UNOBSOLETING: Restoring credibility to dismissed architecture

Abstract

The climate crisis has increased the awareness of the existing building stock as a critical resource. Yet certain categories of buildings are still more likely to be demolished rather than adapted. Architecture from the late modern and postmodern period (ca 1960-1990) has not yet achieved broad mainstream appreciation, but an enormous stock of office and industry buildings from this period awaits its destiny. To many stakeholders, planners, and architects its replacement seems regrettable but unavoidable. What makes buildings from this category obsolete, and what can be done to counter it? Through the study of urban redevelopments in contemporary Sweden, this thesis highlights a lack of discussion preceding the demolition of buildings from this category. This “silent dismissal” is analysed through the emerging framework of architectural obsolescence: a loss of appreciation not caused by technical exhaustion, but by shifting fashions, demands, and ideals. To counteract obsolescence, this thesis develops an architectural design method for investigating and addressing obsoleting factors. The first step is a thorough inventory of on-site architectural situations. The next step is a diagnosis where the main obsoleting factors as well as latent opportunities are identified. Inflexible spatial configurations diminish the buildings’ utility. At the same time, unfashionable architectural features, often framed by an urban context lacking basic architectural qualities, weaken their architectural appeal. Finally, the design stage turns the diagnosis into interventions which reframe the situations and improve spatial configurability and urban quality. Latent opportunities found on site are exploited opportunistically, trying to avoid both arrogant dismissal and narrow fetishisation. This method is applied to a group of buildings in the Högsbo industrial area, Gothenburg, an area undergoing transition to mixed urban use. Selected situations are analysed and redesigned scenarios exemplify how buildings that are deemed obsolete can be transformed into valuable resources for the future city.