The Presence of Diversity Within the Monotonous Mass
The project's intention was to reflect on the diversities and similarities between the two, immediately different, contexts and would be summed up in a series of representations based on the observations from the excursions. The outcome was a bit different, yet interesting, from the expected.
A particularly interesting element in connection with the title of the project is that the difference can be found on both sides (ends) of the spectrum. You can find elements that appear both natural and man-made in the urban field - a man-made structure in itself. Furthermore, you will also find elements of nature that will seem foreign in their own original context.
The representations made during the project intend to discuss the thesis and encourage the viewer to reflect on several issues related to ethics, nature, and man-made structures.
Initial plans
The observation (and registration) method was based on phenomenological methodology; the idea was to observe, collect, and exhaust the places. Some days were spent in Eixample, other days in the mountainy nature around Can Serrat.
There was difficulty in comparing the registrations. Besides the obvious ones, it was two different ways of moving around. Unless you are a climber by nature, you will be able to move more freely around in the urban context. Most cities are made with the local traveler in mind. That said, things are a little different in Eixample, as the design primarily favors heavy transport (cars, trucks, busses). All corners are cut so the movement of a vehicle is more fluent, resulting in the neglect of pedestrians. As a stroller, flaneur, etc. I would almost call the neighborhood ant-pedestrian, as it is very tricky to make shortcuts due to the hyper-grid. Quite similar to the difficulty a non-climber will experience on a mountain…
Also interesting; the original design and idea of the district made by Ildefons Cérda have been neglected. Cérda wanted the area to be a place for all classes. The intention was to establish open green courtyards, meant for everyone. The blocks would have one open side and would be paired so the two open sides would face each other - creating a stellar courtyard area. Instead, Eixample consists of fully closed blocks with private courtyards. The few which are publicly open are dusty and not very welcoming.
The new design has led to one of the densest inhabited areas of Spain (it was the most densely populated as I visited the district). The housing is expensive which speaks against Cérda’s initial plan.
The implementation of chess
The movement in Eixample needed a set of rules to make it more comparable to the movement on Montserrat. The element of chess was introduced and led to a series of performative architectural registrations. The idea was implemented to have a more concise and precise approach. Three boards of chess can be put on top of the map of Eixample (see figure below). These three boards also cover all the sub-districts meaning no area of interest was left out.
The movement in Eixample would be ordered by a set of games that were played before each visit. The chess pieces of interest were randomly chosen after each game - otherwise, bias could be made. The rules also demanded that a minimum of seven moves were made by the pieces of interest.
Furthermore, the element of chess speaks to the history of the district. Chess is a game of classes ranging from monarchs to peasants. The interdependence of the pieces on each other - according to chosen structure and strategy - can be carried forward to the social strata of our time, which experiences an ever-widening divide between rich and poor. Before a society can function harmoniously, a greater understanding between all the layers must be built up. Cerdá intended to create a symbiosis with his plan for the district, but instead, Eixample has become a symbol of much of what the modern developed world suffers from: Discrimination, capitalism, uniformity, and neglect.
The movement on the mountain was primarily controlled by the paths of man. The local community and trekking enthusiasts, hiking on the characteristic mountain for many years, have created both official paths (of several levels of difficulty) and off-path trails for the hardcore segment. Most of the registrations were made on or close to the man-made paths, but occasionally the courage and interest in certain contextual sights led to off-path registrations as well.
As Eixample had its own set of rules the mountain would also need a method of its own. The simplest thing was to include a part of the urban context to the nature: The grid. By dividing the mountain into specific areas based on the grid I would have a more potent way of attacking the otherwise enormous site. Being on the mountain I could then subdivide the areas into smaller pieces. It was a long-lasting process and the most interesting outcome might be that the nature, Montserrat, itself has been taken over by man. One can hike all the way to the very top, but you are also able to drive to the Monastery close to the top or arrive via cable car. Tourists, hikers, climbers, locals, pilgrims, etc. have a big impact on the mountain and its natural environment. The diversities and similarities I end up finding were of a human character.
The representations are constructed from the texts/notes/photos from the excursions. The drawings are made out of different filters such as emotion, density, and intensity and are the physicalization of the observant's remarks and memory from that certain place of interest (whether it was in Eixample or on Montserrat).
Texts were also written. These sought out connectivity between subjects relevant to the registration. This could for instance be a text based on the element of time, thereafter leading to the element of movement, and so on. These texts will be added to the website shortly.
