Bucharest suffered politically and urbanistically in the cold war era. A difficult goal of this competition was to reconcile the neighborhood-razing boulevards and colassal mega structures of Ceausescu with the city's new goals and identity. Still in 2016, the historic city center is on the World Monuments Watch 'endangered' list.
Our approach was to invent a city mythology describing growth from the river crossroad trading post to the development of decentralized neighborhoods around cultural landmarks to the critical restructuring of devastating megalomania.
My favorite intervention is the new Wall of Reflection, a 23 story 250 meter long blank (hotel) wall terminating Ceausescu's grand boulevard and hiding his governmental palace. The critique of axial planning and public placemaking were themes we would return to again and again.
