The borders between countries are defined with elements of nature or man-made barriers. Borders are also places of transition. They are dynamic places that could create brand new, ever-changing landscapes. A border is not the point at which something comes to an end, but the place in which something begins. It is indeed a means of separation, but at the same time it is the area where the two sides of the borderline meet each other. The borders can be seen as human traces. That is a very necessary approach, since humanity has been using them for centuries to keep everything in order

There are 45 lakes all around the world, laying as natural borders between countries. The "Eight episodes on the borderline" are created on the neutral zone of the borderline between Greece and North Macedonia. That zone comes through lake Doiran. At this specific area the project created an axis of eight different functions. Those functions together create a bigger picture. Following the traces of the actual borderline, from north to south, it meets consecutively those settings, one after the other: Τhe "Schedia" (a floating platform) – within the lake – The Observatories – on the coastline –, Τhe Stadium, Τhe Dining Table, The Station, The Forum, The Stage and finally The Yard. Each one of those functions is an independent terra. All of them, acting as a group, form the bigger picture. They are all connected with paths and lanes, but on a higher level, they are linked with the common cause that created them on the first place.

The project "Eight episodes on the borderline" has been developed at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.

KOOZ What prompted the project?

MK | AP | NP The "Eight episodes on the borderline" is the outcome of a thorough research on the concepts of the limit, the demarcation line and the borderline between nations. That was the result of our initial desire to observe the countryside and the concept behind it.

We realised that the borderlines along river branches or mountain ridges should not be considered "natural". The terrain and the river banks could apply all kinds of forces and affect the environment in many ways, but on the other hand the concept of borders is just an official title that could be given as part of a bureaucratic process. Therefore, it is only a decision that establishes a limit, while enabling both sides to bond and form a community.

A lake lying among two countries could be a special case study concerning the above. As a matter of fact, that was a concept that challenged us in a creative way.

KOOZ What questions does the project raise and which does it address?

MK | AP | NPCrossing the borders entails taking the risk of an adventure in a foreign place. It also means confronting a whole new horizon, being stunned and surprised by new faces and people you meet, finding yourself in a situation that you lack of shelter or identity, or even challenging your own identity.

These realizations could also be taken as questions. Those questions trouble many people who are looking for a deeper and more meaningful communication between bordering nations. Our project is addressed to those who are brave enough to pursue their own experiences and share them with the world.

KOOZ How important is it to explore the notion and potential of borders today?

MK | AP | NPIt is crucial to be concerned about the management of the borders, as well as their capabilities. First of all, looking for the right direction could protect a community from isolation and confinement, as well as from losing their identity.

Meanwhile, there are many examples of challenges which are not contained within a country's borders, the most recent one being the covid-19 pandemic. These problems can only be dealt with by transnational efforts.

KOOZ What references informed your approach to this notion and the project itself?

MK | AP | NPIn order to make the choice to design on the neutral zone between two nations - a place with vivid political and social significance - it was crucial to treat architecture as a form of creativity, not exclusively concerning spatial matters, but thinking outside the box. Literary, artistic and cinematic works, philosophical essays and historical facts formed our design.

For instance, we took Christian Philipp Müller's case as a reference. In 1993 he illegally crossed the natural borders between Austria and eight other countries. He described in detail and photographed his venture. During one of his illegal crossings, he was arrested and convicted.

KOOZ What defined the choice of eight different episodes through which the project is articulated?

MK | AP | NPThe "Eight Episodes" were created to accommodate activities which benefit the communication, sharing and exchange amongst people.

Let's take The Stadium as an example. Athletics throughout the ages have been connected to physical and mental health, but also the cultivation of social merits such as teamwork, cooperation, emulation, reconciliation. Let us remember the spontaneous truce - on Christmas Eve of 1914 - during which the opponents threw a football match in the neutral zone between the trenches of the battlefield.

KOOZ How do these operate singularly and as a network?

MK | AP | NPEach one of the "Eight Episodes" constitutes an independent territory, which has all the needed design and equipment to operate autonomously and serve the activities for which it was intended. Therefore, only one episode alone could be built in the neutral zone between bordering countries.

However, we chose the formation of a network consisting of such facilities. It is the formation of a more complex experience: a path. A path along the borderline which can be followed or crossed. It is shared between the people who use it. Its constant use helps preserve it; without it the path would disappear.

KOOZ How does the project approach architecture and its role within society and larger political and social forces?

MK | AP | NPAs our tutor suggested, there are two ways to create an architecture project. The first one resembles a political map, which is formed by strictly defined and impermeable surfaces of color. The second way resembles a weather map in which the colors are mixed with each other. In these maps, there are color emission cores which form changing zones. When architecture takes the second approach, its social and political role is much more efficient, seeing that societies and socio-political forces are, in a similar way, always changing.

KOOZ What is for you the architect’ s most important tool?

MK | AP | NPThe "Eight episodes on the borderline" constitute a series of functions and events which act as a transformation factor of a challenging condition. The project is not built on an already acquired relationship of deep communication. It is an attempt to form the necessary premises in order for a friendship to be formed.

In general, this is what architecture should use as a tool and always strive to achieve; not designing spaces addressed to an imaginary, already-happy world, but spaces which aim to make people happier.