Kristina Kosic

WAAR DE STOEP EINDIGT

WHERE THE SIDEWALK ENDS

Over my time spent at the Academy, I discovered the value of the public realm in the shaping of cities. With the high pressure on new housing areas, the quality of life in the city is becoming increasingly important, and along with this, the layout and the use of the public domain. Museums and other cultural institutions are recognizing this issue, moving towards the ideas of open-ended exploration and blurred borders with the street. The visitors are not solely observing or looking at art anymore but want to actively experience and to be a part of an idea, event, or just a shared experience. These tendencies inspired me to create conditions for cultural exploration in the public park.

My graduation project is a place where natural and artificial come together, connecting its users through the unexpected and the discovery. It is located in Flevopark, an undisrupted nature and recreation park in Amsterdam East. Flevopark presents excellent opportunities, including its adjacency to two thriving residential communities and a long water edge. It has sharp boundaries formed by a cemetery and a closed forest ring, making it feel like the extreme eastern edge of the city. The project consists of five pavilions, seeking to transform the use of the park and making each visit to it a completely new experience. They are carefully positioned at different borderlines of the park, extending its use and strengthening the relationship with inaccessible areas. These follies offer beautifully staged views of the park and facilitate artists finding inspiration in nature and ever-changing landscape. Such interactions turn once remote areas of the park into approachable public spaces filled with surprise.

Throughout my studies, I learned the importance of public space and that where we go and where we meet makes the city. I wanted my project to reflect that, to tap the flow of Amsterdam and tackle its limits of public space.

Graduation committee: Gianni Cito (mentor), Albert Herder and Ira Koers.
Additional members for the exam: Jolijn Valk and Rob Hootsmans.