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Architectural Design V-IX: Newrope in Piraeus (F. Persyn)
Last Updated: 2026-02-05 15:42:26
Abstract
How can we look for ways in which all parties involved can benefit from the proposed transformation of the port of the greek city Piraeus? You are invited to join us to develop concrete interventions that bring people with conflicting views and interests into dialogue to help create the conditions for co-creation and –habitation in the heart of Newrope.
Objective
Moving beyond binaries and blurring the boundaries between ‘us’ and ‘them’, we invite you to join us to develop concrete interventions that bring people with conflicting views and interests into dialogue to help create the conditions for co-creation and –habitation in Piraeus. Working in small groups, you define your own focus and ways of working and expressing your project. Our field trip to Piraeus will be followed by a series of smaller and bigger workshops and Design in Dialogue sessions. You will get input from others, and will shift between roles and positions, before the collective output is exhibited in Zürich. We are looking forward to having you with us on our journey to the heart of Newrope.
Content
Our upcoming design studio will revolve around the Greek city of Piraeus. You might know it as the port of Athens, or as the non-place you passed through on your way to or from the Aegean islands. However, with a population of more than160,000 people, it is a community and destination in and of itself and the 5th largest municipality in Greece. In 2017, the state-owned Chinese shipping company COSCO gained majority shares over the port of Piraeus. This acquisition is part of the so-called Belt and Road Initiative, a global development strategy adopted by the Chinese government involving infrastructure projects and investments all over the world. When everything goes according to the recently approved masterplan, Piraeus will soon be a central hub in a growing global trade network that stretches all the way from East China to South America. While Greece is selling itself to the world, since the 2013 International Monetary Fund bailout plan forced the country to privatize a large number of its national assets, citizens become increasingly frustrated. They wonder how the ongoing global integration can serve their needs and improve the livelihoods of those whofeel left behind by globalization. The result is a widening schism between large-scale developments and local communities. With the Chair of Architecture and Urban Transformation we investigate cities andterritories that exemplify, or foreshadow, the changing urban conditions and borders that define Europe. We look for friction points, where worlds collide and energy is unleashed. Due to its complex historical and geopolitical relevance, situated at the nexus of major flows (of people and goods) between Europe and the Middle East, we see in Piraeus, as a port city and logistical hub, many of the paradoxes and possibilities of what we call Newrope. Instead of focusing on the pockets of resistance and hope in the heart of the Greek capital, where activists are taking in refugees as they try to prevent Airbnbfrom disrupting the housing market, we want to look at the large-scale developments on the outskirts of the (same) urban environment. Starting from the place where land and water meet and together shape the silhouette of Europe, we want to understand how foreign investors and local residents can all benefit from the proposed transformation of the port of Piraeus. We are looking forward to having you with us on our journey to the heart of Newrope. Warmly, Charlotte Schaeben and Michiel van Iersel
General Information
- Language
- English
- Levels
- BSC
- Frequency
- Semesterly recurring
Examination
- Type
- graded semester performance
Course Components
| Type | Title | Time & Place | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| exercise |
Architectural Design V-IX: Newrope in Piraeus (F. Persyn)
No course on 17./18.3. (seminar week), on 14./15.4. (Easter Holiday) as well as on public holidays (s. room reservations)
|
|
16 h weekly |