CODES

In this extensive series, the exploration revolves around dystopian architecture, encompassing its varied forms and degrees of complexity. This architecture serves as a symbol for crumbling utopias, fragile structures and the intricate interplay between power, space and identity.

In this extensive series, the exploration revolves around dystopian architecture, encompassing its varied forms and degrees of complexity. This architecture serves as a symbol for crumbling utopias, fragile structures and the intricate interplay between power, space and identity. It is not merely a physical structure, but also a conduit for collective memories and geopolitical narratives. The formal language of Afghan carpets, with its intricate patterns, has been instrumental in inspiring this project, as it has been translated into abstract imagery. These patterns, frequently characterised by traditional symbols, ornaments and geometries, serve as a medium between material culture and architectural imagination. On the one hand, they reflect Afghanistan's cultural heritage and on the other, they are deconstructed, rearranged and interwoven with contemporary elements.

The colour blue plays an essential role and refers to the deep blue lapis lazuli that has been mined in the mountains of Afghanistan for centuries. This precious stone, once highly prized by ancient civilisations, symbolises not only affluence and history, but also geopolitical conflicts and the exploitation of resources. In this series, the colour blue functions as a unifying visual element, connecting natural raw materials, cultural identity and the architecture of a dystopian world. The interweaving of these elements gives rise to a series of images that challenge the conventional boundaries between ornament, structure and ideology. The resulting images provoke contemplation on subjects including permanence and transience, cultural appropriation and transformation, and the notion of architecture as a carrier of multi-layered narratives.