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A current research project + an upcoming visit to the #Acropolis have got me thinking about #access, ramps, & paths in #Athens
Although the city's design + hills often push our gaze up to lofty monuments or out to distant vistas, there are plenty of reasons to look down
Although the city's design + hills often push our gaze up to lofty monuments or out to distant vistas, there are plenty of reasons to look down
Although the tricky topography of #Athens is something that influences both my scholarship + everyday life, I was drawn to think again about issue by a recent article by @debscavator in @AntiquityJ on the use of #ramps in ancient #Greek healing sanctuaries https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/antiquity/article/architecture-of-access-ramps-at-ancient-greek-healing-sanctuaries/3C28B200442E222601E3034170F275A6
Sneed argues that "Even without a framework of civil rights... the builders of these sites made architectural choices that enabled individuals with impaired mobility to access these spaces."
This included the Tholos at #Epidauros, reconstructed here
#disability #architecture
This included the Tholos at #Epidauros, reconstructed here
#disability #architecture
This is also an issue explored by @davidgissen who has thoughtfully written about "one of the most famous walks in the history of architecture" ie, the modern path to the summit of the Acropolis. He compares this approach to the ancient access ramp here: https://www.academia.edu/35559079/The_Path_to_the_Acropolis_A_Reconstruction_Log_journal_
"like the paint discovered in the late 18th century to be an integral aspect of the Acropolis's white marble construction, the ramp challenges the meaning of the walk to the top of the Acropolis and its role in the history of #architecture" - @davidgissen
today's visitors will experience a different ascent, including the #midcentury marble path around the Acropolis + Philapoppou hill
Dimitris Pikionis' remarkable pathway design covers 80,000 m² + incorporates reused neoclassical marble elements ( #spolia?) https://www.greece-is.com/dimitris-pikionis-the-man-who-shaped-the-acropolis-landscape/
Dimitris Pikionis' remarkable pathway design covers 80,000 m² + incorporates reused neoclassical marble elements ( #spolia?) https://www.greece-is.com/dimitris-pikionis-the-man-who-shaped-the-acropolis-landscape/
I learned in this helpful essay by @KMalawski that Pikonis was friends with de Chirico + the whimsical concrete segments of his pathway were inspired by Paul #klee.
Anyone who runs in #Athens will also know these as the least-slippery part of the path!
https://archleague.org/article/pikionis-pathway-paving-acropolis/
Anyone who runs in #Athens will also know these as the least-slippery part of the path!
https://archleague.org/article/pikionis-pathway-paving-acropolis/
When thinking about how to make the monuments of #Athens more #accessible to residents + visitors, it is interesting to consider how previous inhabitants addressed the same challenges.
How can we recognize, preserve, & build upon their solutions?
#Greece #Disability #design
How can we recognize, preserve, & build upon their solutions?
#Greece #Disability #design
