True Identity of a City
FC-01x Future Cities (1st Run) - Exercise 1 : "Making the Invisible - Visible"
Uploaded on 2014-11-04 by Coryna
The area was established as a fortification around the 4th century BC, under the ruler Caspyus Aegyssus, who gave it his name. The ***culture*** evolved around geto-dacian and hellenistic influences. Around the 2nd century AD the indigenous civitas expanded with a canabae, that housed a roman military detachment. The two organisms (the civitas and the canabae) lived in a ***symbiotic*** way, even though they were administratively distinct units. During the roman influence the city evolved as a military and commercial harbor along the ***Danube artery***. After the 15th century the influence of the Ottoman Empire became predominant and the city’s name changed from Aegyssus to Tulcea. The city gained its independence in 1878 after the russo - turkish war and was annexed to the Romanian territory. The photo shows the Independence Memorial, who depicts a romanian soldier and an eagle and it symbolizes the heroism and courage of those who fought for ***freedom***. ![independence_monument][1] I think this is an important ***discoverability point*** of the city. Here, the city recollects its past, presents its story and aims for higher realms. Here, one can have a panoramic view of the city, can be informed upon its evolution, may virtually navigate towards specific points of interest and further decide upon his itinerary. Associating the column in the middle of the memorial with the ***Infinity Column*** of Constantin Brancusi we can further expand the monument symbolism and integrated with our ***national cultural heritage***. This particular association made me think about the ***symbol and form morphism***. If I were to make an inquiry into the city’s future based on the previous mention I can envision light, flexible structures that can be changed both from outside and inside in specific conditions, that can be inflated or deflated or expand in various contexts. As an example, one might think about polyhedron forms made out or various fibers and nano materials that can have a ***dynamic spatial evolution***. Other structures that resulted from the morphism were the ***kite structures*** who can be deployed under specific conditions. All this form dynamism can influence the city’s ***metamorphosis***. When it comes to the livability of the city, I think more about aspects that make the ***identity*** of the city, its ***people***, its ***essence*** invisible. And here I refer to the democratization of styles based on arguable criteria, to social constructs that are artificially developed and to other anomalies that influence the city’s integrity. One question that can be addressed is to to what extent people feel ***connected*** with the environment and to what extent they prefer to walk blindfolded in their city, in their lives because they are somehow overwhelmed by the disequilibrium between the quantitative versus the qualitative approach. [1]: https://edxuploads.s3.amazonaws.com/14151002614470592.jpg