On the lands of the oldest inhabited capital in the world, it happened to fall a crisis. A human crisis. A sad story that continued rising till it reached the world’s major topic. A civil war that conquered the media for nearly a decade as well as people’s lives and emotions. As a survivor and a designer, I was very much eager to create a museum which showcases the most relevant impacts of the war in Syria through an architectural language, an architecture that represent and embodies the trauma. Aiming at the tourist and the local as visitors of this museum which takes place as a major program in an old Ottoman building in the heart of Damascus, called Khan Asa’ad Pasha, as part of reusing the building which was built as a caravansarai in the 18th century and currently abandoned.
The aim of the museum is to showcase the major impacts from the heavy war through architectural representations in this beautiful old building. A story telling of an ongoing story. Please note that this project is not a memorial, it is not a biased approach toward any political views, or anything related to ethics or cult or a group of people.
Image: Central courtyard of the site, Khan asa'ad pasha.
War Impacts
Destruction -------------------------------- Exile ------------------------------------ Martyrs
" Imagine what you see, sketch what you imagine "
Starting from this method, I gathered images from the war and imagined the feeling those
people had during any of those horrific events and went on sketching the experience and then apply it through spatial representations in the building, on a process of (A, B, C).
people had during any of those horrific events and went on sketching the experience and then apply it through spatial representations in the building, on a process of (A, B, C).
A. bring image
B. sketch experience
C. translate into the site
- Destruction -
The image below is from a destruction of a housing building in Damascus. This image reflect two opposite meanings which disprove each other. The first meaning, when observing from above, it represents brutality, horror and fear. A fear of another strike which might end up the observant life, it definitely represents destruction. The other meaning, when observing from below, it represents hope, a promising future, as the role of light is crucial here and our position related to it embodies a positive aspect, opposite to the one while observing from above. On site, I tried to bring both of those ideas while at the same time visually and in terms of experience connect two spaces together, the permanent museum space (above) and the temporary exhibition (below). Introducing visitors of both spaces to the other.
A. image
B. sketch experience
C. translation into site
permanent exhibition
temporary exhibition
- Exile -
Starting with this image, what do those people experience from this horrific boat trip? What do they see? I believe they see nothing but the water in the surround, the destination is known but unseen, while the path is faded. And that exactly what gives them a feeling to be scared, the perception of the destination but the uncertainty of the path. It is a frightening journey through a long path of water and that exactly what I showcased in the museum. A long pathway of water with no end, it can not be seen. Visitors get the chance to stand from distance at one point and observe the scene in front of them in a stark and silent space, enlightened through a single window opening.
A. Image
B. sketch experience
C. translation into site
- Martyrs -
As a result of the heavy war, martyrs from civilians or soldiers were buried collectively underground, without any burying ceremonies or whatsoever. As a designer, I sought to resemble those tombs as metal slabs coming from the floor. Those slabs can be turned by the visitors to create an altered variety of illumination in the space. It can get darker or brighter, depending on how those slabs are altered by the users themselves. As the space is completely enclosed, with few horizontal openings from the south side of the building to allow strong sunlight radiations through, to react with the reflections those metal slabs can create and achieve a wider range of enlightenment in a very dark space.The uneven heights of the slabs resemble the martyrs from different ages who fell in the war, other than that, it is a play of shape and form, light and dark to create a stern space.
A. image
B. sketch experience
C. translation into site
Museum Methodology
Finally, everything can be found in the planning of the museum floor (top floor). The visitors would circulate themselves starting with exploring Syria's rich historic background and then transiting to a more brutal spaces that are able to connect directly with the emotions of the visitor and leave them in touch with the traumatic experiences of the impacts of the war, they already previously have heard or seen events from it through the television screens.
Horizontal section
Just like any adaptive reuse project, an effort into reviving the precedent atmosphere and quality of the building should be worked on and achieved, to preserve the building quality and prolong it's life through a new program or function which responds to the needs of today modern society. In the case above, through a program that reflects on a current story or situation of the current inhabiting society, the social old life that the building enjoyed previously is revived back to it. Gathering different sources of people into the tremendous courtyard of this building and introducing them to various of programs that are held in or around it.
