Wintersemester 2009/10,
Siedler
This project deals with the habitats in urban areas. Over time developments have occurred dead spaces. In order to construct buildings, load-bearing, fire walls, dividing walls, property boundaries become separating frontiers. Although the technical development of concrete has progressed extremely well it still enjoys the reputation of a predator of nature. The cause for the hostility concrete faces, however, lies in the way concrete affects our cities and everyday living. Parasites to concrete surfaces are rarely wanted. Normally, they start conquering concrete surfaces after years by themselves. Instead of avoiding moss and other parasites, this concept proposes to actively invite them: to create niches for humans and microorganisms, to give an exciting look and touch even to new concrete surfaces. Moss can even be used as a bio-indicator, it lives by the nutrients it filters from rainwater and recycles them at the same time; it produces oxygen even at low temperatures and filters the air – however, according to its size and therefore only in small quantities. Hence, we should seek to share our space with these little artists and offer them niches.
Monolithic concrete properties enable the realization of this concept in macro and micro-dimensions. Concrete elements lean on bare walls to vest them with new functions. These architectural concrete parasites are unable to exist without the host they enrich.
