Reformation of Nikis Square
Architectural Competition
Location: Kozani Greece
Architect: Konstantin Thorvald Barlas
Team: Sofia Miranda Papageorgiou
Client: Municipality of Kozani
Design date: 2010
The steeple of the cathedral of Kozani, a significant monument for the city, features a tower that with a clock which has to be prominent in the square. As basic design principle, we chose to imprint the shadow that the bell casts on the square. The shadow lines of every hour, every first of the month and the days of the summer and winter solstice, were selected to form the basic trajectories of the design.The existing height difference around the square is moved to the edges creating stands and a flat surface on the centre. The stands ‘follow’ the shadow lines of the steeple and aredesigned in a way that allows access to the square and use from both sides. Another important element of the design concept was the planting areas and the existence of green in the square. These areas were chosen by using a diagram which depicted the most shades spots during the year, combined with an orthonormal grid. In any case, the basic criterion for this selection, was the non-blocking of the functions that thesquare has to accommodate, and the free movement inside the square. The result was the creation of a ‘mosaic of green’.