the construction of iconic buildings in the Brutalist style and the creation of large parks, as well as the closure of an area of the city that became a personal area of the dictator. After the fall of the regime, the state went through a period of confusion, resulting in urban sprawl without the use of any kind of regulation, even occupying even the green areas of the city. Since 2010 Tirana has been searching for a new identity. As the new investment in the city grows, the city grows in turn to meet a demand for immigration from the country’s suburbs. The city is taking on a futuristic feel, with a new green urban plan and a burgeoning growth in buildings of all kinds, establishing Tirana as the most modern capital city in the Balkans.

HISTORY of TIRANA Time Line

1912-1938 INDIPENDENCES FROM OTTOMANS: • Brasini main axis plan • Orizontal unorganized growth of the city • Tirana as ‘Believer Community’

1938-1945 ITALIAN OCCUPATION: • Migration to the center of the city from the interland • First organized urban plans

1945-1990 COMMUNIST DICTATURE (ENVER HOXHA): • Soviet influence in both housing and urban planning • Destruction of all religions issue

1991-2003 TIRANA EXPANSION: • Rapid growth of the city • Use of colurs for old building and requalification of housing • Loss of identity of the city

2004-2015 “EUROPEAN CAPITAL OF THE FUTURE”: • Research of a new Identity, deleting the old one with new modern building • Vertical organized growth of the city

2004-2015 TIRANA AS A GREEN CITY ( BOERI ): • New sustainable urban plan • Costruction of modern building

HISTORY of TIRANA Expansion and Urban Plans

1912-1938

1939-1945

1930

1939

ARMANDO BRASINI (1879-1965) From 1929 to 1931 the center of Tirana became a construcion site for work by italian architect. Among these there was Brasini, who deisgned the wide boulevard on the north-south main axis starting from the Scanderbeg square. The project idea was to create a “roman island” in the city centre, in contrast with the oriental urban structure.

GHERARDO BOSIO (1903-1941) Fascist military intervention in 1939 finds the city which extended faster. With the major demographic movements, lack of housing and commercial space and insufficient road system caused a major urban crisis. For this reason Bosio designed a radial road network, which converged in Skanderbeg square.

1946-1990

1991-2015 2030

STEFANO BOERI (1957-) Stefano Boeri Architects is working about the model for a new balance between city and nature is defined as a kaleidoskopic city for Tirana 2030, based on ten themes (biodiversity, polycentrism, widespread knowledge, mobility, water, geopolitics, tourism, accessability, agricolture and energy) that provide the overall vision. This plan reduce the forecast for demographic development of the urban area by two thirds in favour of a green city accessibe to all in the name of functional plurality and a mix of activities.

CURRENT SITUATION Contemporary Building

1. NEW NATIONAL STADIUM of ALBANIA Archea Associati

2. VERTICAL FOREST Stefano Boeri Architetti

3. PARK GATE Xplan Studio

4. NEW BAZAR Atelier4

5. TID TOWER 51NAE

6. CENTRAL BANK of ALBANIA Marco Petreschi

7. ALBAN TOWER Archea Associati

8. TIRANA NATIONAL THEATRE BIG

9. LANA BRIDGE 41N4E

10. MET Mario Cucinella Architects

11. BLACK DIAMOND TIRANA DEA Studio

12. RIVERSIDE Stefano Boeri Architetti

CURRENT SITUATION Contemporary Building

The city of Tirana today is growing very rapidly, and the administration is encouraging the sale of many plots of land for the realisation of important projects assigned to international architects, allowing the city to become an experimental hub of new ideas. But very often these projects are not carried out with respect to the needs of the citizens and are executed with unskilled labour and low-quality materials. The growth of the city has also led to a greater demand for new housing, resulting in avertical growth inside the city centre with areas for recreation, which, however, are not found in the peripheral areas where there is still the imprint of the squatting that marked the post-dictatorship period. A visit to Tirana provides an opportunity to see the historical phases of change that the country has undergone, reflected in buildings from different periods and with different vocations, due also from the religious differences present in the city. “Does Tirana have enough buildings for government offices and other state institutions?” “Even if we don’t have them, we will build them.” (Kristo frasheri - The history of Albania 1964)

View from Piazza Skanderbeg

RELIGIOUS Issue • RELIGIOUS HISTORY IN ALBANIA • CURRENT SITUATION • TIRANA ‘BELIEVER COMMUNITY’ • SACRED PLACES

Albania characterized by indigenous people with a historical origin and resistance that has brought it into the 21st century with a distinct characterisation and a language that has a different structure from the languages of neighbouring states. The reasoning is very different when it comes to religion. Throughout history, the Albanian territories have been conquered by various empires, which have always imposed completely different religions, starting with the first religion of the Illyrian people, who practised sun worship. The conversion to Christianity occurred under the rule of the Roman Empire (thanks to the Apostle Paul) who converted the Illyrian population in the Roman region. This religious form proliferated throughout the duration of the Roman Empire, thus changing the customs and habits of the population. Following the division of the Roman Empire in 395, until 1054 which sanctioned both the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the passage of the area of today’s Albania under the juristiction of the Eastern Roman Empire, there was an ecclesiastical struggle for control of the border region, which led to a division of the population towards two religions: Catholicism and Orthodoxy. In 1478, the territory of the Principality of Albania became part of the Ottoman Empire after strong resistance from the Albanian population to defend a strong Christian identity. Under the Ottoman domination, there was another net change in the uses and customs of the population that from that moment on, for more than four centuries, brought Islam to be the religion of the majority of the population, while Christianity, both Orthodox and Catholic, was practiced to a lesser extent. At the beginning of the 20th century, with the fall of the Ottoman Empire, the state was established for the first time, in an era of nationalism where religions were no longer given pride of place. After the Second World War, one of the harshest dictatorships in the world took over, banning all religions and burning churches and manuscripts. During the dictatorship, a new kind of religious custom was formed, according to which one’s own home was the only place to pray, while outside, one was all equal and all Albanian citizens, regardless of creed.

Since the 1990s, after the fall of the mechanism, the Albanians have been catapulted into a new reality: after 40 years of isolation from the rest of the world, they have realised that the situation they experienced during the Second World War is no longer there. The state found itself in a context where by now sovereign states had made way to supranational organisations of an economic or religious nature. Muslim states were in the midst of a war of identity radicalisation, not only against western states, as they enter in their territory, but even with those who were part of their own state and who followed the same faith. In all this situation, the small state of Albania stands as a secular state where everyone is free to profess their religion, and indeed where religious festivals are celebrated by the entire population, following the principle that everyone can pray to God in a different way, but we are all brothers and sisters on this earth. The distribution of religion over the territory partly reflects the secular evolution of religions and also the topographical conformation of the territory. In the north-east, in the plain around the city of Shkodra, there is a clear prevalence of Catholic Christians, who recall Skanderbeg’s struggle to defend religion and the Albanians, while the rest of the territory is dominated by Muslims. In the south there is a patchy diversification due to the presence of isolated villages where the lack of communication has preserved their own identities, and various religions or beliefs: there are those who practice the Muslim faith, those who practice the Orthodox Christian faith (because the area was under the influence of the Byzantine faith) and those who do not believe at all. In Tirana there is still a portion of the city that was strongly influenced by the dictator’s ideas about the creation of the “new man” in his “perfect secular state”. The religion of the Albanians is Albanianness’. (Quoted by Vaso Pasha)

MUSLIM

CATHOLICS

MONTENEGRO KOSOVO

ADRIATIC SEA

MACEDONIA

ORTHODOX

TIRANA

GREECE

IONIAN SEA ATHEISTS

Muslim

Chatolics

Orthodox

Atheists

RELIGIOUS HISTORY in ALBANIA Time Line

I century d.c.

Christianity spreads in Albania thanks to the advent of Saint Paul and some Christian missionaries

395

Following the division of the Roman Empire into Eastern and Western Empire the territory was placed under the jurisdiction of the Eastern Roman Empire, but in ecclesiastical terms it remained dependent on Rome

732

The area became the domain of the patriarchate of Constantinople and for centuries it became the arena of ecclesiastical struggles between the two capitals

1478

The principality of Albania joined the Ottomans Empire. For over four centuries, Islam became the religion of the majority of the population

1912

State indipendence, and with the Costitution of 1928 it was affirmed “There is no official religion. All religions and faiths are respected; freedom of worship and the free exercise of its external practice are guaranteed”

1967

After the second world war, the state became part of the communist government, headed by Enver Hoxha. Albania became the first Athiest State, in which most of the churches and mosquees were destroyed or they became state property and converted into cultural centers, warehouses or reused for civilian uses

1990

When the communist empire fell, freedom of worship was restored

Skanderbeg statue, fighter against ottomans for the indipendence

Gianizzeri army under the ottoman empyre

Albanian army during the dictature

TIRANA ‘Believer Community’ Sacred Places

B.I.G. project Churches Mosquees

Although some churches were destroyed during the regime, the capital strongly reflects religious variety. This is exemplified by the numerous churches and mosques spread all around the city, both old and new, built due to the migratory flows that have encouraged the displacement of part of the population from outlying villages to the city centre looking for a better life perspective. An example of both faith and new colonisation is the construction of the largest mosque in the Balkans, desired by the community and financed by the Turkish state, which in recent years has been trying to expand its influence in the territories of the former Ottoman Empire.

TIRANA ‘Believer Community’ B.I.G - New mosque and museum of Tirana & religious harmony

The continuing attempt by the administration to modernise the city while not forgetting the religious fabric is the result of a general desire to express the faith. B.I.G.’s design for the Mosque and Museum in Tirana sought to create a Muslim-oriented space with a religious vocation, which becomes a corridor to open up the space to all citizens. The project also includes spaces for a museum of the city’s history and religious harmony, in order to transform Tirana and Albania once again into a world crossroads where all religions are free to meet and mingle. The decision to hold an international competition gives the idea that the city’s future will involve technological evolution, but without abandoning its identity and culture, that is a problem becoming apparent with ongoing globalisation. Unfortunately this project was never realized for bureaucratic reasons, even though it would have been a new centre of attraction at world level.

Aereal view

Muslim prayer

Central area

SACRED PLACES Definition and Elements

COMMUNITY

PROTECTION

DEVOTION

Meeting place for faithful

Walls as fences that separate the sacred from the hectic daily life

Opening towards the sky and so the divinities

“the Sacred Place is the one where a person, thanks to the place itself, is able to connect with higher dimensions of himself, he is able to feel the deep connection with Nature, with everything that the Universe includes. In a Sacred Place, fear disappears, the world is perceived as good, one feels at one with the others. Crossing the door, even in metaphorical terms, of such a place actually means crossing a new dimension of oneself.”

SQUARE: symbol of ACCEPTANCE

WATER: symbol of PURITY

VEGETATION: symbol of CREATION

It’s considered as the symbol of the aggregation and so of community. For this reason, usually, the square is used to indicate the city center and it’s placed in front of a Sacred place as a church or a mosquee. Place where faithfull can als meet eachother, before enter in the religious site.

The water is an important element in religious context, because it symbolizes the step of purification. In fact, it’s usually placed near the entrances of the Sacred Place, in order to create a sort of balance between the daily life and the holy space and to eliminate any negative sensation from the faithfull.

Anchored to the earth with its roots and reaching towards the sky, the vegetation represents the symbol of the devotion and the creation, in the form of Nature. Every religions present in their Sacred Textes different typology of plants and shrubs, each with a different meaning.

SACRED PLACES

OLEA E._ Peace

CITRUS_ Mistery of life

ZIZIPHUS J._ Silence

PUNICA G._ Wealth

PHOENIX D._ Immortality

The relationship between vegetation and religions dates back to the dawn of time, as nature’s life process has always inspired humans. The diversification of religions has been in the same line with the diversification of the species considered ‘sacred’, due both to the area in which the religions thrived, since the climate allows the growth of specific species, and to the usefulness that plants had throughout man’s evolution in the medical field.

TAMARIX G._ Fertility

Religious Vegetation Typologies

And God said: “Let the earth bring forth shoots, and herbs that produce seed, and fruit trees that bear fruit on the earth with the seed, each according to its kind”. And so it came to pass, and God saw that it was good (Genesis 1:11).

44 Islamism vegetation typologies

Christianity vegetation typologies

CUPRESSUS_ Eternity

ALOE VERA_ Immortality

AQUILEGIA_ Hipocrisy OLEA E._ Peace

SILYBUM M._ Sun

LILIUM_ Purity

FICUS_ Abundance

PASSIFLORA_ Passion

CERATONIA_ Traitor

CERCIS C._ Shame

ACACIA_ Strenght

PRUNUS D._ Fertility

ABIES_ Longevity

CITRUS_ Mistery of life

RANUNCULUS_ Beauty

SACRED PLACES Religious Carpet Typologies

Carpets in Eastern Europe have always been important both for display in places of power and in places of a religious nature. The carpets found in Albania today date back to the Byzantine Empire. Over the years, the change in power has also brought about a change in religion, but the persistence and appreciation of the carpet in its daily use has always been maintained. The presence of prayer in the Muslim religion allowed them to be used as a kind of personal enclosure both in religious places and in the private houses. The vision of the carpet as an “intimate” object that has endured over the centuries can also be found today in the homes of Albanians. Although it has lost its religious importance in a general sense (somewhat as the Albanians lost it during the communist regime), it has evolved as an object that creates a warm and welcoming environment, with its geometric shapes and bright colours. Since they are mostly handmade, they become an ambitious suovenir for tourists, to take home a piece of Albania, to recreate that “intimate” atmosphere of many centuries ago, or simply to hang them as paintings. The importance of these carpets can be found in urban projects, such as Skanderbeg Square and Mother Teresa Square in Tirana, or the new riverfront in Shkodra. These projects create a texture to give a familiar place to citizens in cities that are increasingly distant from this concept. 46

Aereal view of the new river front in shkoder

Christian carpet

Muslim carpet

Traditional albanian living room

TERRITORIAL Reading • ECOLOGICAL SYSTEM in ALBANIA • VEGETATION and WATER SYSTEM • CONNECTIONS SYSTEM in ALBANIA • INFRASTRUCTURE SYSTEM • CRITIC

One of the main aspirations for a new project inside Tirana is to take in consideration the context around the city and the way the small scale affects the large one through a wide-ranging vision of a whole territorial System. The city of Tirana has as strong point the very close contact with nature and more specifically some very important protected areas as regards the local ecosystem. The very fast and uncontrolled process of urban expansion in the nineties - a process that is still on-going even though with a better pianification - has highlited the environmental problem of urban invasion of valuable natural areas which is leaving them more and more disconnected. the aim of the project is to make every little intervention partecipate to a large scale strategy that is going to affect also more distant parts of the city: re-designing a waterfront of the river Lana in the centre of the city means to expand the same approach all along the river inside the city and keeping the same sensitivity towards this natural element. In the same way the developement of new pedestrian areas can be the link for establishing slow-mobility infrastructures also in the large scale. As concerns the preservation of the ecosystem, new green areas designed inside the city should not be put as isolated gardens for the beautification of public space, instead, they should be included in a network that connects directly towords the large non-touched natural areas with as less obstacles as possible. The current developing-plan for Tirana is called “Tirana 2030” by Stefano Boeri and it also takes in consideration environmental issues: The goal is to circumscribe the built tissue expansion of the city through a green belt wich will prevent the invasion of the sorrounding forests. Also the belt is intersected by some green spines that penetrate inside the city and cross it all the way long in order to connect the opposite sides of the suburbs. In this green-centered plan the issue of infrastructures should be pointed out: roads and railwyas can both partecipate with the green strategic elements, in the shape of boulevards, but also work as a main obstacle when it comes to high-connectivity thick infrastructures. A correct big scale strategy should find the best balance betwea necessary connectivity and a certain integrity of the green system.

ECOLOGICAL SYSTEM in ALBANIA Topography and Biodiversity

The albanian territory has a very articulated geography: on the West side there’s a 427km long coast line which faces the Adreiatic Sea, a narrow band of mainly flatlands in the mid-West while all the rest are mountains areas. This articulation produces a variety of interesting areas for the biodiversity, depending on the altitude and the climate types which also are very variable accros the country.

MONTENEGRO

KOSOVO

ADRIATIC SEA

MACEDONIA

TIRANA

GREECE

IONIAN SEA

Topography

National Park

Managed Nature Reserve

Protected Landscape

Zones Managed Resources

Strict Nature Reserve

ECOLOGICAL SYSTEM in ALBANIA Protected Areas

For its size, Albania is characterised by a considerable wealth of terrestrial and marine ecosystems and habitats among which there are wetlands, lakes, rivers, mediterranian as well as continental forests. Divjakë-Karavasta is one of the most important natural areas along tha albanian coast and It’s the largest lakeside system in the country. It’s composed by 4 wetlands and a thick vegetation of pines all around. The dalmatian pelican is a native spiecies of the area and many spicemen find these wetlands as their favourite habitat. Teth National Park is the earliest established protected are since 1966. it’s a mountain site in the Albanian alps rich of tree spieces and full of water streams supplied by the very rainy climat (the wettest site in Europe) Coming closer to Tirana, the mountain range that defines the Eastern border of the city corresponds to the Dajti National Park: it’s an area of 3300 hectares of forests which includes also 200 years old beeches. It’s adiacent to the Mali me Gropa-Bizë-Martanesh Protected Landscape to the East side, deeper in the inland, which is another mountain area lergely covered by forest. There are several spieces of flora and fauna hosted there thanks to the particular morphologic and climate conditions.

Dajti Mountain

Bovilla Lake inside Dajti National Park

Divjakë-Karavasta wetlands ares

VEGETATION and WATER SYSTEM Analysis

There are other sub-elements that links Tirana with the Dajti National Park area and have a strong relationship with the city: Lumi i Tiranes is the main river of Tirana’s valley and lean on it’s northern side. Lana river is a tributary of Lumi i Tiranes which goes all the way through the center of the city. Both those rivers have a conflicted relationship with the city due to the risk of depositing waste material from the urban settlements. However, Lana river has recentrly been cleaned and put in safety. The idea of reconnecting the centre of Tirana with the sorrounding natural areas is suggested by the presence of the Grand Park of Tirana in the Southern border, which is located both close to the centre and the natural areas on the opposite site, creating a potential link. On the south-west side the Park is close to a system of hills which constitute a segment of the potential “orbital forest” around Tirana, meanwhile on the eastern part there’s the Farka Artificial Lake, which creates another part of the ecosystem that calls to be preserved. In the Northern suburbs, beyond Lumi i Tiranes there’s the Paskuqan Park, a group of meadows that has been preserved from the illegal building expansion.

i Lum

nes

i Tira

r ive R a

0 Water system

Green system

Water bodies

Forest

River bed

Protected Forest

Urban Park

Vacant Land

Agricolture

River Lana Source River Lana

2,5 km

Wild Lawns

Monument to Enver Hoxha

5 km

VEGETATION and WATER SYSTEM

ARBUTUS UNEDO

TILIA CORDATA

CASTANEA S.

COLUTEA A.

ACER P.

ERICA ARBOREA

PINUS PINEA

Flora in Tirana is made of a variety of spieces that are spread inside the city. Trees like maritime pines, cypresses, bay trees, beeches, oriental hornbeams ect. contribute to define the pictures of the local landscape. Tree rows and urban parks are made by such types of plants.

LAURUS NBILIS

Existing Vegetation Typologies

PINUS LEUCODERM

CORNUS MAS

PNUS NIGRA

PHILLYREA ANGUSTI F.

QUERCUS PETRAEA

CARPINUS O.

CORYLLUS A.

FRAXINUS ORNUS

FAGUS SYLVATICA

CONNECTIONS SYSTEM in ALBANIA

Infrastructures in Albania are made by a complex network constrained by the articulated morphology of the territory. Tirana is the node of a North to south connection from Montenegro to Greece, and it’s connected to the mediterranian water routes through the harbour of Durazzo. This situation, which is common for any capital city, produces a thick system of infrastructures that needs both to penetrate and go accross the city, producing physical boundaries. In the eastern part of Tirana the situation is made more complex due to the presence of hills. On the other hand, infrastructures are important in order to guarantee a good traffic flow which inhabitants and travelers can benefit from. Nonetheless, It can be also be an opportunity to drive the streams towoards some parts while keeping it away from others.

MONTENEGRO

KOSOVO

MACEDONIA ADRIATIC SEA

GREECE

IONIAN SEA

Topography

Motorway in service

Motorway planned

Motorway U/C

Motorway proposed

Dual carriageway

INFRASTRUCTURE SYSTEM Analysis Kosovo

zo raz Du

Dura z

Dajiti M. N.Park

b El of D.

D. of Ka va je

a as 0

Territorial road system Territorial Connection Road

Secondary Road

Rail way

Principal Road

Connection Road (in Progress)

Monument to Enver Hoxha

2,5 km

5 km

0 Principal bycicle - pedestrian urban path system Existing path

Proposed Path

Path in project

Monument to Enver Hoxha

2,5 km

5 km

CRITIC Ring Division

With the actual situation is difficult to define a continuous and smooth ring road especially in the eastern part, this is because of the lack of urban planning that characterized the first modern expansion of Tirana. Overall, the city appears as a mainly vehicular and fast mobility-centered corresponding to a model that doesn’t match anymore with the contemporary developement of most of european cit, taking in account also the modest size of Tirana itself which might not need fast connectivity systems over slow ones. the centre of Tirana is inveded by cars and there’s a lack of big infrsastructures around that can delimitate the urban tissue from protected natural areas or productive areas.

2,5 km

5 km

CRITIC Critical nodes

S O

• MAIN AXIS • CONNECTION • PRESENCE OF NATIONAL PARK AND PROTECTED LANDSCAPE • MONUMENT CENTRAL POSITION

• NEARNESS OF PARKS AND FORESTS • CONNECTION • PRESENCE OF RIVER LANA IN THE CITY CENTER • PRESENCE OF NEARBY CULTURAL AND ISTITUTIONAL HISTORIC BUILDING

W T

• UNUSED RIVER-FRONT • PRESENCE OF TERRITORIAL CONNECTION INSIDE THE CITY CENTER • UNUSED RIVER FRONT • LOSS OF TIRANA’S HISTORY

• DECAY OF THE MONUMENT • DIVISION OF THE CITY DUE TO THE PRESENCE OF MAIN AXIS AND RIVER LANA • LACK OF PEDESTRIAN CROSSING ALONG THE MAIN AXIS • URBAN EXPANSION TOWARDS NATURE

2,5 km

Nature and infrastructure critical connection point Territorial Connection Road

Rail way

Urban grown into Nature

Principal Road

Critical Road

Disconnection

Secondary Road

Monument to Enver Hoxha

Critical Nodes

5 km

TERRITORIAL Strategy • STRATEGY • GOALS

Even though the intervention concerns the centre of Tirana, the approach is meant to make it part of a urban and territorial strategy which should put some constraints for a further sustainable developement of the city. By thinking of turning the main axis in the centre of Tirana as a pedestrian-friendly boulevard is possible to establish a new character to the city center at first, and then also to more peripherical parts of the city connected by strategic infrastructures such as Lana river. The addition of new urban green, even through little elements, should work as a link that connects all the other important parts of the ecologic network. bringing new quality to the urban space, also through the implementation of green, is an opportunity to stimulate a slow way of mobility throughout the city both for citizens and tourists.

STRATEGY Process

INCLUDE FRAGMENTED GREEN AREAS INSIDE TIRANA

IMPROVE A UNIQUE ECOLOGICAL SYSTEM

PREVENT URBAN EXPANSION TOWARDS NATURE

ESTABLISH A NEW INFRASTRUCTURE HIERARCHY

STRATEGY Vegetation and Water System

The core of the strategy is the intersection between Lana River and the main North-South axis of the city. those two axes should be the main spines which cross the city and connect with the outer ecosystems. This implies the riqualification of the river banks put more importanlty of the road that will be turned into a green boulvevard. The result of this is a strenghtened connention of the chain with: river-green spine-Grand Park. From this situation is possible to imagine a reconnection with the other sorrounding natural areas through other non-built areas ot through some punctual solutions that can help to cross the physical coundaries.

2,5 km

Vegetation and water system Small Ecosystem

River Ecosystem

Permeability through the river front

Green Corridor

Great Ecosystem

River Lana Source

Future connections to strenghten

Monument to Enver Hoxha

5 km

STRATEGY Infrastructure System

0 Vegetation and water system Territorial Connection Road

Rail way

New Infrastructure Connection

Principal Road

New Pedestrian Main Axis

Disconnection

Secondary Road

Road in progress

Monument to Enver Hoxha

2,5 km

5 km

GOALS Actions

GREEN CORRIDOR

URBAN EXTENSION BLOCK

GREEN CONNECTION

ADDITION OF GREEN ELEMENTS

PERMEABLE RIVER FRONT

GOALS New ring division

the overall strategy for the green system and infrastructural network has two main goals: one is to set a clear hierarchy of roads that radially penetrate inside the city, the latters are are progressively intercepted by three layers of “rings” with a circular and smooth circulation. the second is to start a process of pedestrianization of the inner ring which despite of the dense character of the sorrounding city, should be set in continuity with the green area of the southern Park of Tirana. In this way the structure would gain more celarness and be settend in this model: a inner ring of low density tissue with a high consentration of the main public, political and cultural functions, a middle ring with a dense urban tissue, mainly residential and commercial, a third residential ring with a lower density again.

2,5 km

5 km

FIRST APPROACH Strategy • III RING • PROJECT AREA ANALYSIS • CRITIC

The transformation of public space in the center of Tirana is driven by quite strong actions of traffic redistribuition and infrastructural removal that would benefit the strategic elements. This operation is not irrelevant for the viability within the city so it’s important to make sure that the urban plan on the large scale will support localized changes. As it has been shown in the prevoius chapters, a better, smoother orbital connection, which now is missing, should create the right conditions to move parts of the traffic away from the areas of intervention.

II and III RING CONNECTION Flow distribution

500 m

1 km

Vehicular connection Territorial Connection Road Principal Road

Secondary Road

500 m

1 km

Principal pedestrian circulation Pedestrian River Front

Pedestrian trail

Principal Pedestrian Path

Free public space

II and III RING CONNECTION Conceptual critic diagram

By reading the urban tissue of the area in a more abstract way, it appears an axis that connects two big nodes (Skenderbej Square and Mother Theresa Square) and all the most important buildings (monuments) of both political and cultural function are distribuited along this two-pole system

Principal Junction

Disorganized Area

Main Road

Secondary Junction

Square

Limit Road

Organized Area

Landmark

Secondary Road

Organized Center Area

Churches/ Mosquees

Center Limit

Isolated Area

Pyramid of Enver Hoxha

Main Axis

Forest

Secondary Landmark

River Lana

500 m

1 km

III RING Focus

In the actual situation the center of Tirana (III ring) Viale dell’Impero is the main road that collects most part of the traffinc withing this area, being the two squares are at the top ends of the III ring the avenue does’t actually provide a big scale connectivity even though a big part of urban traffic is driven there. A seires of secondary roads cross the main one and intersect with the circular road which delimitates the ring. Lana river, which also crosses perpendiculary the avenue, is closed by two parallel roads that run all the way long the watercourse inside the city.

2,5 km

5 km

PROJECT AREA ANALYSIS Vegetation and water system

Lana river is a little waterstream but it’s the only one that cuts through the city of Tirana and creates a strong, but now hidden, relationship with it. for the bibbest part the river has an artificial character due to the concrete banks that have been built to shape its path. Along the main avenue there’s a system of parks and other smaller green ares among which there’s the block of the Pyramid. Grand Park of Tirana is located on a hill right behind the University building (Casa del Fascio). it’s a high quality green area of 290 hectars with around 120 spieces of plants among which stand out cypresses, black pines and beeches. The park includes also an artificial lake and a Botanical garden. The park is considered as important heritage not only for its biodiversity but for the presence of several landmarks and memorial to different Albanian personalities. It also offers many opportunities for recreational activites including fishing and swimming.

2 1

Urban Parks Grand Park River front Rive Lana

3 0

250 m

500 m

PROJECT AREA ANALYSIS Infrastructure and function system

The core of Tirana is shaped by the plan of the fascist period lead by Gherardo Bosio, with a rationalist and monumental asset of two main squares connected with an axis. Skanderbej Squere was renovated in 2017 and became completly pedestrian. The vehicular traffic has been moved to the streets around and new parking lots, including an underground parking, have been added. Meanwhile the opposite pole, Mother Theresa Square, is still a big impermeable area with low quality and the car ciruculaiton is prevalent. Only a decorated portion is kept in the middle with a colorful pattern which imitates the typical albanian carpets as a decoration of the space.

Crosswalk Parking Area Square Territorial Connection Principal Road Secondary Road Pedestrian Path Municipality Library Art Gallery Churces Mosquee

University Court Fountain Artefact Theater

250 m

500 m

PROJECT AREA ANALYSIS sections

The main axis (Boulevard Dëshmorët e Kombit) is an eight-lane wide road with two sidewlaks. It’s interrupted by the crossings with the secondary roads and it crosses Lana river as well though a ground-level bridge. As far as concerns Lana River axis, it has a pretty monotonous evolution being all the way straight with concrete made banks, green slopes with some urban green and a road with sidewalks on each side.

A’

SECTION A-A’ ALONG THE MAIN AXIS

SECTION B-B’ ALONG THE RIVER LANA

B’

STRATEGY • II and III RING CONNECTION • III RING • PROJECT AREA STRATEGY

Thanks to the analysis of the urban landscape performed so far is possible to draw the main actions and finding the spots (nodes) where the single intervention can become strategic for the larger scale concept. The synthesis of the overall intervention is a pedestrianization of the centre of Tirana, more specifically the “third ring” which still has a hard asset that is dominated by vehicular circulation and high-quility public spaces are percieved as “isolated” blocks with little relationships one to each other. This can both contribute or be indipendent to the goal of connecting the green areas. The different goals of the strategy are: • to accompish the vocation of the main boulevard to become a pedestrian friendly road, where the visual axes are emphasized and slow mobility is encouraged. • to make the banks of Lana River accessible to the public and gain more quality through the design of a riverfront • Design the public space on the strategic nodes such as bridges, urban facedes and accesses • increase the quality space of Mother Theresa Square and the area of the Pyramid to make it connected with all the rest of the city. • Increase the amount of green especially along the main boulevard to make the green spine more effective

II and III RING CONNECTION Proposed flow distribution

500 m

1 km

Vehicular connection

Territorial Connection Road

Secondary Road

Principal Road

Dedicated viability

500 m

1 km

Principal pedestrian circulation Pedestrian River Front

Pedestrian trail

Principal Pedestrian Path

Free public space

III RING

While on the mid scale the axis id the element of urban landscape that connect the two biggest Square of Tirana, looking back to the territorial scale it works as a green spine that proceed to the opposite side of the city and connect the Grand Park on the South with the Paskuqan Park in the North. Those spots are colse enough to the sorrounding wild areas so that the goal of reconnection of the green network can be accomplished.

PROJECT AREA STRATEGY Process

INTERSECTION of TWO MAIN AXIS

GREEN AREAS CONNECTION

PERMEABILITY of the RIVER FRONT

INCLUSION of GREEN AREAS in the MAIN AXIS

II and III RING CONNECTION Vegetation and water system

To imagine this transformation of public space, some virtuous case studies has been taken in account. Cheonggyecheon is a massive urban renewal project created along the route of a water stream inside the city of Seoul, South Corea. It’s an intervention that associates the remediation of the river with the gain of a new public space that takes advantage of the presence of water. This situation is not far from the role that Lana plays inside Tirana as and they way it’s evolving. Wenchauan Memorial Museum has a similar functions to what we think to bring inside the pyrimid and, and the relation with the outside space has been designed through a system of artificial topographies. Another important element that can be transformed is the main bridge that crosses the axis as it’s the link between the two most important infrastructures in Tirana. Plecnik’s Intervention over the Bridge in Lubiana teaches how this structure can gain a new value and in its relationship with the river.

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Green Areas of interest Boulevard River Lana River-front connection Water bodies

PROJECT AREA STRATEGY Infrastructure system

As mentioned before, the concept of the intervention is tomake the main Bouevard a mainly pedestrian continuos road. Public transport viability can be kept with a dedcated lane on both sides (while the pedestrian path is centered). Mother Theresa Squae can be renewed through the addition of green to mind the gap between the South Park and the Boulevard. The two streets along the sides of Lana river are going to be removed (only the segment within the thid ring) to open up as much as possible tha river banks to the sorounding areas, included the parcel with the Pyramid. A system of parkings should be provided all around the area of intervention to support the vehicular circulation and the accesses for car users. The problem of parkig spots is solved by adding an underground parking below Mother Teresa Square. The Segment of the street ahead of the University building can be buried and become tha access to the parking; straihtforward connection from one side to another is still possible on both sides. With this solution also the continity of both peestrian space and green areas is guaranteed. A further step of this transformation, consist of breaking the behavior of the main boulevard along its route, depending on the context and the areas that meets. On both the ends, the assest start symmetrical (also because the squares are symmetrical urban places) with the bike/pedestrian lane in between and vehicular lanes on both the sides. 102

Territorial connection Principal street Dedicated viability Free public space Pedestrian Path Pedestrian River-front Pedestrian Boulevard Parking areas River Lana

II and III RING CONNECTION Sections

As the boulevard passes aside a strategical area, such as a Park Rinia or the parcel of the Pyramid, the two lanes join together towords one side while the walkway joins and “blend” with the adiacent area. This transformation of the axis into a dynamic element is driven by a concept of perception: there’s no more one direction which prevail on the other buth both can coexist together; also drivers and commuters can percieve the centre of the city by swithcing from one side to another and facing directly the monumental buildings or the beautiful green areas on the sides. Either way, the pedestrian lane remains on a straight line all the way long and the visual axis is preserved on both the directions. The section of the river also will turn into a dynamic element which offerst different types of public spaces and waterfront. The design of the river banks is going to be managed with a system of staircases, seat rows, walkways of different thickness, indenations and projections that shapes differently the water surface.

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A’

SECTION A-A’ ALONG THE MAIN AXIS

SECTION B-B’ ALONG THE RIVER LANA

B’

PROJECT • MASTERPLAN • MOTHER TERESA SQUARE • PYRAMID NODE • MAIN AXIS FOCUS • RIVER FRONT FOCUS

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The result of all the merged aspects that has been analysed is the Large scale Masterplan. It shows what areas exactly are choosen for the intervention and which are stretegical or have a direct relationship with the former. The project has a linear North-South evolution which is crossed onlt by the perpendicular spine of Lana river. Apart from the system of green areas settled in line to create the green spine, water elements are recurring accros the area not anly as regards the river. Part of Skenderberj Square design consist of a fountain that creates pools and layers of water which characterize that part of urban landscape; near the Pyramyd, there’s another fountain over which hags the “Bell of peace” as a memorial. From a purely symbolic point of view, water is what brings purification of body an soul and in the religious traditions is used as a filter to sacred places as it’s a passage from worldliness to the state of meditation and prayer. Following this concept of water as a symbolic element as well as something that brings quality to urban places, new blue elements have been added: one is a pool that defines the relationship between the pyramid and the river bank and which stores water from the river. The second one is a system of pools and fountains that will decorate thepublic space of Mother teresa Square. the Square is going to be developed through three different layers: green, mineral space and water. Another important part of the masterplan is the central node created by the brige of the main boulevard on the river. This bridge is redesigned following a diagonal direction which would connect the area of the pyramid to Rinia Park. This intervention is useful to make the river more present within the city as its inclination allows to foresee the river area more easly coming from the avenue. Moreover, a new visual axis is provided for the pyramid which appears in distance with a side angle coming from Rinia Park.

MASTERPLAN

We choose 4 specific focus points from the masterplan, to better understand details and the aim of our actions . The main nodes are: Madre Teresa square, which becomes the gate to start the new path; the Pyramid, which becomes the center of the intervention, due to the passage of the main two axis and its position; in the end 2 portions extrapolated from the spreading of the 2 axis, in order to inform about what’s happening in the surroundings of the main knots.

1. Mother teresa square

1. Pyramid node

1. Main axis focus

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4. Rier front focus

3 4

MOTHER TERESA SQUARE Existing situation

Piazza Madre Teresa was originally intended to be the pivot of the zoning plan by Gerardo Bosio. The project itself was including the construction of Casa del Fascio, which was supposed to be the first noticeble element for the visitors, with the addition of two more volumes to better define the area of the square.

110

MOTHER TERESA SQUARE Existing situation

The square, renamed in honor of the Albanian Nobel prize, is still to these days the second square in Tirana, housing the most important university of all Albania in the ex Casa del Fascio. The other buildings from the Fascist period are now used for cultural reasons, making the square an hub for the young citizens. In the center of the square we find a big carpet, which has a strong relationship with the local tradition, and which allows for manifestations and cultural activities outdoor. To these days the carpet functions as a roundabout to entrer in the main avenue; on the sides are located two bus stops for long range mobility, which help the area to become a main access to the city. Also the creation of a stadium in an adjacent site was realized considering the access to that area directly from the square, passing beside the colonnade from Fascist era.

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Aereal view

University

Accademia

MOTHER TERESA SQUARE Process

The approach chosen to requalify the square has its origin from two primary elements: keeping the existing buildings and their approach to the area, and keeping a central theme which can recall the figure of the carpet. The first step is to create a green continuity among the hill behind the university and the axis, in order to get a suitable connection which is nowaday impossible due to the cemented area. The second step will be to lower a portion on the square and create an hypogeum parking area, with the intention of welcoming all the possible visitors. As final step, the positioning of water tubs in order to reflect the volumes of the surrounding buildings, to create an optical effect that can be seen from the main axis. Furthermore these tubs will be capable in the mitigation of sultry heat, which dominates that space devoid of vegetation in the hotter season.

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Green invasion

Lowering of the square

Water reflection

MOTHER TERESA SQUARE Project

The final result is a square composed by different elements: in the center stands the theme of the carpet, surrounded by green areas and water tubs, which are placed to direct the circulatory flows through the axis.

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MOTHER TERESA SQUARE Project section

The relation with the context wants to mantain the previous peculiarities while also trying to enhance them. Lowering the pavement creates the effect of making the volumes of the buildings even more impressive without directly touching them. The choice to bury a car park refers to the decision to limit the circulation of cars to the essentials. The generous dimensions of the carpet area allow to keep all the activities practiced nowadays, and the possibility to see in its complex the design of the carpet area before getting of its level is trying to make the subject dive in the Albanian culture.

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Section 1

Section 2

MOTHER TERESA SQUARE Render

The function of departure and arrival point that the square has in the project was also based on the views to which the project tries to give importance. The function of the avenue is to grab the attention when someone starts to move from the university (or from the exit of the car park). The directionality of the green areas and the water tubs makes the eyes focus on the central point, however it doesn’t preclude the view of the surrounding landscape, where the two historical buildings stand out with their clean shapes and neutral colors. The approach is different once arrived in the square (in order to enter in the car park): the visitor is accompained from the view of the university block while passing through the axis, and once arrived the descent make him focus the view on just one building. The water mirror that allows the reflection of this volume denotes its importance.

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View from the university

View from the plaza

MOTHER TERESA SQUARE Underground parking lot

The hypogeum car park is located at the same level as the lowered part of the square, in order to avoid unecessary excavations and to not have a difference in height. People do not have to descend further to get to their car and the entrance ramps do not need to be too long for car access.

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Parking entrance

PYRAMID NODE Existing situation

In the heart of the city of Tirana stands one of the most controversial buildings of all Albania, close to which are passing the primary axis of the city and the river around which the city itself has been built.

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PYRAMID NODE Existing situation

The area shows up as an agglomerate of functions, spreaded and divided without a defined hierarchy. The center stands in the intersection of the two main roads of the city, which have a hard time imposing on each other for dimension and traffic congestion reasons. The result is the division of the area in four main different zones, which are having problem in a mutual relationship. In one of these zones we find the Pyramid, surrounded by an aboundance of green areas. On the opposite site of the Pyramid there is a mixed public space; these two different spaces don’t relate because of the strong division generated from the main axis. Over the river is located one of the biggest parks of the city, which is also divided from the road that stands by the river, preventing every possible relationship with the other two urban sites. The result is a very strong grid, in which lines are dedicated to vehicles, and the generated spaces to people.

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Pyramid

Plaza 3 brother Frasheri

View from the top of the pyramid

PYRAMID NODE Process

The chosen approach is trying to create a true square that can contain the two roads and the adjacent areas, generating a permeable path. The choice to reduce car circulation to just a single lane dedicated to public transportation, totally emptying the area, gives the chance to work on it in a much free way. The first step is using diagonally the paths, so that they can outline not just the access points to the area: they can become primary elements to break the boundaries of the riverfront road and the bridge. The second step takes in consideration the new pedestrian areas: the one of the river, that enlarge its course near the Pyramid, and the one of the main axis, that once visually meets the Pyramid, starts to flow in an open in a square, from which is possible to get in the museum inside the Pyramid itself, or in the opposite area which hosts a park, or getting on the bridge, that allowa a straight connection even in its diagonal placement. In the square is possible to reach each surrounding spot using paths intended to recall a mountain path, also highlighted by the presence of small raised clods of land. The result is generating areas with different characteristic from the peculiarities given from the existing heritage.

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Movement

Node and perforation

Areas division

PYRAMID NODE Project

The result is a defragmentation of the site, where are located three main points of interest: starting from south, the first crossroads that expands the choice of of paths, the central area controlled by an open space with a shape that breaks up with the context and the oblique bridge that allows a better communication between the Pyramid area and the nearby park over the river. All of these three spots have been chosen to highlight the view of the Pyramid building.

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2 2

PYRAMID NODE Project section

The project is starting to include a much larger area, dominated by union and freedom of crossing. In that scheme the central axis takes an higher role in reguard of the Pyramid, which is not only accessible from the main front entrance but also directly from the axis, making possible an new access point in the lower level of the Pyramid. The lowered riverfront generates a new relationship between people and the river, but also in the way people can live the element of the river itself, to whom is now possible to better reach and interact with. The bridge allows three possible way of movement: the central one, that focuses on the direction of the axis permitting the passage of both vehicles and people, the second one follows the direction of the bridge and creates a new link between the opposites green areas, the third allows to reach the river in a vertical way from both the benchs.

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Section 1

Section 2

Section 3

PYRAMID NODE Render

Thanks to this solution the Pyramid has broken its limits, becoming the main focus point in the site, noticeble in every way is possible to cross the area. The central square and the bridge are stopping points, designed to reflect a strong image of themselves but also to enhance the perception of the Pyramid; they are intended to work in their total extension on multiple levels. The area between the boulevard and the pyramid keeps the same asset of the original one but gains a threedimensional shape through a system of artificial topographies with geometric shapes. this simulates a sort of hillside landscape beyound which the mountain (pyramid) stands out. there’s no more one wide access towards the front of the pyramid but rather a series of organic paths in between the clods that leads to other parts of the area. Meanwhile the green inclinated surfaces are very nice spots for people to rest and lay on, as they were used to do on the concrete slopes of the pyramid wings.

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Pyramid

View from the top of the pyramid

View from the new bridge

MAIN AXIS FOCUS Existing situation

The axis that connects the two biggest squares of the city is the first real urban assests that has shaped Tirana. Created during the period of Italian protectorate, it was meant to separate the ancient city from thenew one. the axis is very wide because it had to create a monumental effect and arouse a sense of greatness. Along this urban line most of the most important buildings in Tirana have been built.

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MAIN AXIS FOCUS Existing situation

Nowadays the boulevard is made of three lanes for travel direction that make this road as a strong boundary. Along the sides there are the few parks of Tirana that unfortunately do not communicate one which each other. Also the buildings are somehow closed within their block as if they were separated isles. The tree rows on each side are the only element that characterize in a positive way the axis but they are not yet the protagonists.

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Riverfront road

Main axis with traffic

Main axis road

MAIN AXIS FOCUS Process

The approach chosen for the axis is to turn it into a green corridor that connects the ganglion of The Grand Park to the to the agricultural meadows of the northern suburbs of Tirana. At the urban scale the project is going to treat the axis as the spine to all the parks and and buildings are related. The side rows of pines are kept put inner row of shorter trees are going to be added. the second step is to reduce the huge area of vehicular transport to two lanes for public transport only. The rest of the surfaces is going to be dedicated to slow mobility only. Where the axis meets with parks and other areas of interest, it will blend together with the adiacent spaces. This strong action over the viability of Tirana that will be supported by the circulation of the outer rings, has the aim to trigger a future developement of setting free the center of Tirana from car traffic.

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Increase green corridor

Increase pedestrian path

Bluring the borders

MAIN AXIS FOCUS Project

With this green implementation Tirana would partesipate to the challenge of all the great european cities to reduce air pollution and not being dependent on heavy traffic anymore.

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MAIN AXIS FOCUS Render

The new boulevard would allow people to live the center of Tirana through a linear path that will lead the visitor to the choosen spots of the city The axis developes in a dynamic way starting from Mother Theresa Square un to Skenderberg Square (or viceversa). This is a sort of open-air musem where are collected some masterpieces of fascist as well as communist architecture. Nowadays, also contemporary architecture plays an important role this system. Visitors can see the evolution of architecture from the rationalism and neoclassicism of the italian fascism, then the exuberant and monumenal shape of sovietic-ispired construction and last the high-tech and original buildings of contemporary era. The first in line who are going to take advantage of this project are the inhabitants of the city among which students who find some very enjoyable places for the m to rest, study and share ideas.

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Mixed space

New Madre Tereza plaza entrance

Global plaza

RIVER FRONT FOCUS Existing situation

Tirana is separable also in two parts: one at North and the other at South of Lana River. being able to connect the two East and West extremes of the city, Lana is the most interesting route for the passage of biodiversity from the Natural Reserve of Dajti Mountain all the way to the Adriatic Sea.

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RIVER FRONT FOCUS Existing situation

The relationship with Lana river with Tirana starts from the origins when the first settlements were born along the banks. During the developement of the city, Lana river has been modified and almost turned into an artificial canal to make it match with the demands of the growing city. One it lost its importance for irrigation of the sorrounding fields, it just become a hard limit to cros with a series of bridges. The decline increased during the communist period and the following uncotrolled urbanization, that “allowed” the construction of many buildings. The river became a open-air sewer. Only in 2008, thanks to the major Edi Rama who was able to invest in an urban renewal with low funds, the banks of the river have been freed from all the illegal buildings and the water cleaned. Outer banks became an occasion for implementing urban green. Most of the river course is still a canal structure closed by two roads on both sides that limitates the contact with the citizens.

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Lana river

Before the restoring of the river

Bridge

RIVER FRONT FOCUS Process

The approach for continuing a possible evolution of the city-river relationship consists of some simple but substantial actions. The project withdraws a concept of an ideal city after having seen the lack of green areas out of the city center, due to a heavy, working-class centered urbanization that creates dense and dense districts. The decision of creatin a linear park is to make the river accessible to public, so people can rediscover the historic relationship with the watercourse. The first step is to remove the two side roads relying on the new plannig of Tirana for distributing the car traffic. Then, to increase the amount of public green along the banks, where is possible, keeping a distinction between equipped and wild green for keeping biodiversity. Finally, taking inspiration from what others world capitals have done, it comes the decision of creating a privileged public space made of seats, slopes, staircases and all types of paths.

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Make new pedestrian path

Make a green corridor along the river

Mooving the borders

RIVER FRONT FOCUS Project

The renovation includes also the ground spaces of the buildings that faces the course of the river. Now they are going to have more space to expand some outdoor activities such as cafes and restaurants, using also the new waterfront.

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RIVER FRONT FOCUS Render

The possibility for new generation to breath a healthier air within a capital city in continuous evolution, would avoid the alienation of citizens who do not recognize the city to suit the human.. Along the route there can be some open rooms for young people as well as urban orchards for the oldest generation who grew with their own garden for producing food. Nearby the pyramid the river band expands more widely to conquer more space and break the altimetric boundary through a series of ramps, sloeps and staircases. Moreover, there’s no more lost space underneath the bridges but it becomes a shaded are during hot days as well as a covered one during rain.

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New riverfront

View from the riverfront

Under the bridge

RIVER FRONT FOCUS Section

PYRAMID • EVOLUTION • CIRCULATION

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The idea of reusing the pyramid and giving a new life inside it is the finish line of this work. historic and cultural analysis have suggested to monumentalise the building, keeping the memory but empltying the inside from non-substantial parts. The addition of vegetation inside is a sign of how new life should be brought inside the building. For inviting people inside the building it should partecipate to urban public space and allows people to pass through it, so they can choose whether to rest or to go forward.. Another attention is given for those who want to know more about the pyramid and the history of Albania, by providing to the hypogeum area a museum thanks to which is possible to start a particular path till up to the top of the building. From there everyone can see the city from the pyramid, not only the pyramid from the city.

PYRAMID Evolution - clean up the exterior

The first action to do is to clean the outer layers of the pyramid’s facades, by renewing the concrate that started to deteriorate after many years of neglect. The other action is to take off the glass of the windows, so that essential character of solid and voids is even more clear. Moreover the pyramid is going to be more permeable to the view so it’s possible to foresee what’s inside from the outside.

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PYRAMID Evolution - substraction the slabs

From the stories that lay on +0,0mt up to +13,2 are exposition spaces that follow the angle of the pyramid, maximizing the walkable surface but still keeping the void area in the inside. Accordingly with the idesa of keeping the very essentials formal elements, the various floors are going to be turned into corridors connected together with staircases. Unecessary parts of the slabs are going to be removed and kept only parts that cann offer interestings views towards the city.

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PYRAMID Evolution - Open the central part and add vegetation

The ground floor, in the current situation, is all viable and its central part is slighly lowered compared to the radial rooms. In ornder to accentuate this effect the salb of the centrail circle is going to be removed to leave a void over the underneath space. The staircases from the undergrounf floor have now the acces closed from the outside and accsessible only from the museum. In this way only the open space at -4,65mt and the level at +0,0 are connected while all the path for the upper stories starts from the museum area.

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PYRAMID Evolution - Reuse the underground rooms

The floor at -4,65mt was used both for storages and facilities . In this floor the main accesses are the two side ones and the two back ones; now with a new staircase the two levles are joined together with the former main entrance at +0,00mt. Out of the several rooms at the hypogeus floor, the frontal ones are going to be used for the musem about violoence committed against religion from albanian dictatorship. In the central part a garden with trees will be planted and the foliages of the trees will accompany the visitors along the upper floors.

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PYRAMID Circulation P -4,65m

The choice to divide the floor in two parts gives the possibility to create two different and opposed realities. If the visitor access from the lateral or backdoor entrances is free to walk aroud the central area and to reach the floor set at +0.0m. The closure of the back and hypogeum rooms don’t make the place suitable to stop in. The approach is changing in the museum space, to which is possible to access only through the hypogeum path, that starts from the axis and ends in a dark area where the first noticeble thing is the projection of films and scenes on a wall. From there is possible to visit different thematic rooms, that give the visitor awareness about the religious peculiarities of Albania, of how the country evolved in time and about the repercussions in the different states due to religiuos matters. Therefore, with a different vision, the visitor can starts its ascent from the injuries thanks to the stairways, placed in a central position in reguard of the museum.

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Point of view Tour path Passing path New green area Museum room Administrative Room Video room

PYRAMID Circulation P +0,0m

The old main access of the Pyramid now becomes a point of passage that only allows the descent to the lower floor, and permit to see the developement of the paths in the upper floors. The closure of the lateral staircases, used as a connection between floor -4.65m. and floor +5.40m., further limits the freedom of walking.

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Point of view Tour path Passing path New green area

PYRAMID Circulation P +5,4m

Once exited from staircases C, the host will be forced to continue the visit on a longer and less steap stairway, that, following the rythm of full/empty volume of the Pyramid wings, generate little stopping points to see a partiture of the city while going up. Once arrived to floor +5.40m. a small terrace can be used to see the surrounding: on the left there is the trqualification of the river course, on the right stands in distance the square dedicated to Madre Teresa.

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Point of view Tour path Passing path

PYRAMID Circulation P +9,6m

On this specific floor has been chosen to maintain its circular shape, that allows a break in the journey, where the visitor is free to explore a 360 degrees view of the city, always represented through the full/empty volumes of the Pyramid. From that level is possible to see new spaces and landscapes, such as the one generated from the relationship between urban context and Dajti mountain.

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Point of view Tour path Passing path

PYRAMID Circulation P +13,2m

This is the last floor internal to the volume of the Pyramid; to connect it to the new path has been developed new stairs for getting up, one of the few addition to the original project. This floor has been thought through to aware of the width of the Pyramid and its brutalist structure. For the final ascent is needed the access to the back stairways, which allow both the final rise and the descent to floor -4.65m.

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Point of view Tour path Passing path

PYRAMID Circulation - Rooftop

The exit on the rooftop is the absolution spot, where the visitor, who started the journey from the earth bowles, can finally reach the sky after an hard abscent. From there is enjoyable a 360 degrees view of Tirana, without the barriers of an old society, now left behind. Coveted spot both from adults and children, whom try to climb the wings of the Pyramid to reach the top, even with the risk of falling down; we permit this “traditional climb” through a culturalpath, so that the visitor, once on the top, is aware of what this Pyramid has been, but also of the freedom which allows him to have from there.

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Point of view Tour path Passing path

REFERENCES • CASE STUDIES • SITOGRAPHY • BIBLIOGRAPHY

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CASE STUDIES

THE PYRAMID OF TIRANA MVRDV

TIRANA PARK OF FAITH Studio Galantini

SKANDERBEG SQUARE 51n4e

ALBANIAN CARPET Casanova + Hernandez Architects

SEOUL RIVER-FRONT

THE MOSQUE AND MUSEUM OF RELIGIOUS HARMONY B.I.G.

THE PYRAMID PARK Competition ‘Lost Architecture 2014’

WENCHUAN EARTHQUAKE MEMORIAL M Cai Yongjie

THREE BRIDGES OF LJUBLJANA Jože Plecnik

SITOGRAPHY

• MEMORIAL LANDSCAPE https://www.researchgate.net/publication/327816039_Ambiguous_memorial_landscapes_in_ post-socialist_societies_the_case_of_Tirana’s_Pyramid • RELIGIOUS FREEDOM IN ALBANIA https://www.albanianews.it/cultura/albstyle/liberta-religiosa-albania • THE GEOPOLITICAL AND THE LANDSCAPE https://www.researchgate.net/publication/338896013_The_Geopolitical_the_Landscape • ALBANIA 2030 THE MANIFESTO https://www.researchgate.net/publication/319565719_Albania_2030_Manifesto_an_Example_for_ Adapting_Advanced_National_Spatial_Planning_Instruments_for_Developing_Countries • DECOMMUNIZATION OF THE PYRAMID https://www.chnt.at/wp-content/uploads/eBook_CHNT23_Miho.pdf • TIRANA 2030_ BOERI https://www.stefanoboeriarchitetti.net/project/tirana-2030/ • ALBANIAN FAITH https://www.balcanicaucaso.org/aree/Albania/La-fede-degli-albanesi-34897 • CHRISTIANS TYPOLOGIES OF VEGETATION https://www.holyart.it/blog/natale/alberi-piante-nella-tradizione-cristiana/ • SACRED ARCHITECTURE https://architetturasacra.org/il-senso-della-progettazione-dei-luoghi-per-il-culto-2/ • PYRAMID OF ENVER HOXHA https://www.chnt.at/wp-content/uploads/eBook_CHNT23_Miho.pdf

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• RELIGIOUS FREEDOM IN ALBANIA https://www.albanianews.it/cultura/albstyle/liberta-religiosa-albania • INAUGURATION PHOTO OF THE PYRAMID https://www.researchgate.net/figure/The-Pyramid-Piramida-former-museum-ofEnver-Hoxha-during-its-inauguration_fig2_340793081 • PYRAMID CONCEPT https://web.archive.org/web/20140224113116/http://www.balkanweb.com/gazetav5/newsad min/preview.php?id=55071

BIBLIOGRAPHY

• CASAMONTI M., Area 174. Tirana, Milano, New Business Media, 2021 • BULLERI A., Tirana. Contemporaneità sospesa, Macerata, Quodlibet srl, 2012 • MOROZZO DELLA ROCCA R., Nazione e religione in Albania, s.l., Besa editrice, 2020 • D’URSO S., Le forme della memoria. Artifici mnemotecnici nel progetto dello spazio pubblico, Catania, Malcor D’ s.r.l., 2018 • HOKERBERG H., Architecture as propaaganda in twentieth-century totalitarian regimes. History and heritage, Firenze, Polistampa, 2018 • KLOSI A., LAME A., Piramida e Tiranes. E hijshme. E braktisur. E rrezikuar, s.l., Botimet Dudaj, 2011 • KADARÈ I., Piramida, Tirana, Cabej MÇM, 1995 • ALIAJ B., Forum A+P 8. Arkitektura si mjet ndertimi dhe shkaterrimi, Tirana, Creo s.r.d. 2011 • LUFI D., Tirana Metropolis, in “AND. Tirana. Architettura balcanica”, n. 11, gennaio-aprile 2008, 50-51

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A special thanks to the professor Samir Kristo from polis (Tirana) for the informations and the availability.