Giardini dei girasoli

Porto Marghera

Venezia, Italia

 

Collaboration

Oskar Aronsen

The people of the Girasole emerged in the aftermath of the great pollution.

 

Prior to their existence, there were only The people of Avidità, a people fueled by an unrelenting desire for progress, and there was Soil, a wise and nurturing entity. The generous Soil bestowed gifts upon the The people of Avidità, and fueled by their insatiable drive for progress, Avidità took every gift Soil could offer them. In return, they left upon their nurturing friend the ‘gift’ of pollution.

 

At first, Soil graciously received these gifts from the Avidità, recognizing their desire to repay Soil for its kindness. However, more and more gifts were brought to Soil, and as the gifts’ of pollution mounted higher and deeper, Soil found itself struggling to accommodate them all. In lack of space, Soil was no longer able to provide for the Avidità. The once-generous Soil, unable to provide for the insatiable appetite of the Avidità, bore witness to their tragic decline, as they succumbed to the bitter fate of starvation.

 

However, a small band of survivors emerged, bearing the knowledge of Phytoremediation, a process capable of reversing the gifts of pollution. Instead of the gift of pollution, they gifted Soil sunflower seeds. Each dawn, they collected seeds from the bank and embarked upon a bridge that spanned Soil. Along the bridge they tenderly scattered the seeds. Soon the sunflowers blossomed, and their resilient roots reached deep into Soil, extracting and reclaiming the ‘gifts’ that had burdened Soil for so long, securely storing them within their membranes.

Once a year the sunflowers were harvested and transported to a nearby lighthouse, where they were ceremoniously consumed by fire. This ritual held great significance for the group that came to identify themselves as The people of the Girasole. This meticulous process continued, an unwavering commitment, until Soil, once burdened by the ‘gifts,’ was liberated. Once more, Soil was able to bestow its gifts upon The people of the Girasole, ushering in an era of shared prosperity.

 

Phytoremediation – Phytoremediation technologies use living plants to clean up soil, air and water contaminated with hazardous contaminants.

 

The text and models are elements of a fictional story created as a draft for the project.

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The project

 

Situated adjacent to the industrial zone of Porto Marghera. The designated site has been identified as heavily contaminated with toxins and residues resulting from past chemical production activities. Extensive research through scientific papers has revealed the profound impact on the workers in Porto Marghera, who have endured wartime bombings, a lack of rights, illnesses, and even fatalities caused by pollution emanating from their own factories.

 

In response to this tragic history, our project strives to address two interconnected objectives: cleansing the polluted soil and commemorating the Porto Marghera workers. Our proposed facility serves as a symbolic gesture, undertaking the task of soil remediation to eliminate the very toxins that have afflicted the community. Essentially, it functions as a monument to the enduring struggle of the workers.

The chosen method for soil remediation is phytoremediation, a process where plants absorb toxins and residues through their roots, storing them in the plant cell membrane. Papers we have read indicate that sunflowers are the best suited plant for this specific climate and contamination.

 

Our vision for the site involves covering it entirely with sunflowers, planted in a radial pattern emanating from the center. The flowers are cyclically harvested, dried, and incinerated throughout the year. Consequently, the site undergoes continuous transformation, mirroring the changing seasons and stages of the cleansing process. To support this endeavor, essential facilities such as a seedbank, a sunflower drying area, and an incinerator are integrated into the proposal. Additionally, we include accommodations for workers and a cafeteria. All structures feature yellow roofs that extend down to the meadow, creating a yellow carpet that blankets the entire site.

The incinerator building contains both the drying space and the incinerator. The building is the only one that touches the ground. The drying space consists of a simple wooden construction spanning between brick columns. From the tension wires sunflowers are hung to dry. The space will change dramatically throughout the year depending on the season. During the growing season, the space will be empty and the whole construction visible. When the drying begins however, the space is filled with sunflowers creating a “ceiling” and “walls” of sunflowers giving the space a different scale and lighting condition.

 

The incinerator is the space where the toxins are finally dealt with, the last step of the cleansing process. Where the sunflowers transform into an offering, intentionally burned to purify the soil. This is an important and almost sacred moment, a monument, both for the soil and for the workers at Porto Marghera. This is where the toxins that have inflicted so much damage both on the workers, nature and the soil, are finally removed. Because of the importance of this step the building is given a sacred character.

 

 

Solsikke