Territories
CONTEXT
MAGNETIC NORTH, the Arctic lands [From Greenland to Iceland, via Svalbard].
The Arctic has been a territory that has attracted man for centuries. Be it for resources, trade or geopolitical presence, this umbilical link to no-where and everywhere has more often than not been a voyage in time, than the certainty of a geographic point. The magnetic north, being in constant migration, is in constant discordance with its twin, the cultural the coordinate grid, and as a result we are bound and eternally confused by two never matching epicentres; territory doppelgänger. The confusion does not end here.
The surrounding Arctic states that border the Arctic Ocean—Russia, Norway, the United States, Canada, and Denmark (via Greenland)—are limited to a 200-nautical-mile economic zone around their coasts. In this context, half way between Norway and the North Pole, the archipelago of Svalbard has been a key geographic point in the Arctic. From whaling in the 17th and 18th century to coal extraction in the 20th, Svalbard is still a centre for resource exploitation, albeit now shifted towards scientific research and tourism. Bound and pulled by geopolitical agendas, its territory being prime Arctic real-estate, boundaries and claims have only recently been resolved. On a land only 10 degrees from the North Pole and the polar pie with few crumbs left, the new frontiers are vertical, not horizontal; in 2007 Russia placed a flag on the North Pole, under the ice sheet, on the sea floor.
Svalbard can be take as an example [but not the only one] of different case studies in the same region where territories are only maintained by money, far away money. This include huge subsidies from nearby countries such as Norway, and Russia. Another cases include Kivalina, an indigenous community in the northwestern coast of Alaska, which economically depends of natural resources that are passing through a stage of destruction due to climate change and CO2 emissions caused by big corporations, including Exxon Mobile, Shell and BP; or the Aleutanian Islands, once with a economy focused on raising sheep and reindeers and now with its economy primarily based upon fishing, and, to a lesser extent, the presence of American military.
Money also dictates the immigration policies in a direct manner in all these small communities, as Svalbard, Kivalina or the Aleutanian Islands, among others. They represent the type of contradiction needed for territories under definition, of blurred presents and multiple futures.
Competition Brief
Open call for a design competition to envision the economic and geopolitical future of the Arctic lands.
The competition looks for a design proposal that tackles the present economic and territorial challenges in the present and future of the Arctic lands.
The outback’s and peripheries are the territories that best reflect our idiosyncrasies, dystopias and utopias, our strengths and weaknesses; a mirror of our society that becomes clearer for being at the edge of the frame.
The entries should aim to envision a critical and formal proposal that engages the present territorial normative and navigates between the strict environmental policy and the growing tourist industry, together with the constant scientific presence.
How can these seemingly antagonistic fields of action and clear political strategies be engaged via a clear design proposal? In communites where everything except fish, has to be flown or shipped in, what alternatives can be devised to cut down on subsidy dependence? Is there a strategy that can circumnavigate natural resource exploitation, alternate sea routes to the economic advantage of each of the Arctic lands? In a land where 65% of the territory is protected, who owns the territory, polar bears, scientists or other future tenants?
Keywords: Heavily subsidised, Flag under the North Pole, Frontier, Tourism, Science and exploration/exploitation, Northern passage
Competition General Guidelines
Participants must define
The location of the project must be selected from this list http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arctic#Arctic_lands
Explain your selection among the 28 listed Arctic lands.
The architectural program and its design expression, as well as the territorial impact beyond the site
The conception and building process, having a clear timeline for the formal and economical and territorial impacts of the proposal.
Participant must send
TEXT: Each entry is to submit a text that describes the proposed scenario, location, program and development process of a new space for cultural exchange. Not to exceed 750 words.
PANELS: 3 [format A2 vertical or landscape, in 300 dpi]
THUMB IMAGE: 1
Representation should concern the proposed strategy, space or building, and the economical and territorial implications of the project in time.
Please note that we have the intention to publish the awarded entries in a publication containing augmented reality technology, so we also welcome additional materials that match the following critera:
Images: JPG or PNG 512x512 pixels minimum. 500,000 pixels maximum. PNG should be saved with transparency in order to use Alpha Channel.
Video: A 30-45 segs-lenght video MP4 or MOV(with H.264 codec) or as FLVs when they have an alpha channel. Ratio: 16:9.
3D Models: Basic 3D models and small scenes. 3D model support is based on the Collada format (v1.4 or v1.5.).
References
MAP Greenland: http://www.maparchitects.dk/?p=1296
SVALBARD and tourism: http://www.svalbard.net
Svalbard immigration: Svalbard- Visa and entr#18C6F71
Radical Arctic Proposals PDF: http://goo.gl/EWtRAA
Arctic Perspective Cahier no. 1: Architecture: http://arcticperspective.org/news/api-cahier-no-1-out-now
Društvo
