Colectivo Zero
Design proposal for the Jasper quarry Site Mausoleum competition, organized by ArkxSite.
Site Mausoleum, an architecture ideas competition promoted by ARKXSITE, aimed to create a place of memory and solitude, a tranquil atmosphere for introspection and remembrance located in the Jaspe Quarry, Serra da Arrábida, Portugal.
Known for its dense vegetation and geological formation, Serra da Arrábida is a place of natural beauty. Towards the sea, two quarries carve the landscape, showing the reddish jaspe stone to the green and blue surroundings. It’s in this balance that the mausoleum takes place, between sky and sea.
As if floating just above the cliffs, the mausoleum rests along the length of the quarries, in a simple line that evokes the weight of stone. This pathway, enclosed by high walls, guides the visitor through the mausoleum. The memory room, at the center of the pathway, highlights the first quarry. Here, a theatre sets the stage for remembrance, appreciating the monumentality of the sectioned stone. Along the steps, one can meet the stone, slow down and introspect in silence.
The second quarry, almost in secrecy, is observed around the corner, at the end of the line. Whereas in the first one could almost touch it, the second, left as if untouched, is overlooked from afar, among the vegetation.
The mausoleum concludes extending into the open ocean. The visitor is presented with an intimate space, framed by immense blues of sky and sea, the silence of nature, and himself.
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