At the end of summer 2013, at the request of the Institute of Urban Culture, the architects developed a series of modular furniture made of OSB for the square, which was placed on a now unoccupied square in the historic Glavny Gorod district. In addition, lawn areas were located there, which became a kind of "rooms" in the open air.
Adults and very young townspeople were asked to arrange furniture to their liking, use it for games, relaxation, or to delimit space. The resulting temporary installation was complemented by a series of events by the Institute of Urban Culture: the inhabitants of Gdansk on the square had breakfast, read, played, and watched a movie in the evening.
The participatory project was designed to demonstrate an innovative approach to public space and a tactful attitude towards the historical environment. Its authors hope that it will become a model for more durable projects for the improvement of Targ Vengleva Square.
Anna Adasinskaya
architectural and landscape bureau MOX: “This project is a great example of how, with the help of imagination and a small investment, you can completely change the function of a public space. The authors used a minimal set of landscape architect's tools: plants as vertical elements, coverings (here the lawn) as planes, and various furniture (partially modular). If you think about it, these three elements are more than enough to form any habitat. And if you add a little experience and talent, this environment will be comfortable and interesting, as it happened in this case.
I would like to emphasize the mobility of the structure, which allows almost any spontaneous use and encourages residents to come up with new ways of mastering the space. This "psychological preparation" is very important when there are doubts about the function of the area in question. This is how the functions appear by themselves: their relevance is tested in practice, and residents have the opportunity to get used to the new state of affairs."
