Arsenal Memory Park: The Apparatus of Remembrance & Regeneration

Project idea

The design of "Arsenal Memory Park: The Apparatus of Remembrance & Regeneration" is founded upon a critical paradigm in addressing the concept of "Dark Heritage." While passive approaches—which leave the site untouched without effective spatial intervention, yielding lifeless designs—fail to respond to the profound trauma of such landscapes, our project proposes a bold and purposeful intervention. We have neither concealed nor erased history; rather, by preserving the remnants of the barracks and transforming them into a museum, we have kept the dark past alive as an eternal, transparent lesson. Alongside this explicit remembrance, by forging a compelling new morphology, we demonstrate that landscape architecture can act as a "healer." This spatial paradigm shift and the healing power of nature serve to regenerate the traumatized collective psyche.

Project description

This project comprises intertwined strategies that directly respond to the site's identity and ecological crises:
Emancipatory Geometry & Organic Arteries: Military barracks are inherently founded on a rigid, linear, and oppressive grid. We replaced this authoritarian morphology with a dynamic, centralized geometry to create a profound spatial contrast with the historical atmosphere. Nevertheless, this powerful geometry remains entirely sensitive to the site; circulation pathways are designed to be extremely narrow, following a purely organic flow. These trails weave through pristine spaces, ensuring no mature trees are felled, thus preserving the human connection with the existing nature.
Chromotherapy & Absolute Preservation of Existing Vegetation: The expansive green zones visible in the masterplan are, in fact, the site's conserved existing vegetation. They have not been replaced by alternative land uses or superficial lawns. Our intelligent strategy involves integrating specific chromatic trees and groundcovers within this existing botanical fabric. Over the coming years, this composition will cultivate an unparalleled visual diversity and a vast "Chromotherapy" zone. While maintaining full awareness of the site's history, this chromatic nature helps alleviate the heavy environmental trauma.
Safeguarding Truth & Forensic Layers: In addressing the mass graves (Fosa) and sensitive subterranean layers, our approach was one of absolute reverence. No heavy construction or invasive programming is proposed in these zones, ensuring no obstruction to future forensic investigations and keeping the path to truth entirely open. Historical structures, particularly Galpon 9, are preserved within a glass enclosure as a "Museum-Object," serving as an unfiltered narrator of the past.

Technical information

Transcending conventional urban landscaping, this project acts as a spatial manifesto. It is developed in strict alignment with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (specifically SDGs 6, 11, 15, and 16), the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), and UNESCO protocols for memorial heritage protection.

Documentation

Show PDF 1Show PDF 2