Karlovo Living Landscape
Project
Competition, Living Landscape
Location
Banská Bystrica, Slovakya
Year
2026
Designers
İnci Shoainia, Emil Shoainia
Project name
CONNECTED RIDGES LOOP
Degree
Honorable Mention
The project proposes a settlement approach based on listening to the land, rather than transforming it. In this model, where the slope is considered not an obstacle but a guide shaping the rhythm, movement, and encounters of life, the topography is preserved and enhanced. While natural elevations are accepted as the main reference, only limited interventions are made to accommodate the necessary road geometry. This approach aims to establish a balanced relationship between natural form and public accessibility.
Connected Ridges Loop accepts topography as the main element defining the settlement organization. “Living ridges” following natural curves and a green-water network connecting these ridges across valleys create a fragmented but continuous system of public spaces. Pedestrian routes along these spines provide uninterrupted circulation at different elevations, while small squares, resting areas, and transitional gardens enrich daily life. Thus, instead of being concentrated in a single center, public life becomes an experience that spreads throughout the entire settlement.
SPATIAL ARCHITECTURE
The broken diagonal axis, which forms the main backbone of the project, is considered not only as a circulation line but also as a system that produces space. Movement along this axis gains rhythm through moments of compression and expansion, evolving from harsh urban surfaces towards more permeable and open spaces. Within this arrangement, the user not only moves from one point to another but also perceives and experiences the space as a transitional experience.
BUILDING AND PLACE RELATIONSHIP
The gym structure is positioned at the threshold between urban density and landscape openness, acting as an interface connecting two different spatial situations. While defining a distinct urban boundary to the north, it establishes a permeable relationship by opening up to the landscape to the south. In this approach, the structure ceases to be an independent object; it transforms into an active component that directs movement, frames views, and ensures spatial continuity through its relationship with the ground.
PROGRAM AND GROUND STRATEGY
The program elements are conceived as nodes located along the diagonal spine. While the north features more intense and defined activities, the program in the south integrates with the landscape. In this process, the ground becomes the fundamental material of the project; hard surfaces evolve into semi-permeable textures, and then into natural landscapes, physically conveying the continuity between city and nature.
