MARIO VAN WYK
NELSON MANDELA METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY , PORT ELIZABETH
‘ Horror in Architecture ’, a romantic exploration of the Exquisite Corpse analogy
As a by-product of previous modes of planning in today ’ s urban environment we are left with open undefined spaces between developed areas ( known as SLOAP or “ Space left over after Planning ”). Here , infrastructure such as storm water channels , railway lines , and ruins of old industrial buildings remain ; overgrown with the incursion of wild nature . These kinds of spaces create urban barriers and breeding grounds for criminal activities .
In his treatise van Wyk identifies a site of this nature in Uitenhage . He then uses the analogy of a corpse , which facilitates infestation , to develop this site over a period of several years . What emerges is a revitalised ecosystem where the relationship between humans and nature are harmoniously re-defined in what is conceptualised as an “ Exquisite Corpse ”.
In this process the inherent functional and sensory qualities of the site are used as starting points for infestation / development . For example , storm-water channels ( traces of the existing water reticulation system of the site ) are reconfigured to make pleasant waterways that feed agricultural lands which in turn activate “ reef points ” - or points which facilitate the emergence of a variety of human activities . These ultimately contribute to the development of a new way of inhabiting the new productive landscape with an innovative housing model ; all a function of the emergence of the “ Exquisite Corpse ”
Fertilization Points
Example of Use
78 Student Awards