Subject: The anti-communist revolution in Romania started in Timisoara in December 1989. On a real site in Timisoara we had to project "a merge" between the function of the Museum-memorial, with economic facilities and a residential development.

 

The site's main neighbours are the city river Bega with it's green areas on the South side, the main road connecting the Railway station and the city center, on the North, the limit of an industrial dead site on the West and a residential area of old Austro-Hungarian houses.

 

 

Urbanism:  We wanted to divide the site in two main areas: one that was green towards the river and the residential area - dedicated to the residents and the museum's visitors, a place where memory, children play and relaxation are joined together;  and the seccond one as a connecting activity node between the railway station (wich has no "life" at the moment) and the city center.

    Second we wanted to create a positive space for the city, as well as a place where citizens and visitors can spend  free time or after/before visiting, while in connection to the memorial.

    Third, we wanted to set an example for future development on the Western neighbouring area, by creating the premisses for a commercial/boutique street with residential function at the next levels, thus improoving the area's functions and atractivity.

 

Residential: The flats are organized so the spaces between them can accomodate different functions for free time of it's residents, thus creating several semi-private spaces for them, the buffer between the public space and the semi-public is made by the fracture between levels of the two. By folds we created different types of acceses and natural barriers.

 

Museum: The museum accomodates a library, a research center, a shop, two cafes and a conference center, along with the exibition areas. All of them are organized around a tall tower that acts as an urban periscope - to show visitors the main parts of the city where the revolution whas consumed. Beside it's function as a periscope, it is a landmark tall as the city's cathedral (the tallest building in Timisoara) and a memorial for all the lost souls of the revolution.

 

The exhibiton space is split in several pieces, representing several important days. We worked with the cemetery theme and the cross roads and the labyrinth themes.

 

The exhibition is connected underground, leaving the ground floor for green spaces. The main wish we had while designing this museum, whas to induce a certain feeling to the visitor - the spaces induce a mixture of images, sounds and feelings of what happend those days - so that he can experience first hand a part of what the revolutionaries felt those days. Why the constant connection with the museum ? Even when your outside or just enjoying a Sunday afternoon on the grass ? ...because we think this is something we mustn't forget, it is the reason we enjoy deocracy, and pople should be reminded at a psychological level, what the ones before them felt and sacrificed for the future generations. 

The only one monument that is different and has a tree - a landmark - is the museum's library, an end of the paths generated by the monuments, where you can have the option to use the outside amphiteatre of the conference center or go to the buried courtyard - a semi-public space, always open - to the museum, or to the urban periscope. The conference center accomodates the residential community center, as well.

 

Tourists that prefer to come by boat have a small dock - cafe', from where they can continue to the museum, from the other side, thus bringing life to the river banks at the same time.