sUNBUILD
Imagined Codes for an Ancient City
The University of Texas at Austin / Fall 2024
Professor: Kyriakos Kyriakos
Partner: Christine Lee
This project proposes a strategy to align state and private interests through shared architectural and economic objectives consistent with the goals of the Athens Climate Action Plan (2017), which aims to reduce urban temperatures through expanded green spaces and green infrastructure.
The studio began by examining the city plans proposed for Athens in the 1830s in conjunction with the city’s contemporary plan. Spatial misalignments were identified, shedding light on an ongoing tension between state-directed public planning efforts and the private interests of Athenian citizens. As a result, the city fabric emerged informally, and yet as distinctive model of urban growth. The development process was was notably faciliated by a hands-off government that supported the “Antiparochi” system whereby landowners could give land tax-free to builders in exchange for apartments.
The envisioned transformation adopts a circular approach - “unbuilding” portions of the “akalypto” courtyards to faciliate yearlong sun capture, and recycling demolished materials into new materials and products. The “lost” square footage is repurposed into the economy as well as Floor Area Ratio (FAR) credits, ensuring continued value for property owners. The proposed economic and construction systems strive to reverse the Antiparochi model, with the local government imagined not as a bystander, but as a driver for economic growth and improved urban living.
The ramifications of the system, particularly the significant urban impacts of demolition and construction, are explored alongside its benefits. An urban phenonenon is concieved, and with it an architecture that unfolds dynamically and in resistance of precise definition.
Sunlight exposure simulations performed in Sefaira revealed significant deficiencies in space and daylight within the akalypto spaces of denser Athenian neighborhoods. This data informed new zoning codes and financial incentives designed to encourage de-densification and improved conditions within the akalypto. This project applies the new codeset to an existing city block to explore its spatial and material potentials.