A {tag:studenci} from the Gdansk University of Technology has decided to focus on the spatial ordering of Wdzydze, a small village located in Kashubia. She developed a series of urban and architectural guidelines to help achieve this goal, particularly focusing on one of the plots of land in the center of the village. It is there that she designed the Minimalism Center, an implementation of the philosophy of minimalism.
Joanna Szulfer's project titled Minimalism Center in Wdzydze - the impact of high tourist attractiveness on small towns in Kashubia is her master's thesis under the supervision of Dr. Małgorzata Skrzypek-Lachińska.
The Minimalism Center consists of seven buildings
© Joanna Szulfer
growing popularity of villages and its effects
In recent years one can observe the growing popularity of the countryside as a tourist destination. This phenomenon brings with it both positive and negative effects, which leave their mark on, among other things, the visual character of the countryside. Such an example is Wdzydze - a small village located in Kashubia in a picturesque setting of lakes and forests. Known for its rich history and cultural heritage tradition, associated, among other things, with the object of the Museum - the Kashubian Ethnographic Park named after Teodora and Izydor Gulgowski.
The author conducted a thorough urban analysis of Wdzydz
© Joanna Szulfer
Lack of appropriate plans and guidelines caused the village to begin a process of spatial degradation. However, rural tourism carried out in a sustainable and holistic way can have a salutary effect on, among other things, the problem of "dying out" of the village. Therefore, it was extremely important to create a physical record of urban-architectural guidelines for Wdzydze, which will contribute to its positive development, says the project's author.
view of the designed complex from the water side
© Joanna Szulfer
new urban planning solutions
As the main urban planning assumption of the concept, the architect proposed an over-water footbridge connecting the observation tower with the PTTK (Polish Tourist Country-Lovers' Association) state-run hotel with the Museum area located at the other end of the village. She also designed descents to the water (currently possible only in a few places) and a green, multifunctional parking lot at the entrance to the village. Such a concept supports the project to turn off car traffic in the village center.
New urban planning solutions for Wdzydze
© Joanna Szulfer
The new master plan also assumes the undoing of unfavorable parcel divisions and indicates the direction of development for specific plots of land. Importantly, all the urban planning guidelines focus on preserving the original character of the village - its unique relationship with history, Kashubian tradition and nature.
Minimalism Center buildings are inspired by traditional Kashubian architecture
© Joanna Szulfer
Minimalism Center
The author focused on the detailed solution of a plot of land located in the heart of the village allocating it for the construction of the Minimalism Center. It was to be a complex conducive to tranquility and getting to know one's inner self. The premise consists of seven, small buildings that are in mutual correlation. Each of the proposed buildings has a separate function. They include: lobby building, hotel building, restaurant building, meditation building, saunas, swimming pool and utility building.
Each of the proposed seven buildings has a different function
© Joanna Szulfer
Important to the character of the proposed architecture was the analysis and subsequent use of traditional Kashubian construction in the design, so the form of the buildings and their location on the plot is a play on historical assumptions - for example, the form of the arcades, or a variation on the central chimney shaft, visible as arched walls growing out of the buildings, explains Joanna Szulfer.
pool building kept in white
© Joanna Szulfer
The entire premise of the Minimalism Center is built on the principle of contrasting black and white, the traditional color combinations associated with minimalism.
black lobby building
© Joanna Szulfer
The project received the Award of the Dean of the Faculty of Architecture at the Gdansk University of Technology for the diploma made in the Architecture Department, a Distinction from SARP Wybrzeże Branch, and was among twenty-five finalists in the nationwide competition for the SARP Annual Zbyszek Zawistowski DYPLOM ROKU Award.
The subject of the growing popularity of the countryside was also raised by Paulina Wilde from Opole University of Technology, designing an agritourism farm in the town of Pogórze.
