POSSIBILITIES OF COMPASSION

Functionalism in architecture is a philosophy according to which the form of a building follows its function and social purpose. Architectural volumes are not merely aesthetic, but the result of the need for practical inhabitation. In this logic, the building becomes a “machine for living” (Le Corbusier) — a structure that addresses the problems of urbanization, optimizes resources, and offers efficient solutions through new techniques and materials. When one of these elements is missing, its usefulness diminishes and the function collapses.

Possibilities of Empathy takes functionalism as a starting point. The architecture of Cube Gallery has been carefully examined, and its inherent features — scale, proportions, geometry, gravity — dictate the conceptual solutions. The objects in the project are kinetic and appear almost “embedded” in the structure, yet their function does not follow the pragmatics of the building. Instead, they use the architecture as a stage for irrational ideas and parallel meanings. This raises the question of the value of ideas that develop beyond functional necessity, while still remaining connected to the strength of the architectural structure.

The project introduces simple kinetic mechanisms through three functional principles: gravitational action (spreading, pouring, expelling) and spatial determination (line, plane, volume). They emerge from a close study of architecture and the possibilities offered by its structural and spatial conditions. In this way, latent ideas appear as the result of a dialogue between the resources of architecture and the pursuit of empathy.