Architectural Design V-IX: KISPI - Approximations (A.Fonteyne)

Abstract

The assignment reimagines the vacant former Kinderspital Zürich (KISPI), a complex of ten diverse buildings in Hottingen. Responding to uncertain demolition and the housing crisis, students propose housing and public uses. Each group develops one building as an autonomous protagonist within a collective, experimental vision beyond a conventional masterplan.

Objective

Engage with an architecture of the senses, learning from your own observations, experiences and memories. Look closely at existing buildings and the urban fabric through your own documentation, archival research, and the creation of a fictional framework. Read and write fiction to stimulate the imagination. Develop architectural interventions into and onto an existing building, using model-making and intuitive drawing. Develop new vocabularies, methodologies and formats. Learn how to work together, allowing space for individual exploration.

Content

10 Buildings. The former Kinderspital Zürich – KISPI – is an island of architectural diversity in the heart of the Hottingen residential quarter in Zurich. Its ten buildings and three provisional structures, which grew organically from the late 19th century onwards, are now empty after patients and staff moved to the new building in Forch. Plans to demolish the buildings and replace them with a new research centre are becoming increasingly uncertain and are actively challenged. In the present moment, different forms of (temporary) housing for the site are being discussed by the Canton. Amid the housing crisis, urban sprawl and ongoing demographic flux, we embrace the rare opportunity to provide housing and public functions in such a central neighbourhood. 10 Protagonists. We will approach the site and the city as a stage, where the ten buildings become our protagonists. The intricate mesh of spaces, scales, types, and histories within the site becomes our object of reflection. Each group - of varying sizes- will focus on one building, developing its character, integrating different forms of housing of choice, while contributing to a collective vision for the KISPI area. Inspired by the figures of John Hejduk and Louise Bourgeois, each building is treated as an autonomous character within a common narrative: an imaginative object with its own geometry, programme, and storyline. Rather than striving for a unified composition, we seek unexpected relationships between the buildings. This approach raises key questions: What scenarios can we imagine for this existing ensemble? How can it relate to its surroundings? Rather than a conventional urban ensemble or masterplan, the site becomes a landscape of approximations. 10 Imaginations. Drawing on the methodologies of Brazilian theatre practitioner Augusto Boal, the studio treats theatre as a collaborative space for questioning traditional design processes and encouraging collective ways of thinking and making. Using a shared site model, all projects are brought into relation, while individual table talks offer concentrated perspectives on each design proposal. Sketching, model making, and creative writing will serve as our primary tools for shaping thought and developing design. Throughout the semester, workshops with artists, writers, and spatial practitioners will accompany the studio to foster criticality and positionality. Join us on the stage to approximate other futures for the KISPI—Vorhang auf!

Resources