Julia Kołodziej
student
Gdańsk Technical University (Politechnika Gdańska), Faculty of Architecture, Gdańsk
Poland
Architecture
At the bottom of the Baltic Sea, particularly within the area of the Gulf of Gdańsk, lie numerous shipwrecks and significant quantities of chemical weapons… more
Jing Chen
advisor
Washington University in Saint Louis
United States of America
My architectural practice focuses on public and educational buildings, with a strong emphasis on… more
The highlight of the project, however, is its self-contained architectural system in which the structure itself turns into a dynamic environmental machine rather than a passive space. The perfect amalgamation of floating foundations, water pillars, and dynamic vertical movement in direct response to water levels and adverse sea conditions not only resonates with the projects’ prime aim of environmental remediation, but also gives the project a definitive identity in being a prototype to future marine projects rather than a conventional research laboratory.
At the same time, however, it is possible to find the weakness of the architectural language when it lays emphasis on technological expression. The systems and infrastructural needs drive the architectural language to the point where the designed form has a rigid and repetitive nature when measured at the human scale. The space created for the inhabitants of the building, especially in living, working, and public spaces, is of secondary concern when compared to the need for the building to function as a system. Adding variation and contrast could rectify the ‘machinic’ nature of the proposed building.
09.01.2026