Archinect - News

Istanbul’s introverted megaspaces

2015-06-18T23:42:00-04:00

A new typology of XL-architecture is emerging in Istanbul, negating the urban context. These ‘Citadels-on-Steroids’ rapidly encroach on the city’s urban fabric. [...] This might very well be the future of all cities. As city walls and state boundaries erode under late capitalism, the walls are only rebuilt at a smaller scale to maintain immunity from the chaos outside.

The Life and Death of an Impossible City

2014-08-13T17:38:00-04:00

City of Darkness Revisited is a photo book and cultural history of Kowloon Walled City, a largely ungoverned, densely populated enclave within Hong Kong.[...] It was like nothing else in Hong Kong: a mass of interconnected 12- and 14-story buildings forming a single huge structure, its facade glowing from the light of hundreds of apartments and shops. Clearly there was no administrative oversight. It was too dense, too ad-hoc, too unrestrained. All this was clear before even entering the place.

A recent Kickstarter campaign helped photographers Greg Girard and Ian Lambot fund and complete the new edition of their book, City of Darkness Revisited, about life in Hong Kong's legendary Kowloon Walled City.

WSJ's beautifully crafted story of the Kowloon Walled City

2014-04-28T19:31:00-04:00

Hong Kong's Kowloon Walled City was the densest place on the planet before it was torn down 20 years ago. In this Wall Street Journal interactive, you can take a trip through the city, explore its history and hear from the people who lived there.

The WSJ has developed an impressive rich-media piece on the Kowloon Walled City using photography, video, audio, text and interactive features to tell the stories of the history, environment and inhabitants.

Kowloon City as (perverse?) Amusement Park in Japan

2013-09-17T12:19:00-04:00

After a 5 minute walk from Kawasaki Station (川崎駅) it was easy to spot the amusement complex from its faux rusted exterior sticking out like a sore thumb between standard Japanese tower blocks. Note that it’s over 18′s only! Entering through the sliding doors you find yourself in a red anti-chamber which looks like something out of Half-Life. Proceeding through the hissing door you’re immediately immersed in a dark and dingy alleyway constructed with the look and feel of the original Kowloon Walled City – grimy, devoid of sunlight and complete with a soundtrack to match. Even the city’s reputation as a den of iniquity for prostitution, gambling, and drugs has been recreated!

Lahore authorities battle to restore splendour of ancient Walled City

2013-06-04T17:19:00-04:00

The Walled City's gardens and squares are now obscured by illegal shops and businesses, the skyline cluttered by unplanned tenements and bundles of cables. For many of the 200,000 inhabitants crammed into these 4sq km, a fraction of Lahore's 7m population, drinking water is a rarity. But last month the new Walled City of Lahore Authority met for the first time. The body oversees the ambitious plan to restore the past glory of the city's oldest neighbourhood.

Kowloon Walled City: Life in the City of Darkness

2013-04-18T15:57:00-04:00

Kowloon Walled City, located not far from the former Kai Tak Airport, was a remarkable high-rise squatter camp that by the 1980s had 50,000 residents. A historical accident of colonial Hong Kong, it existed in a lawless vacuum until it became an embarrassment for Britain. This month marks the 20th anniversary of its demolition.