Metallurgical Remains — juliatwardzisz

about architectural exploratory photographic written

Metallurgical Remains
Adapting the post-industrial ladscape of Ravenscraig
in collaboration with: Natalie Ng + Tom Crenian + Harith Hashim

Once dominated by steel production, Ravenscraig became the starting point for an investigation into the ecological and social afterlives of industrial landscapes. Metallurgical remains explors the tensions between environmental degradation, post-industrial regeneration, and the possibilities for new forms of human and non-human coexistence.

Through site analysis, borehole soil investigations, and the study of overlapping territorial grids, the project considered how strategies of conservation, patching, and habitat integration might reshape a fragile landscape. Developed collaboratively, the work approached regeneration not as a clean slate, but as an engagement with the site's existing environmental conditions and social complexities.

The planned future of Ravenscraig

The new masterplan of the Ravenscraig site development has been criticized for several reasons. Our main concerns have been those connected to excessive zoning that prioritizes commercial spaces over community amenities, creating a disjointed urban environment, high dependence on vehicles due to limited public transportation, and the erasure of the post-industrial beauty that once characterized the site.

The rigid allocation of functions overlooks the complex relationships between Ravenscraig’s industrial remains,
ecological systems and accumulated social history. Rather than recognising these as assets in their own right, the plan risks treating them as constraints to be managed around new development. The emphasis on new construction raises questions about what is retained, what is erased and whose definition of progress determines the outcome. The site’s post-industrial landscape holds material, ecological and cultural value that cannot simply be replaced by new residential and commercial provision.

Key critiques of the proposed masterplan:

excessive zoning

high vehicle dependence

erasure of post-industrial nature

Site analysis

Site visit

Several natual elements were collected from site. The reasons for that were twofold: firstly to gain a better understanding of the organisms and habitats present in post-industrial wilderness, secondly to attempt to create an self-sufficient ecosystem resemblant to those in Ravenscraig.

Both aims were accomplished. The various organisms kept in the jars flourished within them for the duration of our project. They ended up being a crucial element of our final exhibition - tying in our project proposal with what was already there before human intervention.

Site changes over time

Soil analysis

Our environmental analysis developed from observations and material gathered during our site visit, which we further investigated through existing soil surveys, borehole records and trial-pit data. Rather than treating soil contamination as an isolated technical constraint, we used this research to understand the site’s industrial legacy and identify the conditions already shaping its landscape.

The sections showed differences in soil composition and highlighted areas of contamination. This helped us understand the site's condition and consider how it could influence future remediation and design decisions.

1:2000 XL site intervention model

Soil contamination + site-specific intervention models

Model making process | human scale

connect !