Arts and Science Park, Splaiul Unirii Bd.162, Bucharest

Alexandra Müller is a results-driven and detail-oriented architect with a Master's in Architecture from UAUIM and experience in Bucharest and Brussels. She is passionate about urban acupuncture, public space, and reconversion projects. In 2023, she won 1st place for the best architecture project at the EERI Annual Seismic Design Competition in San Francisco and received an Erasmus mobility grant. Her diploma project was included in Best Diploma at UAUIM.

The project transforms the former Municipal Abattoir in Bucharest into an Arts and Sciences Park, valuing its history and addressing contemporary urban challenges. Located on the right bank of the Dâmbovița River, it proposes opening the industrial park to create a green-blue corridor connecting Tineretului Park and Văcărești Park with the river. At the urban level, the project reimagines Dâmbovița as a cultural path, linking southern Bucharest to the city center and major cultural facilities, becoming a significant point of interest in itself. The circulations are designed to facilitate access to public transport and promote slow mobility. Along the main axis, on the right, are the buildings of the Science Museum, situated on the location of the former cold rooms. The first building houses the Space and Industry-themed collection, and the second one hosts the Natural Sciences collection. Between the two is the Museum Square, designated for outdoor thematic exhibitions and events. Further back, the old refrigeration plant, one of the complex's most emblematic buildings with its cooling tower, becomes a multipurpose events hall. The old tower and its counterpart become part of the exhibition space, connected to the Natural Sciences Museum with a light scaffolding-like structure. Between them lies the Music Garden. The old halls are repurposed for various uses, including exhibition spaces, a media library, an informal school, coworking spaces for artists, and a FabLab. At the intersection of them all is the Culture Market, a covered square reusing the old bleeding hall trusses, dedicated to cultural fairs and marking the end of the main axis. Thematic public squares and gardens encourage community connection and information exchange. The Science Museum respects the composition of the old refrigeration plant. The glass facades blur boundaries, bringing nature inside. The structural system maintains an industrial appearance, reminiscent of an old hall. The project successfully proposes a park at the intersection of the natural layer (parks and river), the mineral layer (the former industrial park), and the social layer (residents and creative communities). It promotes urban permeability and connectivity, emphasizing the importance of nature in the city and providing public spaces for recreation, play, and learning, in harmony with the principle "with nature, for nature, for the user."