PERCEIVING TIRANA

© 2011Masterproef ead

Matthias Van OyenSint Lucas Architectuur

docent : Hugo Vanneste mm : Carl Bourgeois

mentor : Corneel Cannaertsmet dank aan: Simon Berten

PERCEIVING TIRANA

index

0 prologue

I prejudice

II the Tirana Trip III facts,figures&fiction IV tiranarchitecture

V perception VI interpretation VII perceiving tirana

VIII epilogue

PROLOGUE

This book should be read as a di-ary. It begins with what I knew and it ends with what I know. Every-thing in between shaped the pro-ject and got it to where it is now.

Given the general public opinion in Belgium about Albania, I decided to dedicate a chapter to the prejudices I had about the country. Before my trip and research, Albania had a very pejorative connotation to me, as I had only heard about it in criminal contexts. Belgium has a large Albanian community, located mostly in Brussels, that is often associ-atedwithorganizedcrime.ThesefirstpointsofcontactwithAlbaniashaped my initial perception on Tirana.

THE TIRANA TRIP

DAY 0

Brussels to Tirana

Flight 1 Sunday, February 13, 2011 Departure: 20:25 Brussels, Belgium - Brussels Airport, terminal MArrival: 22:20 Budapest, Hungary - Ferihegy, terminal 2

Flight 2 Sunday, February 13, 2011 Departure: 23:30 Budapest, Hungary - Ferihegy, terminal 2BArrival: 00:50 +1 day(s) Tirana, Albania - Nene Tereza Intl

Arrival at the hotel: 1:10 AMConversation with hotel staff: 1:10 AM - 3:00 AM

DAY 1

Wake up: 7:30 AMBreakfast: 8.30 AM

Getting lost in the city: 8.30 AM - 14.30 PM

Lunch: 14:30 PM - 15:30 PM

Getting lost in the city: 15.30 PM - 18.00 PM

Rest: 18:00 PM - 20:00 PMDinner: 20:00 PM - 22:00 PM

DAY 2

Wake up: 7:30 AMBreakfast: 8.30 AM

Meeting with Rezart: 9:00 AM - 10:30 AMDrive through the city to Dajti Ekspres Telecabin: 10:30 AM - 11:30 AMDrive from Tirana to Durres: 11:30 AM - 12:30 PMVisiting Durres: 12:30 PM - 14:00 PM

Lunch: 14:00 PM - 15:00 PM

Visit to holiday homes near Durres: 15:00 PM - 18:00 PM

DAY 3

Wake up: 7:30 AMBreakfast: 8.30 AM

Exploring Tirana: 9:00 AM - 13:30 AM

Lunch: 14:00 PM - 15:00 PM

Exploring Tirana: 15:00 PM - 16:00 PM

Guided trip with the Hotel staff: 16:00 PM - 18:00 PM

Dinner With Hotel Staff at ODA: 18:00 PM - 19:30 PM

Evening Walk : 19:30 PM - 20:00 PM

Beer and Meeting with Rezart : 20:00 PM - 22:00 PM

Party with Ermal: 22:00 PM - 03:00 AM

DAY 4

Wake up: 7:30 AMBreakfast: 8:30 AM

Meeting at TID Tower: 9:30 AM

Screening “De vormgevers 51N4E” 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM

Talk with Albanian project manager: 11:00AM - 14:00 PM

Taxi ride to the airport: 14:00 PM - 14:30 PM

Tirana to Brussels

Flight 1 Thursday, February 17, 2011 Departure: 15:10 Tirana, Albania - Nene Tereza IntlArrival: 16:30 Budapest, Hungary - Ferihegy, terminal 2B

Flight 2 Thursday, February 17, 2011

Departure: 17:50 Budapest, Hungary - Ferihegy, terminal 2AArrival: 19:50 Brussels, Belgium - Brussels Airport, ter-minal M

FACTS FIGURES FICTION

Architecture as a Tool.

tool -noun1. anything used as a means of accomplishing a task or pur-pose2. a person manipulated by another for the lat-ter’s own ends; cat’s-paw

During my visit one of my goals was to figure out what architec-ture in Tirana, how the tool “architecture” is used. My general feeling is that both the tool “architecture” and the city have been abused, destroyed and deformed by political motives. Today there is a big debate about one of the communistic land-marks in Tirana. The Enver Hoxha Mausoleum is a former mau-soleum in Tirana, Albania. This pyramid-shaped structure was designed by the daughter and son-in-law of the late commu-nist leader Enver Hoxha. It was supposed to end up a museum about his legacy (in addition to his mausoleum), but became a conference center and party venue. The 17,000 meters square complex will be destroyed so that the new Albanian parliament may be built on its place. Now it is a subject of debate amongst many architects because they feel the destruction is an excuse for political attention and a place in history books.

The History of a Capital.

Tirana is the capital and the largest city of Albania. Modern Tira-na was founded as an Ottoman town in 1614. During the 1930s and 1940s under the Italian fascistic regime, several significant urban interventions were performed. The centre of Tirana was the project of Florestano de Fausto and Armando Brasini, well known architects of the Mussolini period in Italy. The Palace of Brigades (of the former monarch), the ministries buildings, the National Bank and the Municipality are their work. The Dësh-moret e Kombit (National Martyrs) Boulevard was built in 1930 and given the name Zogu I Boulevard. In the communist pe-riod, the part from Skënderbej Square up to the train station was named Stalin Boulevard.

After World War II the communists seized power, under the dic-tatorship of Enver Hoxha, developing socialist-styled apartment complexes and factories and destroying some of the oldest and culturally and historically most significant buildings and ur-ban fabric.After the collapse of the communist system in the late 80’s, Tira-na experienced a chaotic development as (post-) modern high rise buildings started to be constructed without planning, and illegal structures rose on public areas. The population tripled over a period of only 15 years. New informal districts started to form around the city as internal migrants gathered from around the country.During this period, let’s call it the post-occupational period, a kind of unspoiled architecture was possible.

TIRANARCHITECTURE

The post-occupational period opened the possibily

The period after the 1989 brought a new kind of architecture to Tirana. A kind of architecture not influenced by anything but the individual, how he recognizes a need or problem and how he responds to it. His response is solely based on his own knowledge without any supervision.This meant that anybody could claim a piece of the city and have his or her personal spatial performance in the city.

THE CHAOS OPENED THE CITY TO ANYBODY To me this one of the most fascinating aspects of the city, as I had not wit-nessed anything similar anywhere else.

the game between perceiving and interpreting

perception:

per·cep·tion

[per-sep-shuhn]–noun

1. the act or faculty of apprehending by means of the senses or of the mind; cognition; understanding.2. immediate or intuitive recognition or appreciation, as of moral, psychological, or aesthetic qualities; insight; intuition; discern-ment: an artist of rare perception.3. the result or product of perceiving, as distinguished from the act of perceiving; percept.

per·ceive [per-seev]–verb, -ceived, -ceiv·ing.

1. to become aware of, know, or identify by means of the senses: I perceived an object looming through the mist.2. to recognize, discern, envision, or understand: I perceive a note of sarcasm in your voice. This is a nice idea but I perceive difficul-ties in putting it into practice.

The common theory of perception is based on the philoso-phy that there is an external world that is real to which we react - however that is an Aristotlean dictatorship which is imposed on the masses who reside inside the educational system and have come wired up to it. In reality, considering the state of perception it is perfectly possible to perceive virtually anything, and believe any construct or effect that arises from the actions which inevitably arise as conse-quences of those perceptions.

External perception: “There’s something out there.. it is real. I should conform to that some-thing at all times.”

Perception may be thought of as the ori-entation of your internal state of mind.

Internal perception: “Every-thing I know is inside of me.”

Theoretically this means that anything is possible, but it does not mean that there will be no challenges.

interpretation

in·ter·pre·ta·tion

[in-tur-pri-tey-shuhn]–noun

1. the act of interpreting; elucidation; explication: This writer’s work demands interpretation.2. an explanation of the meaning of another’s artistic or creative work; an elucidation: an interpretation of a poem.3. a conception of another’s behavior: a charitable interpretation of his tactlessness.

in·ter·pret

[in-tur-prit]–verb (used with object)

1. to give or provide the meaning of; explain; explicate; eluci-date: to interpret the hidden meaning of a parable.2. to construe or understand in a particular way: to interpret a reply as favorable.3. to bring out the meaning of (a dramatic work, music, etc.) by performance or execution.

the new masterplan

mission statement

THE CITY ONCE WAS OPEN TO ALL AS A SPATIAL PLAY-GROUND WITHOUT LIMITS. THE NEW FRENCH RIVIERA-STYLE MASTER PLAN OC-CUPIES THE CITY AND ROBS IT FROM THAT FREEDOM. MY GOAL IS TO CAPTURE THIS FREEDOM AND ALLOW THE CITY TO BE USED AGAIN BY ALL AS IT WAS POSSIBLE

the new masterplan

building my perception

building my perception

BASED ON ALLMY EXPERIENCES AND KNOWLEDGE ON TIRANA, I CRE-ATED A FILE THATIS AN ATTEMPT TO GIVE A BODY TOMY PERCEPTION

As this entire project is based on how I experienced and percieved Tirana, I chose the place that stuck most to me. The Skanderbeg Square left an impres-sion on me as the true centre of the city.

process of interpreting Interpreting the perception is being done by using the typical architectural tools such as grid and point. This renders the blur of what a perception is into usable data.

process of interpreting

structure

structure

struc

ture

structure

structure

structure: organizing chaos

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The structure is the organizing tool in whiche the interpretation can live.It is the method to the madness.

The conception of the perception

The spatial translation of MY perception

This however, is my perception of ti-rana. The structure has to be open, so the system has to be open as well.

THE EYE

THROUGH

WHICH ONE CAPTURES

THE

PERCEPTION

The structure has to be open to all. It

has to hold the personal perception of

one on Tirana without limits or delay.

EPILOGUE

WITH THIS PROJECT I TRIED TO CAP-TURE WHAT LEFT THE BIGGEST IM-PRESSION ON ME AS A FOREIGN ARCHITECTURE STUDENT VISIT-ING TIRANA. HOW I PERCEIVED TI-RANA IN THE TIMEFRAME I HAD SHAPED THE PROJECT. REGARD-LESS OF MY INTENTIONS, IT NEED PEOPLE TO COME ALIVE, IF THEY ARE LACKING THE STRUCTURE BECOMES MEANINGLESS. THAT IS WHAT WILL ALLOW ME TO CON-CLUDE IF I HAVE FAILED OR NOT.