A Social Generator
Public Space
This project for a public space defines a new cultural centre for the city of Novosibirsk in Russia, dedicated to the Russian avant-garde.
The proposal is a sculpture-like object that the public can engage with, circulate, and explore, creating a gathering space and a new topography.
Location:
Novosibirsk, Russia Type:
UrbanStatus / Year:
Competition / 2014Size:
5,390 m²Client:
Siberian Centre for Contemporary Art (СЦСИ),
Siberian Centre for the Promotion of Architecture (СЦСА)Aerial view of the new public space
The competition brief asked for the renewal of the urban landscape adjacent to the Globus Theatre, with the objective to become a new cultural centre for the city of Novosibirsk in Russia.
The design of the public space would include a symbolic object, related to the life and work of the artist El Lissitzky, key figure of the Russian avant-garde.
Departing from key concepts found in El Lissitzky’s work, the proposal is a sculpture-like object that occupies most of the area, defining paths, bridges, and platforms to walk around and explore.
“The image is not a painting, but a structure around which we must circle, looking at it from all sides, peering down from above, investigating from below.”
Diagram showing the hidden geometry that defines the object, expanding from the centre.
Plan view and map
This spatial object sits on a new topography, which redefines the landscape of the site, creating a boundary around the object, and allowing separation from the roads around the site.
The formalization of this object is a map of relevant stages in El Lissitzky’s work life. The circulation through the object relates to the links that the artist stablished between the East and the West.
The definition of the shape of the object comes from dynamic hidden geometry, consisting of repeated circles of different sizes, and fragmented parts, which expands from the centre.
The centre is a generator of this geometry, as well as generator of public space that calls for engagement.
Section drawing
The platforms and walkways are made of thin structural concrete, sitting onto a grid of beams that distribute the structural loads.
The colours chosen for the fragmented elements of the object are a reference to El Lissitzky’s work.
