NATHANIEL LORETZ


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The New Red Settlement

Year
2021
Location
Rothneusiedl, Vienna, Austria
Institute
IoA University of Applied Arts Vienna
Studio
DiazMoreno GarciaGrinda
Team Members
Agata Chomicz

This project is about a vegetation megastructure. An S-shaped spine is formed by a series of urban courtyards and is framed by high-density housing blocks. The spine acts as a transition zone between the urban and surrounding natural landscape. The spatial arrangement of the spaces is based on a dichotomy between the individual and communal, which is translated into a physical two-sidedness. Single-occupancy domestic units are arranged on a rigid grid along the outside perimeter, which look out onto the surrounding natural landscape.
Omnipresent vegetation grows and carries wild plants into the communal courtyards, where they converge with domesticated nature. Inside, a playful and dynamic arrangement of public spaces of different sizes are organised around the communal court-yard. The inhabitants' gardening spaces reinforce togetherness through the act of horticultural care. Uncontrolled and wild nature is set against domesticated activity, intertwining the two ecologies over time.