The castle of Balzers , Castle Gutenberg , is one of the most beautiful and biggest castles of the Rhine valley . Most of the lands around the castles were and are still today inhabited with traditional villages along the valley . However , the traditional architecture and lifestyle of these villages is already affected by the suburban carpet of the cities in the valley . For this reason , Balzers is losing its unique cultural qualities , its connection to nature and its historical characteristics . This project aims to stop the destruction of traditional houses and farms especially along the hillside of the castle , connecting the modern needs of the society with the long history of the village .
How should the abandoned houses , under the castle hill in Balzers , be designed , to get all the cultural , natural , historical , and rural qualities of Balzers connected and to be able to grant communication between different groups , new tourism , and living opportunities in the future , creating a positive impact on the environment and on the social life of the villagers ?
The research of the project focuses on the cultural and traditional values of Balzers , which seem to be lost more and more . As we can learn and profit a lot from the upcycling and restoration of the Castle Gutenberg , and the way the area around the castle is handling with natural resources , we can resume some of these traditions for modern life too . To get the right information , I first travelled to Balzers and had a trip in the castle . In this small trip , I also had the opportunity to get know the historical architecture of the past and the local people ’ s modern attitude towards traditions . Another important source of information was , therefore , the interviews , which I held around the castle hill in Balzers . In addition , the trip to the castle with Markus Burgmeier and his recommended books and presentations were an important source . As the project is dealing with an historical area , it is attempting to preserve the landscape and the historical identity of the buildings and the village with several sensitive steps in construction and with some rules for the community . Some of these rules will be the implementation of botanical production and the usage of regional materials . The construction and the rules should maintain the fragile relationship between man and nature , but also history within a timeline .
Through this project , I was able to profit a lot also from our guest lecturers ’ presentations and critics . These profits were mostly in monument preservation , building in historical structures , sociology , and economy in architecture . With this , I discovered new interests and design options , would like to work with more historical buildings in future , and would like to learn and practice more with the topic of “ upcycling ”.