Restauration and Info Center, Drapers’ Bastion, Brasov

Brasov is one of the Transylvanian cities built in the Middle Ages by German colonists. Most of its fortifications were demolished due to developments in the 19th-20th century. The Drapers Bastion is part of this fortification system. Having been abandoned, fragile elements - covers, sentinel walks and staircases - vanished completely, leaving just the circular wall. During excavations remains of older walls were found.

We proposed to accommodate the information center in an interior tower that stands independently and does not affect the structure or the exterior image of the bastion. The new tower (158sqm)starts in the basement with a minimal footprint. It allows the inner perception of the bastion along its full height and gives access to the rebuilt sentinel walks. The shape of the new object, the disposition and the size of its gaps are conditioned by the position of the shooting holes of the historical building. The interior tower is autonomous, but not independent; it allows visitors to explore the bastion and get intermediated glances at the city; the new tower makes sense through the presence of the bastion that surrounds it.

The aim was a structure as light and reversible as possible. Except the concrete foundation, the whole structure can be dismantled and reused, allowing future interventions over the bastion. The 75x300 cm Cor Ten steel panels do not only close the building up, but also brace the metallic frame. The project acknowledges the fact that the bastion was planned, built and used for fighting. The visual, audio and physical experience of the corroded surface reveals the initial tension of the place. The new tower does not fill up the old one, becoming instead a mechanism for exploration. A new space layer can be seen both as an interior and an exterior place.