Concrete Cycles

Designing Matter, Energy and sustainability, Essay, No Density

Adaptive reuse, Architecture, Assembly, Building, Carbon-emissions, Circular economy, Concrete, Construction, Controlled demolition, Design strategies, Essay, Installation, Lisbon, Materials, Portugal, Prefabrication, Recycling, Sustainability, Waste management

One of the videos shown as part of an installation for the Cycles exhibition at the 2022 Lisbon Architecture Triennale is somehow both compelling and awkward to watch at the same time. In contrast to the often fast-paced, violent spectacle of watching a building being demolished by a wrecking ball, here, the building is being slowly, painstakingly ‘disassembled’. With the help of a power crane, heavy concrete slabs are gingerly picked up by enormous tongs, reminiscent of the carnival game where one tries to capture a chosen toy using mechanical claws.