PLANSTADT

We were invited to Ludwigshafen, Germany to participate in "WERTstadt – Performative Urbanität" (cityVALUES – performative urbanity). Through performances and temporary architectural interventions, our assigned mission was to transform three different sites underneath the elevated highway that cuts through Ludwigshafen.

FIGURE GROUND (Day 01)
Bordering the inner city of Ludwigshafen, the elevated highway covers a huge parking lot. A concrete space that is now a deserted reminiscent of a time when car-centric urban planning was considered state of the art. We started our performance and intervention series with a typical architectural way of measuring the space by drawing axes and grids. This is one of the first steps of planning and designing. But instead of doing so on paper or in CAD software, we used tape to do it in situ and on a 1:1 scale. Following the dominant white marks of the parking lot, we developed an abstract grid system. The resulting graphic was then elevated to form a web-like organic canopy. The 2D graphic transformed itself into a dynamic 3D space modulator. The resulting moving structure evokes a new way to think and dream about the options to use that abandoned space in a playful way. more here >>>

WHITE NOISE (Day 02)
The elevated highway tangents and traverses the megastructure of the Rathaus Center – a hybrid building consisting of a shopping mall, a parking garage, an 18-floor highrise containing the city hall, and a subway station in the basement. Here the yard of the depot on the backside of the building complex is covered by three lanes of the elevated highway.Within this massive brutalist structure we found an overseen island. Here, the columns of the elevated highway hit the court of the depot. By carefully hanging a soft, yet geometrically defined structure between the columns, we introduced an alien cocoon. By entering it, you can levitate in a hammock on the inside and hide in plain sight. The visual distractions of the surrounding volumes and geometries fade out and only soft light enters the space. Traffic noise and sound that bounce off the surrounding surfaces convert the depot into a huge instrument. A meditative state of mind can be achieved by hovering weightlessly inside the installation and listening to the white noise. more here >>>

SPOT LIGHT (Day 03)
Within the former industrial harbour, next to a concrete plant and a corn silo, the 6 lane city highway bridges the Rhine River and connects the city of Ludwigshafen with its neighbouring city, Mannheim. Here, the elevated highway splits into six lanes for cars and trucks, two rail tracks for trams as well as two extra lanes for pedestrians and cyclists. This leads to a 55-meter canopy and a vast unused and overseen space only occupied by truckers to park their vehicles. By introducing a lightweight tent structure suspended from the elevated highway we shine a spotlight into the dark space that is surrounded by rough concrete structures. A soft mattress invites you to stop, take a break, change perspective, lay down, and grasp a different quality of the surroundings to dream about possibilities and scenarios that could be. more here >>>

CREDITS
Position - Co Founder at ANICOWORKING
Tasks - Concept + Design + Realisation
Team - Anika Neubauer + Nicolai Schlapps (ANICOWORKING)
Client - Kunstverein Ludwigshafen | Ludwigshafen | Germany
Photography - Max Stolberg

WERTstadt
– Performative Urbanität
11.9. – 21.11.2021
Curated by Diana Lucas-Drogan