Design workshop in Vienna, © Gabriel Dantas
Workshop 4
Locations: Vienna, Austria and Budapest, Hungary
Dates: 6–10 May and 3–7 June 2024
Host: BOKU University and MATE (Ulrike Krippner, Ines Altrichter & Katalin Takács, Réka Báthoryné Nagy, Anna Adorjan, Gabriel Dantas, Anna Szövényi, and colleagues)
In the 1970s and 1980s, cities faced massive housing construction activities on their outskirts. Based on the concept of the functionalized city, the design of the outdoor spaces also followed functionalist ideas. At the same time, experts and politicians emphasized the social importance of these open spaces. Two examples of the housing landscapes of the 1970s and 1980s were examined in the fourth workshop in a teaching collaboration between BOKU University in Vienna, Austria, and the Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences (MATE) in Budapest.
The project sites
Master’s students in landscape architecture and urban planning from both universities worked together in two design workshops and investigated the open spaces in the two case studies. At the “Trabrenngründe-Hof” (1973–77) in Vienna’s 22nd district, seven- to fifteen-storey blocks frame a square and six courtyards. The landscape was designed by the Austrian landscape architect Viktor Mödlhammer in a functionalist approach and has been largely preserved. The Pók utca housing estate is a conglomerate of rows and courtyard buildings, which was constructed in three phases between 1984 and 1989 and houses about 10,000 inhabitants. Once embedded in spacious greenery, the landscape is now dominated by cars.
Elaborating design concepts
The students discussed the significance of social and functional approaches in design concepts in that period and today. They elaborated design scenarios for these open spaces based on intense site analysis, including the study of archival documents for each project site. The design concepts reflected the historical designs and also responded to current challenges. The design workshops brought the students into contact with archives and archival materials, raising their awareness of historical open spaces and providing information on how to deal with them in a sensitive way in the design process. The students can benefit from these experiences in future site analysis and design projects.
Have a look at the students’ design concepts for the two housing landscapes:
Budapest, Hungary
Vienna, Austria