‘Hill. Reenactment’ is a participatory educational and art project involving the creation of a large-scale sculptural architectural model – reproducing at a 1:500 scale the topography of the former Dealul Arsenalului from Bucharest (also known as Uranus Hill), flattened in the 1980s. The object was built in several stages, starting with a cardboard model created in 2019 (Paper Hill) and reconfigured in 2024 (Plaster Hill). In its initial form, the model was exhibited at Casa Costa-Foru (2019), then at /SAC Malmaison (2022) as a mobile puzzle in the performance ‘In 3 days the grass will grow...’ It was later transported to Beaconsfield Gallery in London (2023), where it was exhibited in ‘Past Present. Fragments of Memory’, on a mobile structure. In autumn 2024, the cardboard model was reconfigured during the Plaster Hill workshop and cast in teracotta-colour concrete fragments. These were carried through the former districts during a public performance, and later became a semi-permanent sculptural installation in front of the Museum of Contemporary Art in Bucharest.
Hill. Reenactment / making of
2019 / Paper Hill
Cardboard and paper model of the Arsenal Hill (1:500)
500 x 300 x 20 cm
Student workshop, Ion Mincu University of Architecture
and Urbanism Bucharest (UAUIM)
Workshop run by Ioana Marinescu, Thomas Goodey, Costin Gheorghe &
Cristian Văraru
A large cardboard model of the Arsenal Hill in Bucharest was made during a 4-day workshop with architecture students. The topography of the hill grew out of layers of cardboard, following rigorous contour lines. Streets cut in thick paper were laid on top, and churches made out of black paper placed in their former locations. The model was built out of 100 x 100 cm squares and several triangular pieces, resulting in an irregular hexagonal shape. It was then installed at Casa Costa-Foru, where it constituted the central display of the exhibition Everybody's Archive.
2024 / Plaster Hill
Sculptural object representing the Arsenal Hill
500 x 300 × 30 cm
Student workshop, Ion Mincu University of Architecture
and Urbanism Bucharest (UAUIM) and Studio Muze
Workshop coordination & technical support Thomas Goodey, Ioana Marinescu, Ion Molete, Lucian Călugărescu
Workshop assistants & project coordinators Smaranda Găbudeanu, Alina Grau, Iulia Mărăcine
Archival research and documentation Costin Gheorghe, Cristian Văraru (Cartierul Uranus)
Film Laurențiu Calciu
UAUIM support team Letiția Bărbuică, Melania Dulămea, Lorin Niculae, Angelica Stan
In autumn 2024, the cardboard model was reconfigured following the shape of urban “islands” during a 3-week series of workshops with architecture students. The resulting fragments were used to produce 20 moulds (negatives), into which terracotta-coloured concrete positives were cast. In this new form, the “hill” becomes a bearer of historical and collective memory, evoking both a territory erased from the map and its own process of construction.