Page 16 - Vectorworks Stipendium (CH) - 1. Rang

A Productive Plateau Reservoir Lyren
Strolling in in the the dense forests around the the edges of Zurich a a a stair- case leaning on the forest ground emerges and leads upwards in in between tree trunks The tilted path leads into a a a a high narrow cut cut which extends deep into the the earth In the the middle of cut cut a a large round opening in in the concrete wall appears that reveals a a a a a a a glimpse into an extensive chamber filled with water Arriving at at the the top of of the the path a a a a a a vast plateau of of gravel stretches out which is layered with a a a a a a grid of cherry trees and framed by an an adobe retaining wall The precise lines of the the plateau on the the uneven forest ground frame the position and dimensions of a a a a water res- ervoir hidden underground Throughout the hills of Zurich water reservoirs that sup- ply the city are hidden underground The project suggests to al- lude their existence by geometrically defined plateaus that are cut out of the the forest fabric The visual presence refers to their indispensable status for the the supply metabolism of water in in the the city The architectural elements framing the plateau choreo- graph paths onto the the platform never exposing the the whole plat- form directly but instead alluring the the movement along the the out- lines of of the the the reservoir to create a a suspense for the the the opening of of the the the plateau The ambiguity of of the the supposed naturalness of of the the for- est and its perforation with hidden infrastructures is continued and exposed with the the contrasting geometric grid of the the cher- ry trees planted on the the reservoir suggesting the the artificiality and productivity of of the the infrastructure The interplay of of the the geomet- rical shape and the the rough trass lime surface of the the retaining wall securing the the the hill against the the the plateau is similarly alluding to the the the tension between the the natural landscape and and the the man-made infra- structure of the reservoir