Considering the principles behind Romanticism and its interpretations in Art Nouveau, Futurism, Organicism and Romantic Pragmatism, I decided that in this Modular project located in Canterbury, looking backward can be a step forward. As a result, the concept for the project is built around traditional timber construction found in medieval British towns and shows respect for Canterbury Cathedral . The masterplan evokes the floor plan of the cathedral with its tower, nave and apse. Moreover, the vaulted structure, as the central feature of the building, is reinterpreted and turned upside down, serving as a water harvesting machine. Thus history provides a solution to a contemporary sustainability issue, one of the goals of Romantic Pragmatists and according to Futurist principles, it embraces the environment in a dynamic way and makes the passage of time tangible. It attempts to abolish the importance of the façade and provides walk-on roofs enabling people to see Canterbury from a different perspective, as a whole composed of a myriad of architectural and natural fragments. In relation to Ayn Rand´s take on F.L. Wright´s architectural ideas, the project focuses on the honest expression of structure, both vertical and horizontal structural timber elements are made visible throughout. Circulation is demonstrated by the configuration of windows, the mass of the building and shape of the towers. These serve, in addition, as a reference to fragmented Canterbury roofscape. They provide a space for contemplation in which, according to a Romantic theory, one can look up and experience the sense of completeness and idealized world, a celebration of human achievement. Each accommodation unit is based on an octagonal grid, structurally expressed in the interior as well as creating a whole octagonal complex growing through the site in an organic way thus being independent while finding its place in a logical whole.
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