Vlad Bucsoiu - Design Report - MArch2 Edinburgh University

COUNTRYSIDE [OUTSIDE] ARCHITECTURE MArch Modular Pathway 2020-2021 Vlad Bucsoiu / S1890926 Studio Leaders: Chris French & Michael Lewis

CONTESTING ‘COUNTRYSIDING’ The ‘Lost Country’ of the Roma Design Report May 2021

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CONTESTING ‘COUNTRYSIDING’

[design report] ‘Countrysiding’ - , a “funnelling” of “populations into the countryside of the mind,” a “flatland of the imagination.”1

Contesting ‘Countrysiding’1 explores the fragile landscape of ‘Garcini’/Romania and the unstable ground conditions.

It understands the nature of all the different movements within this territory (Roma, goods, animals, water, ground), and develops an architecture that is capable of interacting with a steep topography and a muddy/frozen ground.

It also considers the old craftsman activities that the Roma used to engage in successfully in the past, and provides an opportunity for them to learn and celebrate these activities.

The architectural proposal described in this report develops new relationships between the settlement, the village and the city, and locates an opportunity for the Roma to settle on stable ground, potentially finding their ‘lost country’.2

Vlad Bucsoiu

COUNTRYSIDE [OUTSIDE] ARCHITECTURE MArch Modular Pathway 2020-2021 Vlad Bucsoiu / S1890926 Studio Leaders: Chris French & Michael Lewis 1.Troy Conrad Therrien, “Along for the Ride,” in Countryside, A Report (New York: Taschen, 2020), 14.

2.Cioaba, Luminita Mihai. 2002. The Lost Country. Translated by Adam J. Sorkin and Cristina Cristea. Social-Cultural Foundation of Roma „ION CIOABA”.

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Thesis “The truth is that, in the days of yore, the Gypsies had a country. Now they keep searching for it in vain, the wheels of their wagons wearing ruts in the road as they travel them back and forth, looking for a hidden spot of earth somewhere under an out-of-the-way patch of sky. Only in their souls does the hope still exist that one day they will find their country. Then they will gather together from the farthest corners of the world where they have been scattered, and they will never leave it again.”3 Surrounded by hills, mountains and valleys, Garcini is a Roma settlement on the outskirts of Brasov. Despite its proximity to the city, and a traditional neighbouring village, the Garcini settlement is neglected and isolated, socially as well as physically. The Roma community is outside any urban or rural development frameworks. This is, as Troy Conrad Therrien would term it, an example of countrysiding, a “funnelling” of “populations into the countryside of the mind,” a “flatland of the imagination.”4 The myth of nomadism surrounding the Roma — as Luminita Mihai Cioaba, a Roma poetry writer, suggests, their migration actually began with an exile – exacerbates this countrysiding.

Some Roma are still travellers, others are migratory but only travel small distances and return to the village, while yet more are now sedentary. CONTESTING ‘COUNTRYSIDING’ develops new relationships between the settlement, the village and the city, and locates an opportunity for the Roma to settle on stable ground, potentially finding their ‘lost country’.5

In their day-to-day operations, the Roma of Garcini create myriad movement patterns across the landscape, influenced by seasonal weather and the need for work. Their way of living generates a specific morphological figure: a dense and irregular arrangement of fixed houses surrounded by solid, tall fences, combined with other areas of temporary and poorly constructed shelters, lacking any boundary between plots.

These shelters, coupled with the changing weather conditions, make this a difficult environment in which to live. The ground shifts from frozen in the winter, to marshy in the summer. The makeshift constructions and the constant presence of water leaves many shelters at risk of regular flooding during the summer, and at the same time does not prevent them becoming filled with snow during winter.

The architectural proposal described in this report is aware of the fragile social and environmental landscape of Garcini and its unstable conditions. It explores the movements within this territory (Roma, goods, animals, water, ground), and develops an architecture that intersects with the muddy/frozen ground between the village and the Roma settlement.

It takes the craft practices for which the Roma were celebrated, and provides an opportunity for these practices to be passed on. Workshops for making, farming, recycling, and spaces for gatherings and social events offer the Roma a place of their own, and at the same time reinforce the dialogue between the Roma and other local urban communities.

Figure 3 / Imaginary section through the field station ‘Garcini’

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3,5.Cioaba, Luminita Mihai. 2002. The Lost Country. Translated by Adam J. Sorkin and Cristina Cristea. Social-Cultural Foundation of Roma „ION CIOABA”.

4.Troy Conrad Therrien, “Along for the Ride,” in Countryside, A Report (New York: Taschen, 2020), 14.

‘The Lost Country’ | The Exile and the Myth of the Nomadism

Figures 1 & 2 / Temporary and shelters in ‘Garcini’ Village

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Figure 4 / Compressing Conceptual Figures

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Contents Thesis Abstract My hometown, A personal reflection >My Hometown - a personal reflection >Searching for the ‘Lost Country’ >‘Countrysiding’ >The Countryside of my Hometown >Working Methodologies

[01] Garcini, a non-traditional village History and Current Situation of the village >The Nomadic and Semi-nomadic Roma >The infrastructure >Temporary shelters >The Lost Traditions

[02] Patterns

>Seasonal Weather Patterns >Roma Patterns >Recycling of goods

[03] Figural Morphology

>Village Figures >Animate Figures >Morphological Dialogue >Earthworks and Morphologies of the Ground >Crafted Morphology >Elevated Morphology >Vertical Layers of Culture and Craftsmanship

[04] Weather Conditions

>Structural and environmental Strategies |Lower end of the hill >Temporary Figures >Structural and environmental Strategies |Higher end of the hill >The Writer’s Space

Conclusion

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Countryside [Outside] Architecture: Rendering Field Stations

“To explore architecture philosophically would entail submitting architectural design... to the requirements and exigencies of philosophical discourse... And to examine philosophy architecturally would require using philosophical concepts and propositions, wrenched from their own theoretical context and transformed, perhaps mutilated, for architectural purposes. It is only by submitting both to a third term, to a position or place outside of both, that they can be explored beside each other, as equivalent and interconnected discourses and practices.”5 ‘We need to find ways to record the countryside, to draw out patterns, structures, inferences and influences, rhythms, spatiality and materiality in order to bring the city and the countryside into dialogue; we need to develop a mutual language.’6 ‘We will use the term ‘rendering’ here, therefore, not to refer to the production of an image from a digital model (although in parallel with other techniques this might form part of a rendering strategy), but to describe the making-visible of a certain character in a given condition.’7

‘As with translation, rendering in this sense becomes relational; by representing/ translating it describes relations between things. Working from the outside, rendering becomes a technique for allowing two parties (in this case, city and countryside) to enter dialogue.’8

5. Grosz, Architecture from the Outside, xvi.

6, 7, 8. Chris French and Michael Lewis, Countryside [Outside] Architecture: Rendering Field Stations, Edinburgh School of Architecture & Landscape Architecture, September 2020. p. 12-13.

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Countryside [Outside]

Architecture

Brief 01: Field Stations Romanian Countryside Studio Leaders: Chris French & Michael Lewis

Figure 5 / Countryside Territories

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‘Garcini’ Field Station

My Hometown | A personal Reflection

The Roma Village

Figure 6 / Garcini Village Brasov / Romania

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‘Garcini’ Field Station | The Countryside of the Mind

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My Hometown:

My Hometown | A personal Reflection

A personal Reflection

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Due to the current situation, my project is located very close to my hometown which I consider to be a rather unusual context for a Masters project. In normal conditions, the project would have had place in a different country (like the UK or even a country I have not seen before), however this is the first time I engage with a project based in my own country.

Although I am familiar with this context, right now I am studying it in a very specific way, fact that influenced the way I approached and worked with this particular context. Thus, rather than a conventional structure in which the ‘reflection’ is a separate chapter at the end of the report, I will introduce the report by writing a small personal reflection regarding the way this context influenced my working methodologies. This reflection will not only be present in the introduction, but will also appear actively throughout the report.

The Countryside of my hometown, Brasov

Figure 6 / The Traditional Neighbouring Village, near ‘Garcini Field Station

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‘We have always been searching for our country, but we have never found it.

I feel that our country must be fleeing us. It’s as if we were chasing after a mirage.’

Searching for the Lost Country Luminita Cioaba is a Roma author, best known for her Romani language poems and daughter of the King of the Romanian Gypsies, Ion Cioaba.

She was born in a small town, Targu Carbunesti, Gorj County, in 1967 and grew up in a fairly traditional Roma family, as at the time of her birth, her family was still living a seminomadic life.9 She was inspired by 19th century Roma authors, who had written about Roma traditions, customs, beliefs, lifestyle. In her novels volume, ‘The Lost country’, she wrote about people of her kind and their traditions and how these translated into their lifestyle. The title story explains why Gypsies must always be on the road and do not have a home of their own, while other stories mostly focus on tales of violence, magicians, music or dance, seen through the eyes of women (which are also internal narrators).10 Most importantly, she describes how the Roma once had a home, however they were exiled and since then, they had always been travelling hoping that one day they will find their ‘lost country’.

Figure 7 / Illustrations from the ‘Lost Country’ Volume 9. Sofiya Zahova, “Luminita Mihai Cioaba”, Romarchive.Eu, 2021, https://www.romarchive.eu/en/ collection/p/luminita-mihai-cioaba/.

10. Luminita Cioaba, Adam Sorkin and Cristina Cirstea, “The Lost Country”, Goodreads.Com, 2021, https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24912387-the-lost-country.

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Many story tales included in ‘The Lost Country’ volume influenced my architectural project and thesis to the extent where she became a protagonist of my narrative.

One example is ‘The Birch Grove’ story where the writer mentions how the Roma were always on the road, especially during the winter, which was a very difficult season for them. Thus, the Roma, ‘who live free under the skies’11, used to celebrate the arrival of Spring, as they were very happy to see the cold weather disappearing.

They were looking for ‘the loveliest of birch groves’12 to install their camps and to celebrate this event, which was very important to their lives.

A part of my project offers the Roma the opportunity to celebrate this lost tradition once more, among many others.

Apart from the cultural event spaces, the proposal also includes a writer’s space for the Roma author mentioned above and for her family. They will be one of the few ‘station keepers’ of this community during the winter months.

Searching for the ‘Lost Country’

Figure 8 / Luminita Mihai Cioaba | The Roma Writer

11, 12. Cioaba, Luminita Mihai. 2002. The Lost Country. Translated by Adam J. Sorkin and Cristina Cristea. Social-Cultural Foundation of Roma „ION CIOABA”.

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‘Countrysiding’ | The Exile and the Myth of the Nomadism Field Station Rendering 01

Figure 9 / Field Station Rendering 1 | The Isolated ‘Garcini’

Garcini

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‘Countrysiding’

countrysiding, a “funnelling” of “populations into the countryside of the mind,” a “flatland of the imagination.”

The Exiled Location of the Garcini Roma

Figure 10 / The Western part of ‘Garcini’ field station surrounded by hills

‘In a mind war, the countryside is the flatland of the imagination.

Countrysiding, funneeling populations into the countryside of the mind, is the fundamental doctrine of tyranny. Countrysiding manufactures small-mindedness, bigotry, tribalism, parochialism, nostalgia, ideological inbreeding, and all the other smears urbanites use to slander the rural as if they don’t apply equally to the city-dwellers.

Countrysiding is as racist as it is classist, but it doesn’t discriminate whom it afflicts: rednecks and blue bloods; reds and the red, white and blue.’13

13.Troy Conrad Therrien, “Along for the Ride,” in Countryside, A Report (New York: Taschen, 2020), 14.

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Despite its proximity to the city, and a traditional neighbouring village, the Garcini settlement is neglected and isolated, socially as well as physically. The Roma community is outside any urban or rural development frameworks.

“funnelling” of “populations into the countryside of the mind”

Troy Conrad introduces the term ‘Countrysiding’ in order to describe the way countryside is perceived by many people. As I imagine, ‘the countryside of the mind’ means that people are looking down at the countryside, putting this territory aside, somewhere out of their heads.

Here, I am drawing a parallel between Troy Conrad’s text and the exile of the Roma.

The City

Traditional traditional neighbouring village

Garcini

Figure 11 / Urban Map showing the isolated location of the ‘Garcini’ Village next to the main city of Brasov

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The Countryside

The Countryside of my Hometown

of my Hometown

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Most of the Countryside areas around my hometown, Brasov, are picturesque places, very quiet and full of beautiful landscapes. They have a linear arrangement and the architectural style is similar throughout the villages.

However, other areas have been isolated and neglected, such as the ‘Garcini’ village.

Although many of the small shelters in this village have a similar appearance to the ones in the traditional countryside villages, they are in fact in a very poor condition. I have driven many times past this village, and I noticed how the local people were abandoned by authorities. Although there were few interventions made by the city council, such as to build a new social accommodation scheme or to improve the existing infrastructure, these projects were severely altered by the Roma community shortly after construction.

Figures 12, 13 / Contextual Photographs of Garcini Village

The Roma behaviour is deeply rooted in their cultural history.

I believe that these interventions were superficially considered, as none of them tried to understand the true nature of the Roma community, and the fact that their specific behaviour is deeply rooted in their cultural history. Therefore, my proposal is not a project that tries to solve directly the existing problem of the Roma in this community, but instead it tries to find a way for these people to coexist with the place again, as well as with other people outside their community. At the same time, the project sets apart the risk of fixing the Roma in this village. It encourages their nomadic behaviour and this way their migrancy becomes an affirmative characteristic.

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Working Methodologies The Roma people are very dynamic in their everyday activities. They travel back and forth across different territories at different scales and they gather various items, which they bring back into their village.

In order to represent the dynamic character of the Roma community, I used different analogue drawing and modelling techniques, such as drawing animation, tracing, cutting, folding and unfolding paper.

These are iterative processes

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seeking to record all the different territories which my project addresses and also to record the very specific weather conditions of the field station (the winter snow or the summer rain). In terms of the design process, cutting, folding and unfolding paper were the first moves towards creating an architectural language which addresses the Roma craft traditions, but also deals with the difficult weather conditions, such as heavy snow or rainwater.

Figures 14, 15, 16 / Animate Drawings

Working Methodologies | Analogue Drawings and Paper Modelling

Traces of Movement across vast territories

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24 Garcini | The Isolated Vilalge

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01: ‘Garcini’

A non-traditional village

This is a small introductory chapter which presents the history and the current situation of the field station. It also shows the isolated location of the village in relation to the city and its peripheries.

Brief 01: Field Stations Contesting Countrysiding

Figure 18 / Mobilities of Goods, People and Animals around the Field Station

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The Nomadic

The History of how the Roma arrived in the ‘Garcini’ village

and Semi-Nomadic Roma

Around 1950, there were still many nomadic and semi-nomadic Roma communities. However, most of them began to settle for a stable life, being located mainly in separate neighbourhoods at the outskirts of cities. Their isolated location was based on the policy of racial discrimination of bourgeois-landlord regimes, which used to keep the Roma outside any urban frameworks. The ‘Garcini’ village became populated around this period when the Roma came to this area to work for the ‘Electroprecizia’ factory (Figure20) located in the neighbouring village. At the beginning, they settled their camps, such as the ones shown in the images above. After a while, the Roma began constructing more solid forms of construction, but they always had their tent in their gardens as an alternative (Figure 19).14 However, even if they tended to adopt a sedentary life, they still had nomadic habits. Similarly in the present, the Roma people in this village try to adopt a sedentary life, but most of them still have a nomadic behaviour. Some travel to the main city in order to earn their existence, but others are also forced to travel because of the difficult weather conditions, such as heavy winters or rainy summers. The ‘Garcini’ village is home for more than 7000 Roma at present, and most of them are unemployed.

14.RUXANDRA HUREZEAN, “Sinteza | Viata Mâinilor Negre”, Revistasinteza.Ro, 2021, https://www. revistasinteza.ro/viata-mainilor-negre.

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‘Garcini, A non-traditional village

Figure 19 / The Roma Camps | Shelters and Tents

Figure 20 / Electroprecizia Factory

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Layers of Countrysides | Aerial view of ‘Garcini’ and the neighbouring village

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The constant presence of water in the ‘Garcini’ village

Figure 22 / Poor condition of ‘Garcini’ streets

Figure 23 / Children being carried to school through the muddy streets

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The Infrastructure The constant presence of water

The inexistence of infrastructure creates difficult muddy ground conditions

Due to the lack of infrastructure and the difficult weather conditions, the village is constantly flooded during the summer or filled with snow during the winter. The water flows from neighbouring hills down into the village and then into the Roma shelters, making this place a difficult place to live.

These conditions also slow down the movement of the Roma throughout the village, as it is very difficult to walk or drive on marshy surfaces.

As a consequence, it is very difficult for children to go to the local school, unless they are being carried on the back of their older relatives (Figure 23).15

Figure 24 / Marshy condition of the ‘Garcini’ streets

15.RUXANDRA HUREZEAN, “Sinteza | Viata Mâinilor Negre”, Revistasinteza.Ro, 2021, https://www.revistasinteza.ro/viata-mainilor-negre.

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Temporary

Conditions of the existing temporary shelters of the Roma

Shelters

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Figure 25, 26, 28 / Poorly constructed shelters at the peripheries of the village

The Roma shelters are very poorly constructed.

The foundation is almost inexistent, and the roofs are only temporary. This makes the houses to be easily flooded during summer and affected by snow during winter. Due to the difficult weather, their plots are constantly filled with water and mud. However, the soil has the advantage of being fertile during the summer months. Normally, an autonomous community would strongly rely on growing crops and animals for their existence, however, the Roma community relies more on the embedded knowledge of their community.

The lower part of the village is predominantly occupied by fixed houses and plots, whereas the higher parts contain temporary shelters.

On one end, the ‘fences’ separating the houses are solid blocks, similar to walls, whereas in the other end, the barriers between them are almost inexistent. This happens because a part of the Roma population is still migratory and another part is no longer nomadic and tries to protect their plots.

In the upper part of the village, the spirit of the community is also important. There is a dependant relationship between houses/ shelters. These are linked by electricity wires and clothes hanging from a place to another. The section also illustrates the wild vegetation and animals wondering around the place, as well as the smoke generated by the burning of various items that the Roma gathers from the city.

Figure 27 / Deconstruction of the Roma shelters | Layers of walls, floors, roofs and gardens

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The Lost

Traditions

The Lost Traditions of the Roma

Of the Roma

Figure 29 / Weaving on a traditional loom

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Figure 30 / Traditional Timber Art Craft

Historically, the Roma community represented a nomadic population which used to travel along countries following their culture and traditions. Apart from their habit of mobility, the travellers used to engage in a variety of activities, such as peddling and trading horses, dogs, birds, and many other animals and goods. As they were very good artisans, the Roma were devoted to blacksmithing, carpentry, farming, and also engaging in crafting or repairing small items (pocket watches, tea-pots, porcelain dishes, knives, furniture), but also larger things such as vehicles, roofs, and even roads. This way, the Roma were able to earn their living, thus these activities were very important in their everyday life. However, nowadays there are few people that still practice them.

Moreover, these people were very good recyclers, even before the period of major environmental concerns.

Apart from the craftsman activities, the traditional Roma community places an important value to the idea of family. After marriage, the women join the husband’s family, and so, the communities are further extended.

Within these consistent families, the dining events, weddings and other social gatherings are also very important. Apart from the strong extended family, what also binds the traditional Roma community, is their common notion of always being the ‘outsider’ of other groups.

Figures 31, 32 / Traditional Cooper and Silver Crafts

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02: Patterns This is the first main theme that describes my field station.

It contains information about cyclical mobility patterns around the field station: >Seasonal weather patterns >Roma movement patterns >Recycling of goods (metal, plastics, glass and timber goods) This chapter is about the urban scale and might contain some of the first semester drawings. It addresses to FSR 01.

Brief 01: Field Stations Contesting Countryside The Lost Country of the Roma

Figure 33: Tracing over the vast territories of the Roma

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Winter Landscapes | ‘Garcini’ Field Station

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Weather

Conditions of the existing temporary shelters of the Roma

Patterns

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Figure 35 / Ice, Water and Mud

This is a challenging place for the Roma. The changing weather conditions create a difficult environment to live in, as the ground shifts from a frozen state in the winter, to a marshy surface in the summer. This makes their shelters to be very often flooded or filled with snow.

Their shelters are very poorly or not insulated at all, fact that allows the snow to sit longer on their roofs, and so, the interior spaces become even colder. This makes many people abandon their homes during this season. When the snow melts, it creates a series of flooding patterns throughout the village, and because there is no infrastructure, the meltwater often flows inside the Roma shelters. Similarly, during the summer, the shelters become flooded again because of the extreme rain events that usually happen during this season. The constant presence of water turns the ground into a muddy surface. Apart from the unstable ground, the steep topography also restricts their movement and reduces their possibilities of travelling.

Weather patterns | Sesonal cycles of Snow, Water and Mud

Figures 36, 37 / Abandoned Roma Shelters in the winter season

Figure 38 / Ground Conditions | Seasonal cycles of snow, water and mud

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Human Migration

Human migration patterns | Local/Regional Scale Migration

Patterns

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Despite their nomadic nature, the travellers began to settle in various locations throughout the country, only travelling alongside a small area. As they were not able to integrate within the urban city, they hid away as far as possible, in villages such as ‘Garcini’. This way, they avoided paying taxes and respecting other social norms.

In order to earn their living, the Roma often commute to the city of Brasov, where they collect and gather specific metal, glass, wooden or plastic items to recycle, or even animals to resell.

Figure 39 / Roma mobility patterns accros territories at different scales

While these items are brought to the Roma village, many of them are burnt, thrown away in their own gardens in the environment or in the closest river, even though they were very good recyclers in the past. However, they not only travel to the closest city, but to other neighbouring cities and villages, especially during the cold seasons. Thus, they create endless movement patterns across the territory that they inhabit, but also throughout the vicinities.

Local/Regional Scale migration through difficult weather conditions

Figure 40 / Migrating through difficult weather conditions

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Recycling habits | Burning Waste

Local and regional

Roma migration

Figures 42-46 / Local scale migration | Mobility of people, waste and animals

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03: Figural Morphology This chapter will illustrate the specific figural morphology of the village and the proposal: >Village Figures >Animate Figures >Morphological Dialogue >Earthworks and Morphologies of the Ground >Crafted Morphology >‘The Birch Grove’ | Celebrating the Spring >Elevated Morphology >Vertical Layers of culture and craftsmanship The term ‘figure’ also speaks about the people of this village (body figure) and about the families and other relationships between the Roma.

This chapter goes into the material atmosphere of the spaces, but also the arrangement of the architecture, relative to the village. This is captured in the FSR 04.

Brief 01 & 02: Field Stations Outposts and Embassies Contesting Countrysiding The ‘Lost Country’ of the Roma

Figure 47: Proposed Site plan whitin the larger context

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Village

Figural Morphology of the village | Housing density

Figures

Unlike many other Romanian villages, ‘Garcini’ is situated between hills and valleys, fact that influenced its figural morphology.

However, the figural shape of the settlement is also influenced by the specific culture of the Roma. The traditional Roma community places an important value to the idea of family and tribe. After marriage, the women join the husband’s family, and so, the communities are further extended. Within these consistent families, the dining events, weddings, and other social gatherings are also very important.

Figures 48, 49 / Village Plans | Housing density & Houses vs Plots

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Figures 50, 51 / Village Morphology | Shelter Figures

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Figural Morphology of the village | Housing density

Apart from the strong extended family, what also binds the traditional Roma community, is their common notion of always being the ‘outsider’ of other groups. All these traditions have made the Roma shelters/plots to be built very close one next to another, resulting in a very dense layout arrangement of the village. Over a short period of time, the population of ‘Garcini’ has extended way over the legal frameworks of a traditional village.

Figures 52-54 / Material Deconstruction of the Dense Arrangement | Typologies of Roma shelters

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Figural Morphology of the village |Mobilities around the Field Station

Figure 55 / Village morphology and mobilities around the field station

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Animate

Contesting ‘Countrysiding’ | Animate Drawings

Figures

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As a methodological gesture, the drawings reimagine the figural morphology of different aspects of the village. Similar to the way in which the Roma travel back and forth in order to collect various items from across vast territories, the drawings compress multiple scales into the same figure, and overlays the conceptual figure of the proposal onto the composed field station. The animate figures aim to place the proposal into its context, in a process of compressing and overlaying plans and sections, plans and forms, forms and culture and details and forms.

The drawings assign colour and materiality to the found conditions of the field station. They resemble the greyness of the winter landscapes and the steep topography of the ‘Garcini’ village.

Figures 56-57 / A process of drawing animations through the compression of plans, sections and field station renderings

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Contesting ‘Countrysiding’ | Animate Drawings

The project is located on a steep terrain at the edge between the Roma village and the formal urban settlement. The figural morphology of the hill, in which the project is situated, differs from a very steep slope in some areas, to gentler in others. The drawings show how the building follows the shape of the hill and changes according to its figure. The proposal also follows the nomadic behaviour of some of the Roma and so its morphological figure changes according to the migratory and also sedentary families. At certain times of the year, during the spring and summer months, the proposal witnesses the arrival of travellers.

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Thus, the building allows the expansion of its components, making space for the Roma to build on it, to plant crops and to create trading fairs, and so, involving communities outside their village. As soon as the cold season comes and many of the Roma leave, parts of the building disassemble. The migratory Roma take parts of the building with them and so the empty spaces become ready to accommodate the heavy snow of the winter. Similar to the way in which the snow is falling and melting, some of the lower parts of the proposal dissolve when people migrate and move away from it.

Figures 58-63 / The animated figure of the building according to the seasonal change

Contesting ‘Countrysiding’ | Figural Morphology

Figure 64 / Compressing Conceptual Figures

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Contesting ‘Countrysiding’ The ‘Lost Country’ of the Roma

Figure 65 / [+50m above Ground Floor] Aerial View from

Contesting ‘Countrysiding’ |The ‘Lost Country’ of the Roma

the South-Western Hills

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Positioned at the boundary between ‘Garcini’ and the traditional neighbouring village, the proposal is witnessing the arrival of the Roma travellers during the spring months, who are celebrating the snowmelt by burning various items and planting crops on the hillside. These are combined with specific weather conditions, such as fog and rain. The river that crosses the site from west to east defines a small boundary between the hill and the village.

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Morphological Dialogue

Dialogues between the Proposal, ‘Garcini’, and the neighbouring traditional village

The Lost Country of the Roma

The northern part of the hill, on which the top part of the proposal sits, is in dialogue with the main road, with the traditional neighbouring village and with the main city.

At the lower end of the hill, the proposal addresses the Roma village. This encourages people from outside the village to interact with the Roma only through the upper part of the proposal, while the opposite part would only be dedicated for the local people.

Figure 66 / Site Plan | Originally drawn 1:500 at A1 1.Upper End of the Hill 2.Lower End of the Hill 3.Main Road 4.Neighbouring Traditional Village 5.’Garcini’ Village

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Earthworks and Morphologies of the Ground

Dialogues between the Proposal, ‘Garcini’, and the neighbouring traditional village

The Lost Country of the Roma The lower end of the hill is composed of a wet, muddy soil, which easily floods, whereas the higher end is slightly more solid, but still unstable. In order to provide fixity, the building bends around the hill to follow the topography, and at the same time cuts the hill vertically with a series of structural diaphragm and retaining walls. While cutting the steep site, the proposal creates several important connections with the village and the city. The lowest part of the hill has a marshy, yet fertile soil which is worked by the Roma during the summer and filled with snow during the winter. Moving upwards, a series of small retaining walls create several steppings in the topography which offer protection from the summer floods or winter snow. The lower interior spaces are designed to accommodate a series of summer workshops for

Figure 67 / Proposed Nord-South Section 1 Originally drawn 1:200 at A0

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the Roma adult population, where they would learn and practice their lost traditions of craftsmanship. In other areas of the proposal, the lower part of the hill consists in a summer garden occupied by crops. Some of the workshops are permanent, while others are temporary. All the vegetables and crafted items produced by the Roma here are packed and carried up on the ground floor level, where the Roma create their own summer fairs and trading markets. This is the place where the isolated village starts to interact with people from other communities who are interested to see their work. The space above ground floor accommodates a school for the Roma young population, spaces for family and social events, and most importantly, the writer’s space. This is mostly elevated from the ground and remains inhabited during the winter.

Site Location

Earthworks and Morphologies of the Ground

Figure 68 / Axonometric View of the village from South-East

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Crafted Morphology The workshops

Figure 69 / Workshop/Gardens Floor Plan | Originally drawn 1:200 at A0 -16m below Ground Floor 1.Permanent Summer Weaving Workshop 2.Exhibition Space 3.Permanent Summer Timber Workshop 4.Temporary Summer Workshop

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5.Public Washroom / Toilet 6.Access to Workshops / Vegetable Preparation 7.Washing Platform / Rainwater/Snow Deposit Platform 8.Lower Rainwater/Snow Deposit Platform 9.Vertical Circulation 10.Diaphragm wall | Rain/Snow collection area 12.Marshy / Arable Land 13.River

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The workshops spaces are created between the diaphragm and retaining walls. They accommodate activities such as weaving, timberwork, metalwork, agriculture, carpentry, and leatherwork. Since this is a place of craftsmanship celebration, the roof timber structure is manually crafted by the Roma. The smoothness of this structure is in contrast with the roughness of the retaining brick wall. The other workshops are similar to the one illustrated in the image below, however their heights differ according to the activity they accommodate.

Crafted Morphology | The Workshops

Figure 70 / View from the weaving workshop.

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Beyond the retaining walls of the workshop, there is another space created between the diaphragm walls. This is an exhibition space where the Roma hang and present their craft work created during the summer workshops. This is also the vertical circulation core which takes people from the lower part of the building up to the ground floor. However, the deep canyon-like space

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created by the diaphragm wall is not only a circulation core, but also becomes a hub where people from all the workshops meet.

The elevated long strip on the right-hand side becomes independent and comes outside the diaphragm wall. It is used not only during the summer as a storage and circulation platform, but also during the winter as a cold storage.

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Crafted Morphology | The Exhibition Space

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Figure 71 / North-South Section 2 through the Exhibition Space and Winter Storage | Originally

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1.Exhibition Space 2.Summer / Winter Storage 3.Winter Cold Storage 4.Lower Platform / Snow defence 5.Snow Collecting Roof 6. Vertical Access

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‘The Birch Grove’ Celebrating the Spring ‘Just as wind and rain sweep away everything old and dry, that grass blades may grow in purity, so in turn human beings must purify the depths of their souls in order to become better and more loving before the white gaze of the snowdrops. And who other than the Gypsies, who live free under the skies, can soonest feel the coming of Spring? Nobody!

While the Snow still covers everything and the sun’s earliest rays of spring hazard forth, the Gypsies one and all rush out into the snow, from the very youngest to the most venerable, swimming with their naked arms and washing their bodies clean of winter’s frost.

After winter, when the pale soul longs for sun,

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grass and leaf, it is customary at the beginning of March to celebrate the coming of spring. This year the Gypsy camp spent a long time looking for the loveliest of birch groves, the place the Gypsies always choose to celebrate the advent of spring. The whole dark winter, women and girls sew pretty clothes and dream longingly of the day when going will get to wear them. As I began to tell you, after much searching, the Gypsies pitched camp near a birch grove situated at the far edge of a village, so that they could show off their gold necklaces without any fear.’16

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Figure 72 / North-South Section 3 through the Celebration Space and Winter Storage | Originally drawn 1:200 at A1

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16. Luminita Cioaba, Adam Sorkin and Cristina Cirstea, “The Lost Country”, Goodreads.Com, 2021, https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24912387-the-lost-country.

Crafted Morphology | The Celebration Space

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The ‘Lost Country’ of the Roma Figure 74 / [+40m Above Ground Floor] Aerial View from the Western Hills

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Elevated Morphology The First Floor School At the upper end of the hill, the main building elevates itself from the ground to allow other programs to be located safely above the ground.

At the first floor, the proposal provides a range of spaces mainly dedicated for the younger Roma population. Here, the children are involved in a variety learning activities and interact with people outside their village.

The ‘Lost Country’ of the Roma Figure 75 / View from the first floor | The school.

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Figure 76 / North-South section 4 through the ground floor food market and the first floor school | Originally drawn 1:200 at A2 Building Section

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Figre 77 / First Floor Plan | Children School | Originally drawn 1:100 at A1

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Contesting Countrysiding

Vertical layers of culture and craftsmanship

Similar to the idea of a core sample, the axonometric drawing illustrates all the different vertical layers and architectural atmospheres of the project. It shows the relationship between the lower parts of the building (the lower arable land, the workshops, the exhibition spaces) and the upper parts (the ground floor food market, the school, the gardens, and the bridge that connects the first floor to the main road).

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Figural Morphology | Vertical Layers of culture and craftsmanship Figure 78 / The ‘Core Sample’: Axonometric Section | Originally drawn 1:100 at A0

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04: Weather Conditions This chapter shows how the architecture responses to the weather conditions of the field station ‘Garcini’. It contains explicit details about the environmental and technical responses (how the building deals with weather, heat, snow, steep topography, etc). The weather chapter is about FSR 03.

Figure 79 / Design animation | Winter Figures

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The ‘Lost Country’ of the Roma Weather Conditions Figure 80 / [-20m Bellow the Ground Floor] View from the lower end of the hill towards the workshop

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Structural and Environmental Strategies | The lower end of the hill The Diaphragm Walls The main structural elements of the project are the diaphragm walls. Usually, the diaphragm walls are made out of two retaining walls with backfill in between. However, in order to use this idea in a more provocative way, the proposal uses the diaphragm walls as an opportunity to create a new type of space, instead of the traditional backfill in the middle of the retaining walls. These walls are the main elements that retain the unstable hillside and provide structural stability. There is a variety of spaces included inside the diaphragm walls, such as the workshops, the exhibition space, storages/cold storages, toilet facilities, and also technical spaces, such as water/snow collection tanks, airflow chimneys and vertical circulation cores. The diaphragm walls create a specific figure at the back of each workshop, which not only carries up the human circulation, but also water and airflows. The water collection tanks store rainwater and snow, and the air chimney provides ventilation for the workshops. Although these structural elements are the biggest investment of this scheme, the diaphragm walls offer the project a longlasting life and offer stability against the difficult ground conditions. They are made out of local materials, such as round earth, clay, brick, or even gabion baskets which are filled over time, in order to minimise the travel.

Rainwater Collecting Roof The series of pitched roofs collect rainwater and snow according to the season, and distribute it throughout the building for heating purposes. The excess water flows into an underground infiltration device down through the retaining/diaphragm walls and from here, gradually seeps back into ground water. Thus, the ground water balance is kept at level and the gardens can also cope with dry periods, keeping the plants and trees in good conditions. In case of an extreme weather event, the rainwater is gradually discharged and the chances of flash flooding are significantly reduced. Similarly in the winter, the snowmelt process is being delayed and the melt water is channelled gradually into the ground.

Crafted Timber Structure The roofs of the workshops and exhibition spaces are supported by the manually crafted timber structure. This structure contains a series of timber beams that spread between two diaphragm walls, which support a series of timber trusses, making possible the collection of rainwater and snow. The beautifully crafted timber linings of the interior spaces are different from the exterior cooper and zinc linings, creating a buffer of thermal insulation in between. This way, the craft traditions fold together with the structural and environmental strategies.

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Figure 82 / Workshop Plan including the back and the middle diphragm wall areas The elevated strip The elevated strip located between the diaphragm wall is elevated from the ground in order to avoid the difficult ground conditions. It is used for circulation and as a cold storage during the winter months. Below this elevated piece, the diaphragm wall contains an underground waste collection tank, which collects water from the adjacent workshops.

The Louvres The southern curtain walls or windows are predominantly covered by timber louvres almost everywhere throughout the project. The louvres are manually controlled according to the weather conditions and to the number of people that populate the workshops and other spaces.

Figure 81 / Exploded Axonometry highlighting the structural and environmental strategies of the lower part of the proposal | Originally drawn 1:100 at A0

The Lower Retaining Walls These retaining walls are positioned at the lower end of the hill, in order to offer additional stability against the unstable ground conditions and also to create usable beds out of the lower part of the hill. These platforms are used for gathering and packing vegetables in the summer, while holding a heavy part of the snow in the winter.

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Temporary Figures Temporary summer workshop

Some workshops are only temporary, and they are dedicated to agricultural activities during the summer. These are similar to the permanent workshops, however, the roofs are created from a series of adjustable components and the retaining walls are made out of gabions which are filled over time by the Roma. During the winter, the workshop ‘disassembles’ and it is filled with snow.

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The hill farming is distributed into agriculture zones; the lower part of the hill, which is constantly full of water, contains crops that grow in a wet soil (strawberries, blackberries, cranberries and vegetables like spinach, carrots, potatoes) and the top part contains selective crops/plants that do not thrive in the constant fluctuation of water.

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Figure 83 / Section North-South 5 through the temporary workshop below the writer’s space during the summer

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Temporary Figures Temporary workshop during winter

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Weather Weather Conditions Conditions | Winter | Summer Workshop Workshops Workshops Figure 84 / Section North-South 6 through the temporary workshop below the writer’s space during the winter

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Structural and Environmental Strategies | The upper end of the hill

The rainwater collecting roof

Similar to the workshop roof, the school roof collects rainwater/snow and distributes it throughout the building for heating purposes and also to delay the melting process. From the roof, the water flows down through the lateral walls of the first-floor building into the floor, and thereafter into the ground through the water pipes.

By over/under insulating different parts of the building, the snowmelt process happens more gradually, reducing the chances of flash flooding.

The Timber crafted structure

The timber trusses support the rainwater/snow collecting roof and they represent another crafted element by the Roma. The crafted timber linings of the interior spaces are different from the exterior cooper and zinc linings, creating a buffer of thermal insulation in between, similar to the workshop roof. Although the morphological figure of the upper part of the building differs completely from the lower part, the construction methodologies and environmental strategies are similar.

Concrete columns / Elevated First Floor The top part of the proposal is elevated from the ground in order to allow its programs to be located safely above the difficult ground conditions, especially during the winter. In the cold seasons, the ground floor remains filled with snow, whereas in the warmer months this is the place where the Roma create their own trading fairs and interact with people outside their village. Half of the columns supporting this floor are situated on the ground, whereas the others are coming as a continuation of the diaphragm wall heads.

This way, the diaphragm wall also become a structural base for the elevated first floor.

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Weather Conditions | the craft traditions fold together with the structural and environmental strategies.

Figure 85 / Exploded Axonometry highlighting the structural and environmental strategies of the higher part of the proposal | Originally drawn 1:100 at A1

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A retreat for the winter between the diaphragm walls

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The Writer’s Space A retreat for the winter and a writer’s home

1.Writing Space / Library 2.Lounge Area / Library 3.Entrance Lobby 4.Double Height Crafted Items Library 5.Small Reading Attic

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Figure 87 / Axonometric Section Illustrating the Writer’s Space | Originally drawn 1:100 at A1

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The writer’s space is completely dedicated to the Roma author mentioned at the beginning of the report. It is a space for her to write and to live in with her family. This place is inhabited continually throughout the year. It is a small part of the first elevated floor and sits partly on top of the diaphragm wall heads. The home shelter includes a writing space with a library, a living space with two bedrooms, bathrooms and a kitchen, a space dedicated to the crafted items produced by the Roma in their workshops, a small reading attic, and a rainwater/snow collecting roof. It is situated above one of the temporary agriculture workshops(Sections North-South 5 & 6).

A retreat for the winter | The Writer’s Space

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Conclusion

Through ‘Contesting Countrysiding, The Lost Country of the Roma’, I have explored the fragile conditions of ‘Garcini’, a Roma settlement which has been neglected and isolated outside any urban frameworks at the peripheries of Brasov, Romania. The constantly changing weather conditions coupled with the poorly constructed shelters make this village difficult environment for the Roma. Contesting Countrysiding brings a new relationship between the settlement, the neighbouring communities and the main city and creates an opportunity for the Roma to settle on stable ground, potentially finding their ‘Lost Country’. The architectural proposal is aware of the fragile social and environmental landscape of ‘Garcini’ and develops an architecture that is capable to resist and avoid the muddy/frozen ground and also to change its morphologies to allow the Roma to keep their migrant behaviour. This way, the Roma settlement is not forced to settle in a specific place, instead, their migrancy becomes an affirmative characteristic.

Last but not least, the proposal locates a new dialogue between the Roma settlement and the main city, and at the same time, it takes the craft practices for which the Roma were celebrated and provides an opportunity for these practices to be passed on.

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Figure 88 / The Celebration Space

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Bibliography Cioaba, Luminita, Adam Sorkin, and Cristina Cirstea. “The Lost Country”. Goodreads.Com, 2021. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24912387-the-lost-country.

French Chris and Michael Lewis. Countryside [Outside] Architecture, Brief 1: Rendering Field Stations, Edinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture, September 2020.

HUREZEAN, RUXANDRA. “Sinteza | Viata Mâinilor Negre”. Revistasinteza.Ro, 2021.

“MASKAR, ROMII IN ROMANIA COMUNISTA”. Maskar.Ro, 2021. http://maskar.ro/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/maskar_handbook-anexa_web-01.pdf.https://www.revistasinteza.ro/viata-mainilor-negre.

Therrien, T., 2021. Along for the Ride. In: R. Koolhaas, ed., Countryside, A Report. New York: Taschen, p.14.

Zahova, Sofiya. “Luminita Mihai Cioaba”. Romarchive.Eu, 2021. https://www.romarchive.eu/en/collection/p/luminita-mihai-cioaba/.

Figure List Figure 2, 25, 26, 28: Baisan, Alina. Comunitatile De Oameni Saraci Din Satele Araci si Hetea. Image, 2021. https://www.realitycheck.ro/comunitatile-de-oameni-saraci-din-satele-araci-si-hetea/.

Figures 7, 8: Cioaba, Luminita Mihai, Adam Sorkin, and Cristina Cristea. The Lost Country. Image, 2002. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lost-Country-Lumini%C8%9Ba-Mihai-Cioab%C4%83-ebook/dp/B00MNGMM2S. Figure 19: “MASKAR, ROMII IN ROMANIA COMUNISTA”. Maskar.Ro, 2021. http://maskar. ro/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/maskar_handbook-anexa_web-01.pdf.

Figure 20: Electroprecizia Holding. Electroprecizia Face Investitii De 4,5 Milioane De Euro În Parcul Sau Industrial. Image, 2021. https://www.electroprecizia.ro/stiri/electroprecizia-face-investitii-de-45-milioane-de-euro-in-parcul-sau-industrial/.

Figures 22, 24: Brasov TV. Conditii Mizere Pentru Locuitorii Din Gârcini. Image, 2021. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZT-cGrlsDw&ab_channel=BrasovTV.

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Figure 23: HUREZEAN, RUXANDRA. “Sinteza | Viata Mâinilor Negre”. Revistasinteza.

Ro, 2021. https://www.revistasinteza.ro/viata-mainilor-negre.

Figure 29: Google. Image, 2021. https://i.pinimg.com/originals/a0/c0/83/a0c083f58e224c85f661db9a3f8bd157.jpg.

Figure 30: Traditiile Romanesti In Declin. Image, 2021. https://www.risco. ro/suport/practici-in-afaceri/traditiile-romanesti-in-declin-cat-de-profitabil-mai-este-sa-vinzi-produse-de-artizanat-1684.

Figure 31: Romano ButiQ. Cum Se Face? | Ibricul De Cupru | Romano Butiq. Image, 2021. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YIoahWegVKk&ab_channel=RomanoButiQ. Figure 32: Dela0. Mestesugurile Rome, Pe Cale De Disparitie. Image, 2021. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3JbjhmGHVo&ab_channel=Dela0.

Figure 34: Tituleac, Florentina. Sunt Învatatoare De Doi Ani si Înca Învat Sa-I Conving Pe Copii Sa Vina La scoala. Image, 2021. https://scoala9.ro/sunt-invatatoare-de-doi-ani-si-inca-invat-sa-i-conving-pe-copii-sa/674/.

Figures 36, 37: Brasov TV. Gârcini, Cartierul Nimanui?. Image, 2021. https:// www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJZDVGjykrw&ab_channel=BrasovTV. Figure 42, 46: Realitatea.Net. Bancul Zilei. Image, 2021. https://www.realitatea.net/stiri/lifestyle/bancul-zilei-ion-si-maria-s-au-trezit-de-diminea-ai_5dcc91c2406af85273cbf67b.

Figure 44: WowBiz, 2021. [image] Available at: <https://www.wowbiz.ro/uita-teatent-la-imaginea-asta-da-acela-este-un-dric-tras-de-un-cal-dar-pe-dric-staun-tigan-care-la-randul-lui-trage-ceva-demential-e-imaginea-anului-din-romania-16271071> [Accessed 6 May 2021].

Figure 45: Jura, M., 2021. A fost cât pe ce sa ajung ginere la bulibasa.. [image] Available at: <https://republica.ro/da-a-fost-cat-pe-ce-sa-ajung-ginere-la-bulibasa-z-adu-fata-aici-s-o-vad-sa-vorbesc-cu-ea-ca-nu-ma-nsor> [Accessed 6 May 2021].

Figure 51: Electroprecizia, 2021. garcini sacele. [image] Available at: <https:// www.saceleanul.ro/pana-in-acest-moment-nu-au-fost-probleme-de-tulburare-a-ordinii-si-sigurantei-publice-in-garcini/garcini-sacele/> [Accessed 6 May 2021].

All other figures drawn, or photographed, by author.

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