PROJECT SITE FOR PAO-L´AQUILA

BAGNO On a visit to l´Aquila last week, the project site for the PAO.6 Summercamp in l´Aquila could be finally decided. After discussing with representatives of the local government and l´Aquila University, the new settlement of Bagno turned out to be the place.

INSTANT VILLAGE Bagno is one of a dozen new-built settlements in the outskirts of l´Aquila. After the earthquake in 2009, approx. 600 people from 4 destroyed villages were resettled to this "instant village". Whereas people - who have lived during the last year in tents - have houses again, the new settlement (which consists of only 7 long rowhouses) is still lacking social infrastructures. Even though there is a clear need for an architectural enhancement of the environment (e.g. by a community center, a market place, parks and playground, meeting places for elderly and children, sports ground, landscaping etc.), the central task remains: How to establish a normal community life again?

DIY PROTOTYPING The PAO Session in l´Aquila will propose design and development schemes how the existing settlement can be architecturally improved with low budgets but high concepts. Participants will produce simple prototypes for DIY construction using the available technologies, skills, and materials. Here, local people shall be involved in order to trigger maximum social effect. The Bagno Project may present a model how l´Aquila´s post-earthquake settlements can be further developed into vital and sustaining neighbourhoods.

PAO.5 BOOK IS OUT! "MAKING TIME: MEMES OF POTOC"

After ten months of intense editing work, the new PAO Book is out! The massive near 600-pages volume with the promising title "MAKING TIME: MEMES OF POTOC" not only introduces the people, places and projects of the 6th PAO Summerschool in Potoc / Romania (2009), but puts forward a new method for how architectural and artistic work becomes a tool for cultural knowledge and understanding. The book presents how collective creativity can unearth so-called "Memes", that is: the generic ideas inherent in a specific place. Eventually, the PAO works on the "Memes of Potoc" revealed an idea that has become a secret to modern man: How to make time.

The book can be ordered directly at paoproject@gmail.com or ordered via local booksellers. ISBN 978-3-941298-65-1. Content: 594 pages, with more than 400 b/w images. Size: 150 x 100 mm. Price: € 14,90

PAO.6 PROGRAMME FOR L`AQUILA

The city of l´Aquila, the capital of the Abruzzo Region and a place of cultural heritage of first order, got heavily demolished in a major earthquake in April 2009. After one year of evacuation, rescue work, and restoration, a major need for the city of l´Aquila are „Places for Socialising“. The earthquake had not only destroyed the physical structures of public living and housing, but before all social ones. Whereas the deficit of physical structures could be more or less resolved after one year, the need for social integration remains still acute. The government has build a number of new public housing areas in the vicinity of the city in order to a give a home to the dislocated – but more difficult is perhaps the „reconstruction“ of functioning social structures.

A simple yet effective small architecture for cultural events and socialising among young people – “Hot Spots” and “Cool Places” – shall be created. Whereas the first week of the workshop is for “idea making” by travelling across the scenic Abruzzo area and the cities and villages of the region, the second week is dedicated to actually building this mini-architecture. The most promising and realistic place for project work is the new location of l´Aquila University´s Engineering faculty (former CD factory) is. There is a clear demand for social places and services
for students and faculty. At the university, places for work and meeting are available for the studio and lectures sessions. – Further locations that invite meaningful intervention are the several villages around l´Aquila which had suffered by he earthquake as well.

PAO.6 PROGRAMME FOR POTOC

The central idea for the future of the old school building in Potoc is the set-up of a creative institution: Casă de creație –a cultural center for the Cheile Nerei Region.
Looking at the school as it was, a certain tendency for the future can be figured out, a chance for the building itself: to become a place of learning, filled with an artistic and crafty spirit, a place of inspiration, meditation and togetherness. Imagine a school again, but one that not only teaches formal academic knowledge, but genuinely develops and growths the mind of the people.
The future concepts for the school building should not ignore the people of Potoc and their interests. Starting from the idea of an „Experimental Creative Laboraty“ specific functions can be entitled. One of them is setting up a Builders Workshop.

In Potoc, like in any other village, there is and always will be public construction work, reparing the church roof, building a festival stage, repairing bridges etc. There will be always be building works to be done and there would be always be a team of builders. This included the idea of a local artisian workshop, including an atelier and a material storage, a machine room and a showroom featuring valuable traditions and practices.
A stepwise rehabilitation of the old and derelict building is provided: every year one or more rooms to be professionally refurbished. The PAO session 2010 in Potoc aims that purpose: the first steps will be made. With all care and patience, one step by another can be taken in order to steadily develop a functioning and vital complex. The extension of the old school building is not to be spectacular architecture. Before all it should enable people to work here and to get inspired.

PAO SUMMERCAMPS 2010 IN ITALY AND ROMANIA

Finally, dates and appointments for the PAO 2010 summercamps got fixed! Ambitious ones, as this year´s "Design to build"-sessions will be held in two fascinating places: in the city of l´Aquila (Italy), and in the village of Potoc (Romania).



PLACE 1: L´AQUILA The city of l´Aquila is a fantastic, beautiful place high up in the alpine Abruzzo Mountains, 100 km from Rome. After a major earthquake in 2009, there are still many tasks waiting for creative intervention: New "Hot Spots" for the demolished city center, and "Cool Places" for students and young people. In the fantastic medieval city of l´Aquila, however, concerns of Cultural Heritage will be play an eminent role. The summerschool will be organised in cooperation with the University of l´Aquila and it´s students.


PLACE 2: POTOC The village of Potoc is a remote, quiet settlement close to the city of Timisoara in Southwestern Romania. In 2009, a PAO camp was held there already which prepared an ambitious follow-up project for this year: the re-fitting of the old village school-building into a "House of Creativity". In cooperation with the villagers and local artists, a new scheme for a sustainable culture institution is to be conceived - and put to reality.


DATES The two-week session in l´Aquila goes from August 30th-September 10th; the two-week session in Potoc from September 13th-September 24th. Interested participants can join both workshops in sequence.

PARTICIPANTS The workshop adresses students, prospective students, and professionals of architecture, arts, and culture studies alike. The workshop programme includes lectures, design studios, field trips, and a visit to the Venice Architecture Biennale. Prospective international participants will come from Italy, Spain, Romania, Germany, Poland, Ukraine, Egypt and Japan.


INFORMATION / REGISTRATION For further information or registration email to paoproject@gmail.com or see the website http://www.pao-project.org/ Don´t hesitate to inquire! See you in l´Aquila and / or Potoc!

PREPARATORY WORKSHOP IN L´AQUILA

From March 15th through 20th, a PAO group travelled to the city of l´Aquila, Italy for a preparatory workshop. L´Aquila will be the place for the next PAO summerschool (PAO.6). In order to check out the current situation on-site, a brief academic session was held at the university of l´Aquila. The session included two lecture presentations, a speed-design workshop with students, and various visits to potential sites for the upcoming summercamp. Also a poster exhibition of last year´s workshop in Potoc (Romania) was presented at the university.





Despite the Abruzzo Region, of which l´Aquila is the capital city, is of enormous beauty, the city itself and surrounding villages still suffer much from last years earthquake. Many facilities and infrastructures are still not working. The university itself has moved into a former CD-Factory.
Here, however, the students´ interest and feedback to PAO was very positive, many of them look forward to a fascinating "Design to build"-summerschool in August/September. The speed-design sessions resulted in beautiful yet simple and realistic ideas which appear possible to be constructed.




From now, exact time, location, and programm are to be decided and be informed via this blog. In any case: put a reminder to your schedule book - PAO l´Aquila is to come soon.

MICROMUSEUM COMPLETED WITH CHILDREN PLAYGROUND

Good things take time! After building the Schwabhausen "MicroMuseum" during the PAO.4 session in 2008, the center reconstruction of Schwabhausen village got finally "completed". That is: by the end of 2009, an large children playground was build - right in front of the "Micromuseum", right beside the "Hermitage Box".



By this, the original concept for village center (dating back to 2008) turned real. When the MicroMuseum was conceived together with the mayor and the villagers of Schwabhausen, the basic idea was to revitalise the devastated yet eminent place with three coordinated projects: 1) the reconstruction of the former kindergarden villa into a house for elderly people (2008-2009), building a village MicroMuseum (2008), and installing a new children playground inbetween (now done).

After finishing the works for pavements and gardening in Spring 2010, the whole area will be opened to the public. The MicroMuseum is supposed to regularly feature exhibitions and shows connected to the village, its people, history and environment.

PAO @ ARCHITECTURE FESTIVAL / TIMISOARA

A focus-show of the PAO.5 Architecture Summercamp openened the annual Architecture Festival of Timişoara. The vernissage took place on Dec 10th, 2009 in the exhibition hall of the Department of Architecture at the Polytechnic University of Timişoara.

After opening the exhibition by the festival organizers, Michael Wieczorek introduced the PAO idea and the workshop activities which took place 2009 in Potoc. Twenty large-size posters presented an overview of the projects and activities of the summer school. An object-installation of artist Manole Olteanu from Timişoara defined the center of the show.

Besides a remarkable number of local architects and guests from all over the country, the students and teachers of the Architectural Department especially took interest in the exhibition which will be on show until the end of January 2010.

The festival „Anuală Timişoreană de Arhitektură 2009“ presents every year a variety of architectural events at various locations throughout the city. Part of the program is the Annual Architecture Award by the Chamber of Architects. Further information under http://www.anualadearhitectura.ro/.

PAO.5 Finished!

Resulting in a number of exciting artistic works, the 5th edition of the PAO Experimental Architecture Summercamp got finished by September 3rd, 2009. This time - instead of realising one "grand" structure - the efforts rather lead to a variety of different projects, each one highly individual and personal. Centered around the old school building of Potoc village (which proofed a rich source of ideas and materials) the corresponding projects formed an exhibition space that stretched over large areas of the school´s garden and the buildings interior itself. The final presentation to Potoc´s people turned into real village party eventually.

Lots of nature, landscape and animals formed a beautiful background for the intensive yet joyful two weeks-workshop. Supported by the two lovely "Tanties" (= grannies) Lenuca and Anna, the group easily arranged with the basic yet rich village life of Potoc. The various fieldtrips and encounters with local people provided a large source for the participants ideas and concepts, uncovering the ethnographical, environmental and architectural wealth of the area. A brief review of the workshop will be found on the PAO website http://www.pao-project.org/ soon.

To have the chance of coming to this wonderful stretch of land, to participate in the village life, and to feel the creative spirit of people coming from all directions has been a unique experience. Thanks a million to all the people who joined in, and supported the workshop!

MEETING PLACE IN TIMISOARA

This is the place where the PAO 5 group is going to meet in Timisoara on Saturday, August 22nd for the kick-off party, and for eating / sleeping until the transfer to Potoc village on Monday:

Artist´s Cafe 'Scârţ' (pronounce: "Skirtz"),

Str. Zoe, nr.1

Park Doina, in Elizabetin,

Timisoara

You can arrive there at anytime, the personnel is informed about the PAO guests. If you have trouble finding the place, call tel.: 0727 184 215. Michael is going to help furter.

WEEK 1 PROGRAMM: FIELDTRIPS

WORKSHOP ON TOUR A major feature of PAO.5 are the four extensive trips in week 1. By bus, we will cross through completely different landscapes, from the plains up to the mountains – the complete profile of the Banat region, including Danube river and mountain mining areas. This will present an ethnographical cross-section with an immense variety of cultures, crafts, and architectural styles. So, for the first week of the workshop, the general idea is: working on-tour. Driving around by bus, we shall collect and document everything we need for the further (re)work in Potoc village: drawings, photographs, movies, interviews etc. We inform our projects and establish the contacts necessary for them. Thereafter, in Potoc village, there will follow one intensive week of creative production. However, everybody is invited to bring an idea to the workshop from home, to think about a potential project already in advance. So there is a chance for preparation even before the actual workshop starts.


APPROACH: ACROSS THE BANAT PLAINS
Day 1 (Monday, August 24th)

The tour leads through the Southern part of the Banat Plains towards the Serbian border near Moravitza, further on eastwards through the hills and mountainregion close to Orawitza and, finally, to Potoc. On the way we cross the type of villages as is typical for these plains: rectangular layout and settlement structures, which comprise a lot of ethnic diversity – Romanians, Serbs, Germans, Hungarians, Bulgarians and Slovaks live here. Those structures are the result of the colonial politics of 18th century Hungaro-Austrian Empire, which has settled skilled workers from all parts of the empire in this place. –
In the Banat Plains, the major architectural typology is the house made of stamped clay without an open, column-flanked walkway (prispa). This type was replaced in the 19th century with a house-type made of burnt bricks – the typology which was mostly employed by the Germans who had settled in the North-Western Banat. In the Southern parts, however, there are rather mixed typologies to be found.

1st ROUNDTRIP: HILLSIDE AROUND ORAVITZA & MOUNTAINSIDE OF RESITA AND ANINA
Day 2 (Tuesday, August 25th)

Through the hills and fruit farms near Oravitza the tour goes to the North – to the mountainside and the villages of the so-called “Kraschowans” (Croatians, Serbs, Macedonians). This is the most industrialised region of the Banat with a mining-tradition dating back more than 200 years. In the cities mostly Czech (Bohemians), Slovak and Austrian miners were settled. As in the villages today the dominating labour is agriculture again, the breakdown of mining industries and all the problems connected to the structural change after 1989 become especially obvious in the former mining cities. –
The houses of the miners are simple and arranged in order to save as much space as possible. On an area of 12m x 7m the kitchen, living room, sleeping room and stable are arranged. The rich supply of natural resources like wood and easy-to-cut limestone has lead to a great variety of architectural styles and ways of construction.

2nd ROUNDTRIP: THE ALMAJ-VALLEY
Day 3 (Wednesday, August 26th)

Near Oravitza we descend through the Anina-mountainside down to the Almaj-valley. On the way, there are two major points for pilgrimage in the Banat mountain region: the Pilgrimage Church of Maria Ciclova and the Calugera-monastery. In the isolation of the Almaj-Valley many architectural relics were preserved, for instance the 2-room house made of wood, or the complex of watermills of Eftimie Murgu. As a dominant settlement structure on finds villages arranged along the street respectively along the riverstreams. Further, on the hilltops one finds scattered-layout villages. From the end of the valley, the tour leads back to Potoc village via the Locvei-peaks through the mining villages of Carbunari and Sasca Montana. –
The Southern Banat is the only place in Europe where so called “Spoon Mills” exist in a larger number and a variety of uses. These wooden predecessors of the Pelton turbines with their horizontal spoon-wheels were used for the milling of crops, for the production of electricity, as pump-stations, or for the rural textile production. Still today, there are about 150 working spoon-mills.

3. ROUNDTRIP: THE BORDER REGION ALONG DANUBE RIVER
4th Day (Thursday, August 27th)

From Potoc the tour leads westwards to the Serbian border. This region became rich in the 1990s by petrol dealing with Yugoslavia. The villages are mixed Romanian-Serbian. Near Moldava-Veche the Danube river extends to a remarkable width because of being dammed the “Iron Gate”. Short after begins the Donauklamm (Clisura) where the street leads up the lime-stone rocks of the Carpaths. The geostrategical position of the Danube-gorge at the entrance of the “Porta Orientalis” has since ancient times attracted the most diverse tribes and folks, some of which have settled here. –
In the region of the “Iron Gate” and the Donauklamm, Banat ethnocultural elements overlap with those of Mehedintz and Oltenia. One may find house of the type called “cula” which are arranged around a courtyard in order to form a fortress-like structure. The traditional timber-architecture was more and more subdued by stone-architectures by the 19th century. Still there are timber houses in the region of the Senn huts (“salase”) and in the Czech-Bohemian scatter settlements around Sichevita. Here, the “House with Two Rooms” is still a widely used form of living.

HOW TO GET TO TIMISOARA

Before we go to POTOC village for the workshop itself, the PAO participants will meet in the city of TIMISOARA on the 20th of August (latest possible arrival on 21st). Here, we will spend two days having a kick-off party, getting to know each other a bit, and sightseeing this major Romanian city. Here are some proposals how to get to Timisoara:

1.ON THE ROAD Best is to go via Hungary: from BUDAPEST follow the highway to SZEGET. There exit the highway at 155 Arad and take the road to SZEGET. In Szeget turn to E68 to MAKO-town. At the roundabout after ca. 25 km take the exit onto Timişoara (reads on the sign: "Temesvar"). You’ll cross the border in CENAD. After ca. 80 km on the well constructed trunk road you are in Timişoara. One can go via ARAD to, but this way is 50km longer. - The trip from Germany will be about 1000km long.

2.BY TRAIN Take a train to BUDAPEST; from Budapest go to ARAD and from there to TIMISOARA. The trains run everday, there are some connections everyday. An example for those travelling from Dresden / Germany: Best is to go by EuroNight from DRESDEN at 10:10 pm over PRAGUE to BUDAPEST Budapest (arr. 8:32 am). Take the Intercity from Budapest (dep. 9:13 am) to ARAD (arr. 2:14 pm local time). The train to TIMISOARA leaves Arad at 2:25 pm. You’re arriving in Timişoara Nord at 3:32.pm. Overall time spent is about 16 hours.

3.BY AIRPLANE There are direct flights to TIMISOARA from some airports (Leipzig, Dortmund, Berlin Tegel /Schönefeld etc.) A Lufthansa returnflight from Berlin costs 286€ (via Budapest), a Malev returnflight costs 200€. Lufthansa from Leipzig – Timişoara, via Munich from 20.08.-05.09. costs 190,58€ (provider: http://www.opodo.de/). A Wizzair flight from Dortmund – Timişoara, direct flight on Tuesday and Saturday cists 29,98 € (provider: http://www.wizzair.com/). A Malev flight from Berlin/Tegel – Timişoara, via Budapest from 20.08.-05.09. costs 193,07 € (provider: http://www.opodo.de/).

4. COMBINATION AIRPLANE / TRAIN Meaningful is perhaps the combination of flight and train, for instance departing from Berlin Schönefeld with a Easyjet returnflight (68€) to BUDAPEST and continuing from there with train to TIMISOARA. There are good connection between train station Budapest Keleti and Timisoara, for instance leaving Keleti at 9:13 and arriving in Timisoara 15:32, and back leaving Timisoara at 7:00 arrives at Keleti at 10:47.

5. BY BUS There are some busses going to Timisoara from several European cities (e.g. Dresden). For instance, the Euroline busses depart from DRESDEN 18:30 and arrive in TIMISOARA 11:00. For the way back they leave at 17:30 from Timisoara and arrive in Dresden 9:30. Costs are 185€, for students. 166,50€. Overall time spent is about 12 hours.

PAO.4 Books are out!

Good news: the PAO.4 Books are finished! The result justifies the long time of production - after ten months of editing, a hefty two-volume edition got finally printed and boxed. Box 1 "BIOGRAPHY" features chronologically each single day of designing and building the Micromuseum in 2008. Box 2 "FOOTAGE" presents the accompanying projects (Design Blog, Kinder-PAO, Hermitage, Final exhibition etc.) plus all involved people who participated at PAO.4. What´s more: the "books" are not merely books, but a set of approx. 250 playing cards. A kind of puzzle, where all single cards can be arranged into large scale images of the accomplished projects.

The two books / boxes can be ordered directly from paoproject@gmail.com (19,50 EURO plus postage). The edition is limited to 100 numbered pieces.

PAO.5 Lecture programme

This year`s summercamp at Potoc will feature a series of lectures and discussions covering a wide range of topics: architecture, rehabilitation design, urban renewal, culture theory, anthropology, ethnography and religion. Here is a brief list of the prospective lecturers and their topics:


Cristian Istrătescu-Târgovişte – Cultural Anthropologist:
SYMBOLISM, ORNAMENT, RITUAL IN THE ROMANIAN CARPATHS

Cristian Istrătescu-Târgovişte researches about architecture and culture, psychology, morals and daily life-habits of Balcan tribes. He describes the traditional nomad-economy (cattling), the life in the villages, customs and rites. Interesting is his psychological approach towards the influences of antique Roman culture in the Carpath region. Here, Bycantine-Christian and natural belief amalgate, from which Istrătescu-Târgovişte derives the origin of symbols, ornaments, and even daily philosophy of Romanian culture.

* * *

Vlad Gaivoronski – Architect:
PATTERNS OF TRADITIONAL SPACE

Vlad Gaivoronski (*1956) was project leader in the State Planning Office I.P.R.O.T.I.M. in Timisoara 1983 through 1990. In 1990 he founded together with Ion Andreescu an architectural partnership. The renowned Timisoarian office became famous in the early 1990s for its experimental approach for a new Romanian architecture in national and international architecture competetions. Gaivoronski teaches at the Ecole d’ Architecture in Paris and became Professor at University of Technology Timişoara in 2002, where he also teaches Theory of Architecture since 1990. He is Vicepresident of Romanian Chamber of Architects(O.A.R.).

* * *

Mihai Opriş – Art Historian, Architect:
HISTORICAL CITY DEVELOPMENT OF TIMISOARA

Mihai Opris (*1948), after graduating the Nikolaus Lenau Lyceum in Timişoara, studied at the University for Architecture and City Planning Ion Mincu in Bucarest. From 1974 through 1975 he worked at I.P.R.O.T.I.M. He researched urban planimetrics and published his findings 1987 in a book on historical city development (Timişoara Monografia urbanistică) which is regarded the eminent reference up to now. Opriş directs an architectural office in Soest/Deutschland, teaches at the University of Bucarest and supervises as a planning expert the city rehabilitation project of GTZ in Timişoara.

* * *

Jochen Gauly – City planner:
REHABILITATION OF HISTORICAL CITY AREAS IN ROMANIA

The urban renewal project of Timişoara “Soft Conversion and Economical Rehabilitation of Old Living Quarters“ is a Romanian-Germanist cooperation between the city administration of Timişoara and the German Society for Technical Kooperation (GTZ), commissioned by the German Ministry for Economical Cooperation and Development (BMZ). The aim of the project is to initiate longterm projects for the economical and urban developement of historical old quarters, and to provide the basics for their implementation. For this, the organisational, juridical and financial capacities of the local administration are to be improved in order to stipulate a sustaining and effective process of urban rehabilitation. In order to reach this goal, a coordination bureau „Old City Reconversion“ (KAST) was founded in the historical city quarter of Fabric. The bureau consists of employees of the municipality and experts of GTZ. The project is supported by the German partner cities Gera and Karlsruhe. Jochen Gauly (*1967) directs the project since 2004.

* * *

Michael Buck – Architect:
EXPERIENCES IN ROMANIA

Michael Buck started off in Romania in 1998 when founding a Summeracademie for German and Romanian architecture students. Through the joint work, a network between German and Romanian cityplanners and architects was established which have a close relation to the University of Technology in Klausenburg and the local city administration. From this developed the architectural office „Planwerk Cluj Napoca“. The Planwerk Gmbh still continuous the office work and works on commissions throughout Romania, with special focus on Siebenbürgen. The summeracademy was carried out five times as an addition to a scholarship program for Romanian architecture students at the College of Fine Arts in Hamburg, being located in a small village at the Hungaro-Romanian border. For three weeks, 12 students worked on urban concepts for integrating the natural conditions into the cities of the regions. The works were presented to citizens, politicians and administration of the respective municipalities, and published in a separate series of books.

* * *

Andrei Vâlcu – Priest:
ICONOGRAPHY OF THE ROMANIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH

Andrei Vâlcu is the priest of the village Potoc. He works on the definition and interpretation of motifs in the works of fine arts and architecture of the Romanian-Orthodox church. His investigation into semantics and symbolics of pictorial objects draws reference to contemporary literature source, such as philosophy, poetry, and theology, each of which had its own influence on the respective motifs and forms or representation. In the Balcan, the fusion of mideval byzantine elements with motifs of local folk-art can be analysed in detail. A specific way of interpretation is implied by the complicate, enigmatic allegories of Baroque times. Here, the thinking of alchemy or Free Masonry has strongly influenced artistic iconography.

* * *

FACTS ABOUT POTOC VILLAGE

Here are more points about Potoc village, the village where the upcoming PAO.5 Architecture Summercamp is going to happen:

PLACE "Potoc" is Serbian and means something like 'hard & noisy rushing water'. Potoc is a small village in the Southwest of Romania, 20 km far from the Serbian border and 40 km away from the Danube (Donau) river. The nearest bigger cities are Timişoara (120 km) and Belgrade (150 km). The region belongs ethnographically to the Balkan Region. The village itself is situated in the foothills of the Southwestern Carpathians, where the great Pannonian plains merge into the montainside. The low mountain range area around Potoc is characterized by grey limestone rocks with many caves and deep carved river valleys covered by a sub-mediterranean vegetation. The world of insects and birds is marvelous and fills the air with sonorous sounds. Summers are hot and dusty, winter short but cold. In the beautiful and long periods of Spring and Autumn is the majority of rain downpour.

OLD VILLAGERS Those local villagers who spent the whole year in Potoc are elder people in general. Their children and families usually move to bigger towns or even foreign countries. However, in holidays all members of the family are meeting up together in the village, spending time in nature and filling the village's streets for a time period with humble and bust. But there are still some families who live in Potoc altogether.

ECONOMY The common village people are self-supporters, living from their own agriculture and animal production. Almost every self-supporting family owns a cow, some goats, pigs and a range of small livestock. In the gardens potatoes, tomatoes, corn and several kinds of fruits are being grown. Things additionally needed are brought from the market in the neighbouring town oraviţa. Under communist rule, the peasants were generally collectivized in Agricultural State Cooperatives, yet every family would have a piece of land and animals to make ends meet appropriately. This way, the traditional rural life-style survived. Once before, the region was well-known for its mining industries. Other light industries employed a lot of village people. Today almost all of them are receiving a small but constant governmental pension.

NEW VILLAGERS Nowadays, some people are returning to Potoc, at least in the season between Spring and Autumn. These "New Villagers" in Potoc and its neighborhoods are mostly weekend commuters whose families or childhood experiences are rooted in this area. They are coming from towns and cities in the surroundings, with their family business, with kids and dogs. Besides that, an alternative movement has been going on during the recent years an alternative movement. Artists from Timişoara with their friends are coming for work and relax to this especially beautiful landscape-scenery. A kind of expanding colony is already established. In comparison to the indigenous locals all these new people are rather wealthy people.

SIDE-NOTE By the way, this movement is perhaps linked to an upcoming general trend in civil society in Romania. Since the post-communist revolution, the welfare has been growing. Economically, some Romanian people are well-off these days. Such people are rediscovering now traditional values of the middle class. Like in the prospering 60's, the Romanians are developing so-called "post-materialistic" attitudes and practices, which means keeping their traditions and living in a very individualistic manner. In comparison to the very traditional locals, however, these people appear often like aliens.

ADMINISTRATION Today, Potoc has about 250 inhabitants. The village is administrated by the communal district Sasca Montana, the next village with an abandoned copper mine. Oraviţa, a small town with approx. 12.000 people can be taken as the cultural center of the region. Duing the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Oraviţa was a health resort, with hotels, theaters and casinos erected in a late-baroque architecture style which is typical for that region.

SCHOOL AND SHOPS The school building in Potoc was closed in 2004. The last twelve pupils (2009) are going to school to the next village by bus. We have three corner shops in potoc which have opened in the last four years. This makes up quite a pretty nice shopping-mile for this little village.

WORKSHOP FEES

Here are some organisational data regarding costs and expenditures for PAO.5 workshop in Potoc. The fees for the whole course will be 450 € (two weeks). For short-stay participants, a daily rate of 35€ will be calculated. These fees cover accomodation, materials, food supply and local transport. For participants submitting the fees until July 31st, there will be a 50€ "early payment"-reduction. To all people registering for the workshop (email to paoproject@gmail.com), a bank account number will be given for international money transfer (IBAN). As soon as the money has arrived on the account, a receipt will send out. However, cash payment upon arrival at the workshop is possible as well.

If needed for individual preparations (financial support, academic affairs, credits etc), the PAO organisers can issue an invitation letter or voucher about the workshop-participation in advance. For further details, please email to paoproject@gmail.com.

TWO TOPICS FOR PAO.5

The upcoming PAO.5 Summercamp will work upon two major themes. The one starts from a larger (regional, cultural) scale, the other one from a very specific site and building:

ETHNOGRAPHICAL LANDSCAPE Potoc village - with its some 200 inhabitants - is located in Southwest Romania, close to the Serbian border, just a stone´s throw away from Danube river. This area in the ethnically rich Balkan region marks the border between the occidental and oriental sphere and looks back onto a history full of change. Ever-changing ruling systems, war and invasion, people continuously migrating and settling again have formed a unique tradition and multiethnical culture; a form of human life that is expressed in archaic forms and elements to be found in architectural and settlement structures. The recent years have brought a new movement: The beauty and magic of people and nature inspires young artists, architects, and intellectuals to move to the villages of the national preservation area called "Cheile Nerei". Low landprices and an almost non-existing commercial tourism or other kinds of strategical development support this soft change. People meet for joint activities, workshops, and art happenings of all kinds. The great challenge here, however, is to protect the area, and not to exploit it. - For this purpose, a range of concepts, ideas, and strategies shall be conceived and tested during PAO.5.






SCHOOL OF CREATIVITY The former schoolbuilding of Potoc has been left unused for years. The building itself is situated above the village in the midst of hills. Directly adjacent are the Roman-Orthodox church and the House of Culture of Potoc - obviously, the school, once, was one of the center points of the village. Not many years ago, every village still had its own school, where children from first up to the forth grade were taught. Now, as the young people move away to the cities, the villages but overage and decline. The younger generations are simply missing. - Recognising this situation, new ideas shall be found as to how the place can be safed from declining, how artistic and architectural intervention may contribute to the villages revitalisation. The general idea is to reconsider the school as a meeting point for creative people – a platform for events like summerschools, holiday camps, workshops etc. A place whose creative spirit brings new life to the village.

PAO.5 SCHEDULE 20.08. - 03.09.2009

Buna ziua! (Romanian: How do you do?) - As in the previous years, the summercamp will be held in the last week of August and first one of September. Here is the preliminary schedule: THURSDAY 20.08./ FRIDAY 21.08: Arrival in Timisoara, 2 overnight stays; Kick-off event on Friday night; SATURDAY 22.08. Transfer to Potoc Village; SUNDAY 23.08.- TUESDAY 01.09. Workshop in Potoc (Field trips, lectures, project work); Final public presentation in Potoc and Oravitza county capital; WEDNESDAY 02.09. Return to Timisoara, exhibition of works, THURSDAY 03.09. Departure.

Detailed informations about fees, accomodation, and programme will be coming soon. - The images show two prospective places of the summerschool - the old school in Potoc-Village, which is going to be our workshop itself, and the County Theater in Oravitza city, about 15km from Potoc, which is our designated spot for the final presentation (Style: Hungaro-Austrian Empire).

PAO.5 IN ROMANIA

It took a little while to arrange it, but now it is settled: The upcoming PAO Architecture Summercamp will happen in Romania! After the Carpathian spirit came to last year´s PAO Workshop in Schwabhausen in the shape of a window (see the "Hermitage" in the PAO-Blog), the workshop now goes where the window came from. Exactly: to the village of Potoc near the city of Timisoara (Temesvar). A historically rich, multi-ethnic and incredibly beautiful stretch of land, where we will have the opportunity to work and live in the artists cottage "Casa de Creazia".
The period of the workshop will be as in the last years: second half of August through beginning of September. There will be one full week of workshop-activities (architecture, arts, culture); another week shall be dedicated to arrivals and departures, traveling around, and private leisure. - The exact schedule and further information will be posted soon on this PAO.Blog and on the PAO-Website. (JRN)

INFO MicroMuseum opened with Exhibition

On October 3rd, the MicroMuseum in Schwabhausen was officially presented to the public with its first exhibition - accompanied by a kind of village-party with plenty of free-beer, speeches, and music-playing. The exhibition´s theme are the projects of PAO.4 (the MicroMuseum itself, the Hermitage, and artistic works by the participants), along with the other ongoing plannings for the site (Revitalisation of former Kindergarden, plus upcoming Childrens Playground). - Most prominent guests again - were the village children, who practically had captured the structure for the whole day. Chessboards, guitars and amplifiers on the front-terrace kept them busy until evening hours. - Nice to observe was a continous flow of visitors into the museum throughout the following days, probably motivated by newspaper articles reporting on the museum´s opening. - Further upcoming exhibitions are planned with abroad-travel reports by the village youth, and also a show with archeological relics from the vicinity of Schwabhausen.

AFTERPAO The "Carpatian Window" Hermitage

Carried out by Michael and Claudia from Timisoara, another small "museum" was set up, one that makes prominent use of an old window that traveled all the way up from Romania. Inserted into one of the mobile cubes used last year at the timberyard, this exhibition piece provides a look into a still-life: the interior of a hermitage. - Placed some 20m away from the MicroMuseum, the Hermitage gives a meaningful contrast to the modernist MicroMuseum, a nostalgic air - a reminder of things old and valuable.

AFTERPAO The MicroMuseum

Starting from the schemes developed in the PreDesignBlog, the MicroMuseum grew into a very special kind of Mini-Architecture in the course of further design and final construction. Still, the final shape turned into something completely fresh and unexpected, a result of collective creativity that goes beyond determined design concepts. The fine-grained structure of the facades, the exterior design with a "wooden waterfall", as well as the interior design with showboxes and windows just naturally developed in the course of building. The result of this incremental "design"-process is a small structure that yet impacts the site quite strongly, while fitting into the context of the village centre, the garden-area, and the neighbouring buildings. Noteworthy to mention: village children as well as a number of elderly people had been permanently on site during the last days of construction. Obviously, both parties seemed much attracted by the playful small building, seemingly waiting for taking over the structure. This being especially satisfying as both groups are the designated future users of the site and its further re-development into a seniors house plus children playground.

AFTERPAO Pao.4 finished!

After two weeks of intensive design and crafting work in August and September, PAO.4 finally got finished successfully! Despite difficult earthworks and foundation-making in the beginning, the projects of the MicroMuseum and the "Carpatian Window Hermitage" finally turned out very nice and impressive. The completion of the works was celebrated on Sunday Sept.7th with a village-party and a public presentation of the works, plus beer-for-free-for-everybody. At this place, a million of thanks to everybody who has contributed in way or another to Pao.4, especially to the participants whose energy, talent and motivation was incredible! Special thanks also to the people in the village and the involved companies and craftsmen - without their help the projects wouldnt have come true. - On October 3rd, there will be the official opening of the MicroMuseum with its first exhibition.

INFO How to get to PAO

As there were difficulties with downloading the maps from our homepage: here are some infos on how to get to PAO. This is the address: PAO architecture summer camp, Gothaer Strasse 20, 99869 Schwabhausen - Germany. For arrivals by TRAIN: Reach Gotha Main Station by trains from Frankfurt (direction Leipzig, Berlin), from Berlin (direction Frankfurt), from Dresden (direction Frankfurt). Call PAO tel +49 171-8810520 for Pick-up service. Arrival by AIRPLANE: Reach Erfurt Airport from Berlin, Frankfurt, Munich (...) Continue by train from Erfurt Main Station to Gotha Main Station (local trains or interstate trains to Frankfurt every 20min). Call PAO tel +49 171-8810520 for pick-up service. Arrival by CAR: Autobahn A4 Frankfurt-Dresden. Exit Gotha/Suhl/Oberhof. Follow direction Suhl/Oberhof to the first village - Schwabhausen. PAO is located on mainstreet "Gothaer Strasse Nr. 20".

DESIGN DEVELOPMENT Frame++ on the Slope

As we have to deliver soon some data for our carpenters to start their work (aquiring, measuring & cutting wood), here is a further version of the "Frame on the slope". This time, our platform gets a larger "head" - an extended exhibition space at the front. The open timber frames are to be equipped with facades, boxes, roofs, stairs ... in the further process of design and building. - As with the previous idea, the general access is from the street which runs at the top of the slope. This seems to be a necessary condition for the safe and easy use of the structure.

DESIGN DEVELOPMENT Frame on the Slope

Here is a siteplan with main buildings marked (Church and Former Kindergarden). The area we are going to work is the site around the former kindergarden, an area with large chestnet trees, sloping down from the access road some 2, 3 metres. The former kindergarden building is right now under reconstruction, to be transformed into an elderly people´s house. According to village officials, on the same site a childrens playground is planned to be build. Its place will be in the ravine at the lower part of the site. This, however, restricts the available spaces for the Micro Museum. Whatsmore, village officials demand accessibility without entering the area itself, which will be semi-private. For easy access, then, only the small stretch along the road at the upper part of the site seems appropriate. The red marker shows the place on the top of the slope.

Below: a constructional scheme for a timber-frame on this specific site. Stepping down the slope, so to say, it follows more or less the idea of a "Tube on the slope" (Beam, Paoworm, Junglegym). So far, it is only a skeleton that is to be furbished with boxes, shelves, exhibition items during the workshop - those features that "Xscape", "Calzone" & Co. have demonstrated so nicely.

DESIGN DEVELOPMENT Tube on the Slope

Here is a strong alternative concept to the previous "Floating Idea Hive". Instead of a boxy shelf lifted up (containing some 10, 15 exhibition chambers), this idea favours a long-stretched volume (a tube, a pipe, a tunnel) that extends from the existing slope like a dive-board. As a conceptual framework, it includes the ideas like "Beam", "Paoworm, the "Whale & Centiped Variations", and "On Top & Underneath Platform". Its biggest advantage: this concept enables direct access from the street which runs along the upper edge of the site. From here, people may easily enter (without intruding the semi-private grounds physically), have a look at the exhibition and the landscape, then turn around - and be easily back where they came from. - The idea of having an accessible, "beam-like" object protruding from the hill may be developed into extreme shapes (round tubes, triangular volumes. Also possible: the carry out the "Beam" as a skeleton-structure, an open framework to be filled up with single boxes. Or to be clad with exterior walls and wrappings.

DESIGN DEVELOPMENT Floating Idea Hive

Here comes a constructional scheme / framework inspired by Eric, designed by Micha: A real "Micro Museum" that combines the ideas of "Beam", "Idea Hive", and "Platform". In fact it is a kind of shelf that floats some 1-1,5 m above ground, containing a multitude of tiny exhibition cells, or chambers. Just like a bee-hive. At the same time it reminds Alise´s "Two birds with one stone" (a shelf with openings), but now it is floating horízontally instead of standing up vertically. The technical construction seems simple: Providing openings from below the shelf in which one can put his/her head - and look around some 10, 15 exhibition boxes clustered together and lifted up.

IDEA SELECTION Five Core Ideas

We have grouped the design entries - and found that all ideas can be roughly grouped into 5 general types, each representing one strong idea. These ideas we shall keep in mind during the the further design development.

GROUP 1 "CONTAINERS: MAKING USE OF STURDY BOXES"

Includes Projects Nr. (1) "4 Containers", (2) "Matchbox Musem", (5) "Check-Mate-Museum", and (8) "Paorcelona Pavillon", and "Carpatian Window" (not numbered). These projects are commonly thinking about how to use existing containers meaningfully, be them the ones which were re-designed in 2007´s Pao.3 workshop, or new ones.

GROUP 2 "BEAMS & TUBES: WORKING WITH THE SLOPE"

Includes Projects Nr. (2) "Beam", (4) "Two Variations", (4) "Cigar", and (23) "Paoworm". - The common starting point for these projects is the simple idea of having some long-stretched exhibition space extending from the slope, thus connecting the exhibition directly with the street which runs along the site. This fulfills some major conditions of the site, e.g. direct accessibility, approach from a public space.

GROUP 3 "MORPHED PAVILLON: TEXTILE-CONCRETE EXPERIMENTS"

Includes Projects Nr. (6) "Blossom", (7) "Plastic-Concrete Cube", (18) "Butterfly", (19) "Mushroom", and (20) "Gingko". Inspired by the opportunities of using textile concrete, these projects investigate how far the design of free-shaped pavillons can be pushed. Demanding certainly in terms of material and construction technique - possible to produce only within a very limited scope at PAO, unfortunately.

GROUP 4 "MULTIPLE SPACES: EXHIBITION-SHELVES-OBJECTS"

Projects Nr. (9) "5th of 4 Cube", (10) "Two birds with one stone", (16) "Jungle Gym", (17) "Idea Hive", and (21) "Shelves in a Shelf". - These projects commonly start from the idea of providing many small spaces for many exhibition objects. Spaces like: chambers, cells, boxes, show-windows, etc. The strong idea here is to make the museum-shelter itelf into an exhibition object itself. Two concepts of the Top 5 idea selection were in this group: "Two birds with one stone" and "Shelves in a shelf".

GROUP 5 "PLATFORM: EXHIBITION LANDSCAPES"

Projects Nr. (12) "Xscape", (13) "On top and underneath", (14) "Xscape extended", (15) "Calzone", (22) "Erics Rocks" and "Seed from Tokyo" (not numbered). - These concepts commonly start from the idea of having not a building but rather an open platform as an "exhibition landscape" to walk on and experience. The two top running concepts "Xscape extended" and "Calzone" were in this group.

HOW TO PROCEED FURTHER? From now, we have to conceive a "framework" (both conceptually and physically) which is to include these core-ideas. Whereas the further development of this framework into a genuine "Museum" is the task of the workshop sessions, the construction of a real physical framework is necessary until the beginning of the workshop (foundation-making, wood-cutting and other construction tasks have to be carried out before the Pao begins). So - make an idea for an appropriate framework that fits to our "core-ideas" - and send it to the blog!