MUDD student projects

exhibits

1999-2000 BEIRUT
 - The Martyrs' Square Project

Master Plan Option 1

Introduction

Beirut, Lebanon's largest city and its capital, is situated on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea between Israel and Turkey.

'Martyrs' Square' took its name from the site where 39 Lebanese intellectuals were publicly executed during the Ottoman occupation. It was also the location traversed by the 'the Green Line' separating the Christian and Muslim religions during the civil war. Martyrs' Square is therefore the most symbolically important space in the Lebanon, a space which simultaneously represents war and peace, death and resurrection, despair and hope. It is also the gateway to the city from the Mediterranean, and in the adjacent urban fabric, the visible relics of ten layers of history sit in judgment on the present.

The site therefore contained virtually every problem facing urban designers, from the moral dilemmas of social justice to the complex debates surrounding concepts of authenticity and symbolism.

BEIRUT CENTRAL DISTRICT (BCD)

The BCD with its historical, cultural, and physical attributes is of great importance to the city. It was extensively damaged by the Lebanese Civil War that spanned from 1975 to 1990. The Martyrs' Square project is considered the most important site for the Lebanese people both historically and culturally since the Ottoman times as a space for public meeting, representing political power and recently as a venue for culture, business, entertainment.

The Project Aim was to propose a design for Martyrs' Square to reflect and symbolize its past, yet confidently move Lebanon towards a prosperous future.

DESIGN OBJECTIVES