1 WEEK
The city -
Valga is a boarder city in the south of Estonia, a twin-town together with the Latvian city called Valka. Valga was divided in the year 1920 and ever since sharing an identity of two cultures colliding. Valga has been an important industrial center and back in the day a vastly developing area for its railroad connections. Nowadays, however, rural areas, small towns and cities further from the centers, including Valga-Valka, are emptying and shrinking against the background of accelerating urbanization. The architecture residency VARES has been welcomed by the city to liven its community, bringing new perspectives by building an international platform for spatial practitioners to work and collaborate in.
The streets -
..are quiet and calm. Some buildings applaud in the striking summer beams, some are tired looking. They’ve been there for too long and out of touch with care and attention, but Valga doesn’t seem careless, rather than running empty on inhabitants or resources. It feels like a forgotten romance. However, there is something refreshing and inspiring to the streets of Valga - the unintentional and spontaneous creativity that forms for the mixture of repair and decay.
Within our house -
The first week was about adapting and grounding- arranging oneself into a new living situation with fellow residents. We are many in the house, all gathered to express themselves by building something - physical or theoretical. Naturally, the common spaces, like our kitchen and our courtyard are meeting places for taking a pause or working quietly, having a casual chat or filling the belly. We share a lot, which is beautiful. It seems like many things around are blooming.
