From Ritual to Secular Performance: Villers Abbey Drama School Diploma Design Thesis, Aristotle University Supervisor: Lefaki Styliani Year: 2018
The design proposal thesis concerns the reuse of the Villiers Abbey in Belgium and is the output of research procedures, criticism, decisionmaking, adoption of design and operation objectives. It is considered as a monument of high aesthetics with symbolic and historical value. No complete rehabilitation program has been implemented and as a result it is characterized by confusion. Spatially, there is a lack of links between the main complex and the additions and lack of an applied master plan for organizing the site for the visitor or the user. Today it is an archaeological site where many cultural activities (mainly theatrical performances) are taking place. Its management looks undecided and the footfall is very low. The design principles refer to the planning of connections and the new boundaries of the complex, the restoration of centrality through vital movements, the de-escalation of chaotic spatial sets and the introduction of expansion spaces. The finding and emphasis of typological features aimed at the weighing of new uses, the creation of a complete narrative experience of the monument and the placement of a new permanent life within it were important aspects. The design without decoration but with creative functionality was a priority in the design procedure, as well as the intention to diversify the new construction phase through new materials for the clear separation from the previous ones. The proposal is determined by constructions that are structurally independent to maintain the integrity of historic structures, located at a safe distance from the existing structures, and in cases where the existing shell has a ceiling, new frames are placed. Starting from the relationship of the religious function with the theatrical performance and from the historical presence of the theater to the monastery, it is proposed to install a dramatic school with 4 theaters inside and outside the complex. The new features in the coherent complex constitute an effort to interpret the monastery’s symbolism (public purposes), while the private ones are placed in the eastern addition. There is a space of hospitality and a kitchen-living room in the western addition (former brewery). During its history as a ruin, the question that arises is whether a restored ruin is considered as an original ruin. The answer that emerges from the proposed intervention plan is that it is not a product of restoration but an output of a new habitation of the monument, while respecting its symbolism and history.
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