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DEFENCE, ISOLATION, PROTECTION, CARE WALLS: A NEW PARADIGM

Lukas Olma

Abstract

Originally, walls were of structural or defensive nature and that typology hasn?t changed for millennia. It can be traced back to the evolution of the human species and the shift from nomadic to sedentary societies. Along with technological progress, society development, urban growth and other factors, new challenges were placed on walls. Today, walls are used for protection against environmental risk rather than robberies or military troops. In the paper the basic typology of walls ? the one of territorial protection against external threats and the other of keeping a population within a certain perimeter ? are illustrated with the examples of the Great Wall of China and the Berlin Wall. In terms of their defensive / over-protecting aspect, these are counterbalanced with the example of the Green Wall. All three, however, share the property of being able of affecting both local societies and large population as well as defining their surroundings in both local and territorial scale. The paper describes the development of walls as autonomous architectural structures rather than a mere architectural element. It provides a wider perspective on contemporary condition of the very concept of wall as well as their possible future. It is worth emphasising, that in the context of modern democratic country, the latter may be rooted in the absence rather than the presence.

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DOI resolver: doi.org/10.5593/sgem2018v/6.4/s10.083

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