Ad hoc architecture: Exploring the preservation and activation of a site’s identity in a degrowth scenario

Abstract

While facing an urgent climate crisis, the idea of degrowth as an economic strategy for reduction of both production and consumption has once again been presented as an alternative possible solution. With the proposal Ducklands (1989-1991) of Cedric Price as a starting point in terms of dismantling a site, the project seeks to explore how identities of a site can be preserved and activated in a degrowth scenario. The thesis is set within a speculative future, in which the extraction of new materials is forbidden. Reused materials stated as the only sustainable option for development in the city has resulted in a shift in material production. Rather than looking for possible sites to build on, extracting inherent materials and components of already existing sites has become an essential part of urban planning. The site of Gamlestaden slaughterhouse area, Gothenburg, is characterized by its former function: meat production, and a quality of both aesthetics and processes at the site: ad hoc. By transforming the site into a material resource, the preservation of the two identities can be explored. The historical narratives of the site, former industrial processes, are translated as a design tool for the conversion of the site into another type of industry: from slaughter of animals to slaughter of materials. Ad hoc, for this, is found as separate objects as well as linked to situations and processes at the site. The situations consist of numerous traces of ad hoc activities, whereas the objects are derelict artefacts isolated from their contextual connection. By extracting design principles from the situations, implementing them in relation to the objects, ad hoc as part of the site’s identity will be related to from two different perspectives: through the objects and as a method for transformation. The outcome of the project is a speculation on how the site transforms, including smaller design projects related to industrial functions. By exploring a possible future scenario, the thesis aims to offer another perspective on how to relate to a site and its identity, as well as commenti