PORTOFOLIO

01. Semi-collective Housing (II year, Bucharest, Romania)

02. National Institute for Heritage Archive (III year, Bucharest, Romania)

03. Collective Housing (III year, Bucharest, Romania)

04. Public Library (IV year, Bucharest, Romania)

05. Hotel (IV year, Bucharest, Romania)

06. Bucharest's Vineyards Museum (IV year, Bucharest, Romania)

07. Kalinderu Cultural Centre (IV year, Bucharest, Romania)

08. Lemmens Tower (V year, Leuven, Belgium)

09. Decorative Arts Museum (V year, Bucharest, Romania)

10. "Butchers' " Tower and Bastion (IV year - restoration, Sighișoara, Romania)

11. Florești Community Library (V year - restoration, Florești, Romania)

12. Last Nuclear Bomb Memorial (IV year - competition, Nevada, USA)

13. Torre Rinalda (IV year - competition, Lecce, Italy)

SEMI-COLLECTIVE HOUSING

5 individual houses and a community centre

Popa Nan Street, Bucharest, Romania

Studio Mihai Duțescu (II year) || Co-author: Ion Hilde Adriana

Context: The site is located in an old residential neighbourhood of Bucharest, right across from the local urbanizing generator, the Popa Nan Church. Being an area developed through time, it incorporates multiple housing policies, becoming a place of architectural and urban confluences. It presents vernacular developments, late 19th century typpical "wagon-houses" and small interwar block of flats.

Concept: The condominium, developed as a dense birch tree garden, is shared by five houses that possess distinct individuality. Yet, all of them share the same starting point: the typology of U-shaped houses, generating private gardens. Therefore, a harmonious relationship between the private and semi-private spaces is diligently pursued. According to the spontaneity of the neighborhood, the proposed housing project aims for a traditional, incidental interaction between dwellers. The houses are developed as an outer shell for the daily activities of living. A special approach is chosen towards the acces system of every house, thus making it a part of the entire volume and emphasizing the transition from public to private space.

N-W elevation

S-E elevation

Longitudinal section

Cross section

NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR HERITAGE ARCHIVE

Extension of the National Institute for Heritage „Casa Târgoveţilor”

Șerban Vodă Avenue, Bucharest, Romania

Studio Mihai Duțescu (III year)

Context: Given the precious historical context (Casa de Târgovet, Calea Şerban-Vodă Beilicului Bridge, St. Spiridon cel Nou Church), the proposal begins by looking to the past, in an attempt to carry on a legacy. The key moments to which the project refers to are the geometric gardens from the late 18th century belonging to the old monastery of St. Spiridon, and the late 19th century greenhouses of the new church.

Concept: Therefore, the monumental space of the garden and the intimate, restricted space of the greenhouse generate the two directions addressed by the theme: the institutional side and the public, social side. Residential space and public functions are discreetly located around the perimeter. This "fence" introduces a new rule inside the plot, where the large rooms of the project are raised, singularly, in an autonomous object, placed in an intensive garden (heritage of the land). The interior comes in counterpoint with the dull exterior, being organized in a mannerist, stenographic space. Starting from a single idea, the arhive ssen as a "chest hidden in the attic", the central construction is defined as a single object that decomposes until it becomes functional.

COLLECTIVE HOUSING

54 apartments in Rahova Neighbourhood

Petre Ispirescu Street, Bucharest, Romania

Studio Mihai Duțescu (III year) || Co-author: Ion

Hilde Adriana

Context: The site is located in the Rahova neighbourhood, in a collision area of two completely different types of housing: an interwar plot area, with vernacular architecture houses on the S side and the Rahova collective housing district, built in the 1980s on the N side. In addition, constructions from the contemporary period delimit the land on its E/W sides, with speculative apartment buildings, debatable as an urban presence. The rupture between the different typologies is easily noticeable, considering both the different scale, as well as their antagonistic nature, the solutions adapted vernacularly on contrasting with the monotonous socialist architecture.

Concept: The main idea is to create a transition between the two existing urban typologies. The ensemble opens up to the city through a series of spaces (the arrangement of the space "behind the block", squares related to public functions on the ground floor, the semi-public inner courtyard). The project discusses the subtleties of living. The access becomes sequential, by experiencing the journey from the anonymous space of the city to the "known" of the house through variable layers of public-private (street-neighbourhoodcourtyard-access decks). The ensemble presents typologically varied apartments, organized in clear structural units, with double orientation.

First floor plan

Third floor plan

Fourth floor plan

Ground floor plan

Longitudinal section

Cross section

PUBLIC LIBRARY

Insertion in built protected site

J.L. Calderon Street, Bucharest, Romania

Studio Mihai Ene (IV year)

Context: The site, of modest size, characteristic of the central area, is located in an old Bucharest neighbourhood, near the Batiștei church and is currently free of any constructions. Constituted as a regulatory axis in the pre-modern urban fabric, J.L. Calderon Street is the witness of overlapping historical layers. The succession of building policies determined a discontinuous street front, generated by residential buildings with low and medium height placed in alignment or set back, forming front gardens. The effervescent developments at the beginning of the 20th century, especially from the interwar period, led to the fragmentation of the cornice alignment.

Concept: The project raises a current issue in the sustainable development of cities - the dialogue between new and old in architecture. These inconsistent characteristics of the neighbourhood (height, alignment) influence the course and outcome of the proposal, yet it inscribes into the scale of the surrounding buildings. The discontinuous front generated "alveolus" type areas. In this idea, the proposal achieves a generous public garden by successive withdrawals of the volume.

Longitudinal section

Cross section

HOTEL

Insertion in built protected site (56 rooms, resturant, conference rooms)

Griviței Avenue - Gen. Budișteanu Street, Bucharest, Romania

Studio Mihai Ene (IV year) || Co-author: Balaci Sebastian-Alexandru

Context: The character and importance of the studied area are determined by its relationship with the two defining axes for the city's identity: Victoriei and Griviței Avenues. Referring to Griviței Avenue, it has a crucial quality for a hotel: the direct connection with the Bucharest North railway station. This former commercial axis suffers, nowadays, from lack of maintenance, abandonment, mutilation, arbitrary demolitions, aggressive use of monuments and the development of context-insensitive builings made during the socialist period (Institute of Mathematics "Simion Stoilow" and the "Romproiect" office building). Also, on the south, the site borders an old residential neighbourhood.

Concept: The volume tries to respond to the multiple situations that it's subdued: the corner, which is in contact with the high-rise buildings, Griviței Avenue which, in this area, has a coherent character and Budișteanu Street with its discontinuous front. Therefore, the building tries to resolve all these conflicts in a rigorous volume and expression. Beyond the facades, however, the reality lies with a abhorrent complexity: vertical circulation nodes with functional distribution, which varies precisely depending on the location (main, secondary), with exact ratios between servant and served functions, conditioned circuits, etc. The calm and regular shape of the building hides a complex, functional machine.

First floor plan

Ground floor plan

Fourth floor plan

Longitudinal section

Cross section

BUCHAREST'S VINEYARDS MUSEUM

Reconversion and extension

Povernei Street - Gen. Coandă Street, Bucharest, Romania

Studio Mihai Ene (IV year)

Context: The street is located between Romană and Victoriei Squares in the old Visarion slum. The name of the street comes from a basic equipment for producing alcohol, obtained from the distillation of fruits or grains. Initially, a rudimentary installation, then the German doctor Johann Mayer creates a systematic one. Another foreigner, also German, named Krebs, opens a new store of brandy, but also of rum, a novelty for the people of Bucharest at that time. At the mid-19th century, Bucharest was still a city surrounded by vineyards. The site, of modest size, is located in an this old neighbourhood, at the intersection of General Constantin Coandă and Povernei streets, resulting from the joining of three adjacent lots and having two pre-existent buildings: an abandoned early 20th century house and a typical "wagon house" from late 19th century.

Concept: The project raises a topical issue in sustainable development – the reconversion of built heritage. The proposal cultivates the genius loci, reminding the contemporary Bucharest of a lost, forgotten period. The numerous special corner treatments present in the area is translated in the project as part of the public space.

Cross section

Longitudinal section

KALINDERU CULTURAL CENTRE

Reconversion and extension

Dr. Vasile Sion Street, Bucharest, Romania

Studio Mihai Ene (IV year)

Context: The studied site is located in the central area of Bucharest, being defined by two defining axes for the city's identity, Știrbei Vodă Street and Victorei Avenue. The mixed character of the surrounding is observed, both functionally and morphologically, through different buildings placed on plots of various shapes and sizes. The initial building (late 19th century) was extended during 1906-08 as a space for private collection and library. Unfortunately, the old house was destroyed in WW2 and the library wing was demolished in 1993, the ensemble presenting today only the edifice intended for the exhibition.

Concept: The intervention aims at the revitalization of the former Kalinderu museum, and its integration into the daily urban life. Thus, "taking advantage" of the constraints of the site, located behind the curtains of blocks from the Palace Hall complex, the proposal creates a visual and physical link between the Palace Hall Square and Vasile Sion Street. Thought of as an extension of the old museum, the new building takes over the proportions of the house, thus creating a "roomed" route, takes over the high socle and offers the city a platform on which activities can take place, a "stage" where the protagonist is the early 20th century house. This movement of the horizontal and the vertical planes dictates the need for a solid volume, treated unitarily, tectonically, but with attention to the spaces it houses inside.

First floor plan

Second floor plan

Ground floor plan

Underground floor plan

Longitudinal section

Cross section

LEMMENS TOWER

Infrastructure for Lemmens Institute (pedestrain & eco bridge, public spaces, student housing)

Leuven, Belgium

Studio Brecht Verstraete | Leo van Broeck (V year) || Co-author: Arthur de Schutter

Context: The site is located in the western hilly part of Leuven. Chronologically the human interventions on the topography are the construction of the city ramparts, the demolition of the defensive walls and the construction of a park, and the construction of the ringway (which cuts through previously said park, generating a lot of residual green spaces.). The Lemmens campus, a former monastery, was built at the end of the 19th century. During the '60s the Faculty of Music and Drama moved into this building and two event halls were added to the north of the campus. Next to these additions lies a vacant space. However, by being isolated on a hill, the campus does not offer proper connections to its surroundings.

Concept: In a place of constant changes brought by people’s interest, the connection of nature and society was overturned. However, in order to maintain its character and enhance its resilience, human intervention is needed once again. The necessary works on the site consist in finding a solution to reconnect all the residual green spaces, in order to ensure the protection and reproduction of local fauna. Beyond these ecological objectives, the proposal is the social ”gate” towards the Lemmens Intituut, a way of reconnecting a known, yet forgotten place. On top of that the tower becomes a new landmark not only for the Lemmens Institute, but also for the city.

First floor plan

Third floor plan

Ground floor plan

Bridge-acces floor plan

Cross section

DECORATIVE ARTS MUSEUM

Reconversion and extension of Florescu Manu House

Victoriei Avenue, Bucharest, Romania

Studio Mihai Ene (V year)

Context: Throughout history, Victoriei Avenue has consistently stood out as a vibrant centre of urban activity and a nucleus for architectural development and innovation. This street, with its winding and irregular route, defined by typologically diverse buildings and spaces has generated a system of public spaces in an alveolar form.7. Florescu-Manu house was built in the 1843. Its function changed through time from a residence to a kindergarten, during the socialist period, office building after 1989. There was an objective in the '60s of converting it into a ceramics museum, but it was never achieved. Its grandiose former gardens are nowadays occupied by concrete pavement.

Concept: The extension is inspired by the proportions of the house, being subdivided into 3 registers, the central one being the essential one, hosting the main rooms of the museum. The connection with the house happens in the underground, continuing the museum layout. The volumetric withdrawals from the property's limits and from the house generate 3 courtyards with different public-private and mineralnatural approaches. The "hides" behind the house, aligning with its long facades. The courtyards created are allowing the observation of the new ensemble and the creation of a new public alveolus on Victoriei Avenue.

Ground floor plan First floor plan

Underground floor plan

Second floor

Longitudinal

Ateliere

Târg Târg

Proiecții/concerte

"BUTCHERS'" TOWER AND BASTION

Restoration and reconversion

UNIVERSITATEA DE ARHITECTURĂȘI URBANISM „ION MINCU”

Departamentul Istoria și Teoria Arhitecturii și Conservarea Patrimoniului Scara: 1:50

CONȚINUT PLANȘĂ: PLAN PARTER COTA +0.60 - PROPUNERE ELABORAT ÎNDRUMĂTOR

stud. Balaci Sebastian-Alexandru Găvruș Tudor Mocioiu Alexandra Grupa: 44

Sighișoara, Romania coord. Ștefan Bâlici (IV year) || Co-authors: Balaci Sebastian-Alexandru, Mocioiu Alexandra

Data: conf. dr. Ștefan Bâlici / arh. Alexandra Stoica 02.05.2022

Proiecții/concerte

Ateliere

Context: The fortifications of Sighișoara constitute the most extensive medieval urban defensive complex preserved on the current territory of Romania. In Sighișoara, a large part of the fortification complex of the Upper City was preserved, which continued to condition the existence of the city and preserved a unique urban structure and image. Despite the indisputable value of the fortifications the absolutely necessary actions of maintenance and repairs or, if necessary, restoration, were missing for a long time.

Fortificațiile Sighișoarei, Turnul Măcelarilor – STUDIU DE RESTAURARE COORDONATOR

UNIVERSITATEA DE ARHITECTURĂȘI URBANISM „ION MINCU”

Departamentul Istoria și Teoria Arhitecturii și Conservarea Patrimoniului Scara: 1:50

CONȚINUT PLANȘĂ: PLAN PARTER COTA +0.60 - PROPUNERE ELABORAT ÎNDRUMĂTOR

stud. Balaci Sebastian-Alexandru / Găvruș Tudor Mocioiu Alexandra Grupa: 44

Data: conf. dr. Ștefan Bâlici arh. Alexandra Stoica 02.05.2022

Proiecții/concerte

Concept: Regarding the tower, the historical levels are reconstructed. The intervention aims to restore, locally, the guard path, trying to settle on the old position. It fits between the draw holes on the wall to the south of the tower and the northern edge of the tower, with a special treatment of the permeable handrail, thus leaving the user with the impression that this deck continues, according to history. The ensemble formed by the staircase and the guard path is made of a metallic, permeable structure that attaches to the tower and the wall. Functionally, the tower is thought of to become part of the tourist circuit, being used as a space for experimenting with medieval defensive architecture. The bastion is thought of as a multifunctional space, with a cultural character (fairs, craft workshops, screenings, concerts), and apart from the activities, it should enter the city’s everyday life as a place of leisure.

Măcelarilor – STUDIU DE RESTAURARE DE ARHITECTURĂȘI URBANISM „ION MINCU”

Istoria și Teoria Arhitecturii și Conservarea Patrimoniului Scara: 1:50

Fortificațiile Sighișoarei, Turnul Măcelarilor – STUDIU DE RESTAURARE COORDONATOR

Ateliere

Târg

Technical details

FLORESTI COMMUNITY LIBRARY

Restoration and reconversion of the Florești Thermal Power Station Florești, Romania coord. Petru Mortu & Ștefan Bâlici (V year) || Co-authors: Mocioiu Alexandra, Popescu Andrei

Context: The history of the production and use of electricity in Romania begins at the end of the 19th century, aligned to at that time, with the big European cities where electrification had begun. Between 1916-1921 an agreement was established to build a thermal power plant on oil and gas in Florești, Prahova. The ensemble is raised between 1921-1923 according to the plans of the architect Duiliu Marcu, with the support of the structural engineer Emil Prager. In 1971, the Florești power station no longer produces electricity but remains a distribution station. In 2012, the land on which the main buildings of the former factory are located is sold to a private company and in the absence of adequate administration, vandalism processes begin that accelerate the degradation.

Concept: On a larger scale, the project tries to resolve the lack of cultural facilities of the region. Thus, the entire ensemble is transformed into a cultural hub containing: the community library, multifunctional halls, spaces for workshops and exhibitions and a concert hall. The project focuses on the library which is proposed to be organized inside the former "house of the transformers". The proposal tries to have minimal impact on the existing building, enhancing its industrial character, yet solving the current standard requirements.

Longitudinal section E elevation

LAST NUCLEAR BOMB MEMORIAL

Shortlisted - Buildner Architectural Competitions (BeeBreeders)

Nevada National Security Site, Nevada, USA

International competition (IV year) || Co-author: Balaci Sebastian-Alexandru, Cîrneanu Simina-Ioana

Context: In 2017, on the 75th anniversary of the bombings of Nagasaki and Hiroshima, the United Nations Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons was adopted. In support of this call for a ban on nuclear weapons, Buildner sought out designs for “The Last Nuclear Bomb Memorial”, a conceptual project to be located in any known decommissioned nuclear weapon testing site. In response to the global silence surrounding the issue of nuclear weapons, the participants were asked to deliver the design with ni text, titles, or annotation of any kind. The uniqueness of the requirement was to design a building or a structure in which the architecture would do all the talking.

Concept: In response to the competition requirements, the proposal aims for a monumental, austere architecture. It is placed around a crater at the Nevada Test Site, as a place for reflection and information. The out of scale volume seeks to emphasize the large destructions that a nuclear bomb can cause, in a classical language, making reference to the architecture parlante of Ledoux, Boullée, Lequeu.

TORRE RINALDA

Restoration and reconversion

Torre Rinalda (Lecce), Italy

International competition (V year) || Co-authors: Burlacu Diana, Danil Lidia, Milotoiu Laurențiu

Context: Along the coast of southern Italy's charming Puglia region lie the ruins of a medieval fortification system of coastal towers. These towers were strategically placed along the seashore to provide visual signals to neighbouring towns and villages in the event of invasion from the sea. Torre Rinalda, located in the territory of Lecce, is an outstanding example of this architectural defensive apparatus. Built in the 16th century from local limestone, the tower has a square base of over 10 meters on each side and a sloping body. The organizers, together with the City Hall of Lecce, ask the participants to design a second life for Torre Rinalda, turning it into a landmark with a restored territorial meaning and turning unused spaces into a public place of gathering and observation.

Concept: The project proposes a clear marking of the old ascent route and the initial level heights. The specificity of these towers, with stairs "dug" in the thick wall, is reinterpreted by the new staircase that develops in a metal tube. Volumetrically, the tower partially reintegrates its old silhouette, clearly marking the new intervention at the level of detail, but from a distance perceiving it as a whole. In the idea of the old use of warning by smoke or fire, the tower receives a light source, an element that can also be taken over by the other towers, marking the historical connection between them.