An Inspirational Read

More encouraging news to end the year: Dr Susie Lingham (Writer, Artist, Educator and a respected member of our Editorial Board) has had a beautifully written essay called A Larger Reality published in the Cultural Connections Journal Vol 6. A chapter in Susie's essay features my design intent for a Park and Peace Building Facility in Mosul, Iraq for THE HALO TRUST...

War and architecture: urban park peacebuilding: Susie writes, "Architecture has indeed been an instance of the often loud projections of power and “civilization” par excellence, and not always benign in its presence and intentions. It is a specific twist that the Scottish architect Frazer Macdonald Hay focuses on—to literally transform buildings built for, or appropriated to the use of, or destroyed by war, into what he calls “ex-combatants”, or peace buildings.

…i"t is important to develop the park as an acknowledgement of the past violence without venturing down the path of memorialisation thus provoking antagonistic narratives of the victim and perpetrator. This park should be about resilience and trust-building and social cohesion whilst acknowledging its ruin and past use. By using as much of its original materials and layering the new and old construction giving the park an easily read narrative of past social positives before violence, destruction during the conflict, and a recovery built on the idea that in using the past, communities can create an even stronger, more peaceful future " (Hay 2021, 9).

Thank you, Susie your essay is an inspiring read.

Image by Frazer Hay - West Mosul Iraq 2018