The '100 Hourmadies' area is washed by the sea. The two large beaches -east and west- are the protagonists and the majority of uses around the square are related to recreation and tourism. The multistorey hotels and the bathers wearing their swimsuits change significantly the perception of public space and call into question the term ‘urban square’. However, the layout of the palm trees and the shape of the square refer to urban archetypes, defining a monumental axis. These two characteristics are quite contradictory. On the one hand we find seven rows of umbrellas at the beach and on the other hand a very intense perspective - shaped by tree trunks - at the square. The proposal is based precisely on this contradiction, without trying to eliminate it. This was explored by combining two spatial elements with the two contradicting characteristics: [x’, y’] The surface of the square relates to the urban structure and the streets leading to the beaches, [z’] while the vertical elements, shelters, and urban equipment reinforce the axis and the monumental shape.
Architects: Thanassis Manis, Katerina Roussou, Elina Boukouri, Agapi Kyriakidou, Nikoleta Sideri. Competition, Island of Rhodes - Greece, October 2016
