Abstract
During the 16th Architecture Days event in Piran, Ursa Komac and Spela Kuhar were awarded the major Piranesi Prize for the stopping points on a bicycle path through the Slovene Karst. The idea of creating a cycle path was supported by the Phare - Programme, which is financed by the European Union. The Slovenian Ministry for the Environment and Environmental Development set up a competition the primary condition of which was that the project to design a bicycle path network in the area of the planned Karst Nature Park should be realised within a year. After Ursa Komac and Spela Kuhar won first prize this natural landscape, 1500 square kilometres in extent, was penetrated by a network of unasphalted routes. Along their paths there are 13 stopping points which were first selected after the architects themselves had explored the region on bikes. In this way they got to know the particular qualities of the area and those characteristics of the local culture and landscape which they wished to bring to the attention of future visitors. The locations of the stopping points are marked by the events of recent history typical of a border zone but also by geology and prehistory and are conceived of as elements in total project aimed at developing a more conscious understanding of the Karst area. These points were also selected on the basis of the quality of the routes leading to them and of their horizontal and vertical distance. In laying out the paths the degree of difficulty of the various stretches of the network was also taken into account.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 82-87 |
Number of pages | 6 |
Journal | Architektur Aktuell: The art of building |
Volume | 3 |
Issue number | 236 |
Publication status | Published - 1999 |