Spring 2015

Master studio. AHO.

Re-Store: Concrete

This studio is all about concrete: it’s history, it’s cultural meaning, it’s structural and technological properties and potential as architectural space. The assignment is to investigate a number of concrete buildings in Oslo from the 1950s- 1970s using the conceptual framework of experimental preservation exploring reuse, transformation and addition of the buildings. Between 70-80% of all buildings in Norway are built after WWII and about 80% of the buildings standing today will still be standing in 2050. There is an urgent demand for knowledge on how to handle the overwhelming number of existing structures. We need to know how to evaluate their technological properties, their cultural value and spatial potential, and develop strategies for their future existence. The raising Norwegian welfare state produced a huge amount of buildings: social housing projects, communal and governmental institutions, commercial buildings and infrastructure. The period allowed for experimentation and technological innovation, and the Norwegian concrete building industry was at the forefront. We find a number of interesting innovation-driven concrete structures in Oslo, and the studio want to cast light on them, learn from them and apply this knowledge to the contemporary architectural practice.
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Teachers: Erik Langdalen, Andrea Pinochet, Lea-Cathrine Szacka
Study trip: London and Paris
Guests: Adrian Forty, Janna Brystryck (OMA), Justin De Sylas (Avanti Architects) Peter Zumthor, Jorge Otero-Pailos (Columbia University), François Charbonnet (Made in Sarl), Erlend Skjeseth