Supervisor:
Martin Brandsdal
Sirens of Sauda is a Norwegian Scenic Route project that directly deals with the Norwegian small-town’s dwindling urban center. The free-to-use premise of The Scenic Route project is bridged with a potential to regenerate public spaces and social life by providing subtle leisure for both visitors and locals. The proposal draws a path through the urban landscape of Sauda, utilizing local stakeholders, infrastructure, myths and legends as a way to expand upon and strengthen existing local history, as well as anchoring the project in the complexity of Sauda’s urban life.
Instead of framing the landscape as a frozen relic, Sirens of Sauda aims to blend in, treating its surroundings as scenery in constant redevelopment. Visitors are invited to become a stitch in the social fabric for the duration of their stay, making their presence visible.
‘Smeltedigelen’ - Hot spring and botanical garden
‘Sauda Sogelag HQ’ - Gallery and office space
‘Bar Calypso’ - Bar and public park
Sirens of Sauda is a series of five leisure buildings situated along ‘Rådhusgata’ in Sauda where it latches on to the Ryfylke Scenic Route at the end of ‘Rådhusplassen’. All projects are connected through district heating pipes serving surplus heat as well as electricity from the factory. Small extensions are made to the already existing pipe grid to highlight entrances, heat rooms and pool -water and melt snow. The projects are therefore not only connected by their placement along Rådhusgata but also by their shared use of free heat and electricity as a tool for space and experiences. The heated pipelines reintroduce the old country road that once went from the docks to the church.
Section of heating pipe grid
“A bulk carrier with a crew of 26 sailors, hauling raw ferro-mangan, leaves Port Elizabeth at around 14:20 in the afternoon headed for Sauda, Norway. After a nearly two month long journey, the bulk carrier ‘Cape Town Eagle’ Arrives early through a foggy morning at the end of January. Its arrival sets in motion a large apparatus of crane operators, furnace operators, shovel-men, forklifts, excavators and engineers waiting at the factory docks. Its crew of 26 people are one of the few visitors Sauda gets this time of year and an important sign that the factory is still in operation. Meanwhile, the front doors are unlocked in the newly erected Sauna and Bar Calypso. Situated on the other side of a small bridge crossing the narrow river to the factory, the bar, serving locally brewed ‘Grand Manila’ on tap and Stellenbosch wine, hope to lure the crew of 26 sailors and local residents in for the evening...”
Diving tower and Sauna
Contact
Ask Olsson Aabø / askaabo@gmail.com / 47865690
Carl Daniel Romm / cdanielromm@gmail.com / 95416166