Am stein. an intervention for enhancing the tourism in the alpine region

Abstract

"[...] the qualities we inherited from the past can become a discipline for change today. [...] A town´s past, its present and its future must combine to create a recognizable unit, so that its growth can be seen [...]."

Due to the growing societal trends, change becomes a desire to fulfill the demands of the society in order to maintain a towns unique character. Therefore, the objective of this paper is to describe how and why an architectural intervention is chosen to enhance the towns competitive differentiation and how to create a unique experience through design that contributes to a dialogue between culture and nature.

Moreover, the decision-making process is explored through observations and investigations, in addition to interviews with professionals and non-professionals, as the basis for reframing the place through design. Additionally, the paper also presents a case study describing the integration in the Austrian town, Ramsau am Dachstein, by exemplifying the conditions under which the design is chosen, the requirements it must fulfill and the influence of Alpine tourism development regulations.

This case study reveals two approaches for implementing an architectural intervention, since functionality aspects and business-driven ideologies become increasingly important in tourism, whilst design aims to involve design-driven solutions and user-experiences. This is why by no means, this paper aims to contribute a statement on the importance of the collaboration between tourism and design.

The project is driven by a vision of an ideal environment and was born as part of the implementation of a new tourism development concept, which in turn led to a new concept of design. However, the study focuses on conceptualizing an architectural intervention, which carries a solution proposal to support the corporate identity of the town. It is believed, that a balance between the two oppositional perceptions of tourism and design can only be achieved by directing the future in a way based on the individual character of the town. In other words, in this environment, "design can be integrated to a certain extent as long as it suits the concept of tourism."