Bergen Arkitekthogskole

Place: Bergen, Norway
Students: Siri Myredal Ludvigsen and Liv Marit Dønnem Søyseth
Tutors: APP Espen Folgerø, DAV Eva Kun 

This is the story about three abandoned military landscapes - an airport built by the Germans during the Second World War on the island of Herdla, an air-raid shelter underneath the city of Bergen, and an old fortress once guarding the city`s harbour - each a part of the history of war. Together they are representatives of a larger phenomenon of military landscapes whose value is floating between worthless waste and valuable collective memory. Rethinking the future of these landscapes implies to transcend of the historical value and make visible the potential of these leftover spaces. 

But first, another tale. Walking upon a path you come across a riddle. Once, there was something made to withstand the fire of enemies, something strong and powerful, built to be invincible. But the enemies are gone, and its powers are crumbling. Grass and moss covers its vanishing muscles and birds are nesting where canons used to be. The riddle lies not in what it once was, but in what it might become. 

All photographs: Pål Hoff