Eirið is an inclusive hub that encourages an open and active multicultural society, modeled in a Faroese context, in which the kitchen acts as a safe space that utilizes social cooking as a medium for successful integration. By incorporating both public and intimate spaces the design proposal exists in between socio-political conditions as a response to the current immigration policy.
Visualizations
Political Context
At the moment there is no valid legislation that ensures successful integration of foreigners in The Faroe Islands, but in december 2021 the Ministry of Environment, Industry and Trade made an Integration Bill Proposal, the first one of it's kind in the Faroes. As it's a proposal, part of the motivation for the project derives from the possibility to influence the direction of the legislation through making a statement by creating spaces in the city landscape of Tórshavn as we don't agree with some parts of the Integration Bill.
Contrary to the Integration Bill proposal, the design proposal focuses on that everyone in a society has a responsobility when it comes to integration. Eirið starts doing that by modifying the urban landscape.
Rethinking the Process of Integration
There are two distinct ways in which minorities try to look and feel like the majority. These processes are called integration and assimilation. Unfortunately, these two processes are often misunderstood as being identical.
Integration is a process where the minority cultures take something in from the majority culture to become a part of the majority culture retaining their identity.
Assimilation is a process of absorbing minority communities into the ways and views of the majority community in a multicultural society.
Around the stoves, foreigners and locals can meet without cultural or social domination, they can enrich each other and forge links. By incorporating informal spaces, such as a kitchten, the vision is to use food as a cross influence to help the minority cultures to learn the Faroese language, cuisine and culture, the majority culture, and vice versa.
Spatial Arrangements
The proposal accomodates transitional zones integrating the outdoors with the indoors, the public with the intimate, initiating open accessibilty for foreigners and locals to meet. Eirið also houses other structures, such as administrative resources to ensure foreigners their rights and security, and to ensure a better meeting in the process of integration.
Elevation & Plan Drawings
Foundation, Structure and Facade, 1:100
Timber Structure Model, 1:50
Conversations from our expedition to The Faroe Islands
Food Cultures
Through the process of designing the main room of the project, the kitchen, and as the proposal should be a driver for successful integration, looking into and analysing diverse food cultures and spaces has been a priority, as a method to find inspiration for an inclusive design proposal.
Site, Context and Diagrams
Model Process & Studies
