Authors: Alexander Popadin, culture expert

Danila Kotov, architect

Katerina Cherevko, artist

Dmitry Ponomareff, writer and composer

Prolegomena to the Philosophical Park on Kant Island (Kneiphof) and a development scenario for the new Main building of the Kant Museum v.2.0 (extracts)

The concept is the development and the follow-up of the “Cultural, architectural and spatial pre-concept of the museum and landscape complex v. 1.0 “Kant Museum of the 21st century and the Philosophical Park on Kneiphof Island” that has been developed on the instruction of the Kaliningrad Region Government and on the order of the non-profit partnership Urban Planning Bureau “Heart of the City” in December 2013. (please see http://www.tuwangste.ru/en/objects/kontseptsiya-muzeya-i-kanta-21-veka)

SECTION A Philosophical park on Kneiphof Island Extract from the Introductory Section by

Alexander Popadin

Philosophical Park on Kneiphof Island:

first options and approaches

Introduction: two experiences of philosophy and a park Conventionally speaking, there are only two philosophical parks in the world today. The first one is known almost to

anyone: this is Ryoanji Temple Stone Garden in Kyoto (Japan). The garden has fifteen uncut stones at first sight randomly

scattered on the relatively small sanded ground area (30x10 m).The ground area is surrounded by the veranda with

benches for visitors.

Some of them spend hours meditating in this garden. The garden is a national pride for Japan; it is annually visited by

crowds of people, including those who can be hardly classified as intellectuals1.

The garden is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Another philosophical park is almost unknown. In 2000, on Capri Island, it was founded by a Swede who left Sweden because of his frustrated

academic career. The park is a plot of 11 000 sq m rough terrain divided into three provisional zones: “materialism”, “idealism” and “wisdom”.

The picturesque natural landscape is complemented by alleys and tablets with relevant thematic quotations from the great thinkers and

philosophers.

The park is a nice but not a-must-see attraction for holiday-makers from hotels and sanatoria of the island of Capri and it does not have a

chance to become someone else’s pride except for its founders.

All other parks of the world appear to be different variations of landscape design primarily related to aesthetic experience and cannot be

literally defined as “philosophical”.

Proceeding to the reflections and conceptual design of the Philosophical Park on Kant Island (Kneiphof) it will be useful to take into account

the example of the parks described above in order avoid any resemblance.

Problem statement

Localization

Tsentralny Island (Kant Island, Kneiphof in Kaliningrad (Russia)

Subject-matter

A Philosophical Park should stimulate, inspire and induce philosophical questioning (i.e. it should be a place where philosophizing is evoked beyond the boundaries of philosophy

(Alexander Pyatigorsky).

Territory

The area of green spaces and alleys is 10 h

1 Nevertheless the park is conventionally called a “Garden stone” and its philosophical nature stems not from the subject of demonstration/declaration but from “the way of consumption” by human consciousness: from

whatever vantage point, one of the fifteen stones is always obscured by other stones from the line of sight. Viewers are supposed to contemplate both “visible” and “invisible” things.

SECTION A Philosophical park on Kneiphof Island *Extract from the essay by Dmitry Ponomareff, translated by author.

June 9, 2014

Towards a Philosophical Park* 1. Philosophical asking and aesthetic contemplation – two start points for philosophical park concept

Great oak trees and lovely spots in a sacred grove are sublime.

Beds of flowers, low hedges and trees trimmed

into shape are beautiful.

Immanuel Kant ( THE SENSE OF THE BEAUTIFUL

AND OF THE SUBLIME (1764)

The ways of philosophy and art crossed each other for ages but in spite of polyhedral surface of mutual touch we still distinguish both concepts and practices as two

different and independent spheres of social realization. And although a lot of attempts philosophers had at research fields of art creating a theoretical synthesis of

artistic experience within more wide system of abstract knowledge were enough helpful for art and brought some benefit in development of formal logic we hardly

could say the same viсe versa keeping in mind that works of art are products of another language and another way of thinking. And nowadays with all the utilitarian

perception of philosophy in the public consciousness when even some commercial companies "must have" their own philosophy we do understand it's not more than a

sort of convention, fashion or metaphor born by contemporary life. (...)

But how do these considerations can affect our search of philosophical park's concept? First of all, it is obvious now that such a concept is based on a contradiction

between philosophical questioning and aesthetic contemplation (which gives a ground to landscape art) as a completely different forms of human thinking and

behavior and as long as we do not clarify the essence of this contradictions, our starting points for the idea of "Philosophical Park" won't match each other and would

stay rather as inapplicable extremes than a workspace of thinking.

2. Space as material, environment and language of landscape gardening art Considering landscape gardening art we have to operate with the concept of space as if we refresh our knowledge of the matter of sound speaking about music.

Creation of space is a direct task of gardening art but nevertheless it's quite clear nobody creates certain void or extension but some spots and even localities are

rather to be designed and structured in a single materially organized environment as it is mentioned in architecture in general. But if the architecture in its original

sense is largely focused on the creation of material structures that have a direct practical value, the gardening art, appeared in architecture on some facultative basis,

has a deal more with the creation of an aesthetic feelings, spatially functional contexts, semiotic integrity and for that matter it is especially relevant in the era of

urban planning and development of urban studies.

But how the space like a basic concept of landscape art is considered in philosophy? Unfortunately, even years that we could spend in a detailed study of this question

would not bring a definite answer. Being a philosophical category since Aristotle, becoming an extent, "res extensa" along with matter and finally as a priori form of

our sensual perception after Kant, the space is unavailable as a discursive concept. Bibihin in his comments to Heidegger's "Art and Space" writes the following: "...

Plato finds nearly impossible "to say anything exactly about this difficult and vague kind ": in fact he denies a definability of space in view of its "Extremely doubtful

involvemen " to the field of concepts (Timaeus 49a, 51 ab). Aristotle is confused not only about idea of topos or place-space but doesn't know if it really exists (Physics IV1,

209a, 29 - 30) ... It is clear there were no term for "Space" in Antiquity and in the Middle Ages"

Nevertheless such a situation our thinking is involved in doesn't look very strange. Being a sort of pure openness, vastness, receptacle, unconcealedness and even an

infinite state of joy as it is taught by Mahamudra in Buddhism the space remains aside from philosophical questioning. Hiding nothing from the human eye, it cannot

open something extra in availability of existence, while the philosophy is just formulation of the questions that humanity dares to ask in aware of its finiteness and

limits . In other words, the space is rather an opportunity and response than something we could raise the question about (...)

At the same time if even we agree with Kant concerning abstract mode of the mind the space looks like we still feel it is a quite tangible stage humanity asks

questions about its own destiny on. These issues brought into the living space transform it in semiotic integrity, in language of communication becoming an

intersection of social and physical, Plato's "physei" and "thesei" - natural, socio-contractual and divine. At this intersection the space comes from its uncertainty as a

place or landscape and the language getting some spatial values that perpetuate our knowledge in recognizable and renewable forms becomes a repository of

mythology and history.

Mankind asks questions and finding its own historicity in the questioning it reads nature and landscape as a text, like a book of being ("The nature is a book, the

message or philosophical fable ... to express the essence of nature it takes more than physics, physics is only alphabet. Nature is Aequation, equation of the unknown value, the

ancient Hebrew text written only with consonants where our mind has to put the necessary points. ("From Hamann's letter to Kant. December 1759). Space is open to

mankind through a place. Locality, landscape becomes a spatial environment. Thus being outside of the scope of asking the space through the language and locality

enables the development of thinking, both in terms of architecture of logically formalized knowledge and in territorial development of the world.

2. Philosophical park Pregelmunde on the island of Kneiphof

.. und sind nur Mund.

Aber auf einmal bricht

der grosse Herzschlag heimlich in uns ein,

so dass wir schrein —,

und sind dann Wesen, Wandlung und Gesicht.

Rilke

(...) In the case of Kneiphof or the island of Kant, the problem is that we virtually have no obvious everyday local practices ( like recreation, sports or some

contemplative art public areas of Baroque) for which you can transform the space, and in turn the purely philosophical practices are not obvious to majority that

eventually forms city budget and public opinion.

Although pure philosophical approach didn't give any tangible result concerning space itself nevertheless in the image of place, locality and landscape we have some

solid ground of thinking considerably useful not only for a high brow University public but for any more or less educated citizens ready to perceive their dwelling in its

historicity. And in this way Kneiphof looks like a historical organism with cultural and historical landscape well documented but de facto completely lost and in this

half abandoned state it gives us a sort of call and temptation of never existed before (nor in times of Kant and neither later) possibility to get "at once" some big

urban project realization because modern city couldn't bear for long the huge void of function and meaning such a place like Kneiphof now is. But having no idea to

just reprogram or reload landscape of this unique area or to restore its historical image (recovery of facades out of cultural and historical environment would be not

more than decorative) let's look at the place in some wider historical scale.

Geographical, historical and geological understanding of Kneiphof Island is based on the concept of the river Pregel, whose origins lie in the East of modern

Kaliningrad Area and also in Poland at the region of Masurian Lakes. Pregel is formed with confluence of Angrapa and Instruch rivers. Angrapa which originates in

Lake Mamre in its turn is fed by the rivers Piss, GOŁDAP and Vika, coming from the lakes Red (Lake Goldap) and Vištytis or Vishtynets. These lakes are of glacial origin,

as well as the Baltic Sea, formed as a result of further retreat movement of glacier and its melting about 10-14 thousand years ago, that is about 10 thousand years

later than formation of mentioned glacial lakes.

From this point of view Pregel with its tributaries is a very unhurried by human standards story in ten thousand years, which a long disappeared Valdai glacier tells

over 300 kilometers on the territory of modern Kaliningrad Area and the island Kneiphof is the last river island on Pregel divided into two sleeves near Gvardeysk

town, the last island before the river mouth. Connecting first before the island, the Old and New Pregel come beyond it into a single channel. In this sense,

"Pregelmunde" (Mouth of Pregel) can be regarded not so much as an alternative historical name, giving in the 14th century its place to name Kneiphof but as the key

to the interpretation of the island on the basis of historical and geological representation and the way to the philosophical park's concept.

Pregelmunde - this is the last island of the interior space, last chord, which takes the river before its waters flow in the Vistula (Kaliningrad) Bay and then into the

Baltic Sea. Obviously, the German words Mündung - mouth and Mund - lips, mouth etymologically related as well as corresponding Russian words Уста and Устье.

Speech uttered by the mouth, becomes the language of knowledge and the language of creation , a basis for communication and some battery for human self-

representations expressed primarily in philosophy. Likewise, Kneiphof being considered through or as Pregelmunde is a place where the story of Pregel achieves its

goal finding its own voice. But this voice had been just a chthonic voice of melting ice expressing wild natural power of the Earth, until the ancestors of modern

people living on this land heard it's call and founded their settlements here mixing their speech and their history with the sound of the rushing waters as many folks

and tribes did all over the globe.

Jawaharlal Nehru, in his classic work of 1946 "Discovering India" wrote about the river Ganges (where Indian Mahatmas of ancient times once taught аbout dualistic

nature of the world pointing to the separation of Ganges' channel and further confluence of these two streams):

"Ganges, to a greater extent than the other rivers of India, kept the country's heart and attracted to its shores countless millions of people since ancient times. History of the

Ganges from the source to the sea, from antiquity to the present day is the history of civilization and culture of India, the origin and fall of empires, great and proud cities, of

adventures of man ...”.

Such a concept of the philosophical park "Pregelmunde" suggests that leaving aside a history of Kneiphof settlement we could give some opportunity to development

of parallel place's history in the forms of philosophical park based on the image of speech and language as powerful tools of philosophical thinking in particular and

the primary means of social communication in general. Here after Rilke quoted in epigraph (WIR SIND NUR MUND - We are only mouth) we can trace and consider

how like a river that flows through its mouth into the sea, a man comes to revelation of his own historical essence through the speech.

SECTION A Philosophical park on Kneiphof Island *Extract from the section by Katerina

Cherevko

Semantic and spatial concept of the Philosophical Park* In the contemporary world, there are no philosophical parks existing today as an individual kind of landscape design. In different periods of time parks were created

for seclusion and meditation. By emphasizing their owner’s fortune, artistic taste and intellect they often

became a mark of distinction. Conventionally speaking, the gardens of antique philosophers Academy

and Lyceum in Ancient Greece can be called the first philosophical parks. According to the legend the

garden of Academy was founded by Plato on the site of a sacral grove where an archaic hero Academos

was buried.

Mythological definition of a garden space Myths of different nations contain the idea of a Garden located either at the world’s end or on an isolated

ISLAND, where immortality giving fruit trees grow. This is an utopian idea of a blessed holy land. Myths

about such gardens refer to magical numerology (e.g. the number of trees), sacred colors (e.g. in gardens

of Hsi Wang Mu (in Chinese mythology)), exclusively white feathered birds and animals with white fur.

These gardens have only the most precious metals and stones (for example nephrite and gold).

Furthermore, these gardens are very difficult to get into. Xi Wang Mu,

(“Godmother of the

West”), owner of the

heavenly garden with peach trees of immortality. Decor on a Qing

dynasty porcelain plate, Yongzheng Emperor period, 1725

Semantics of gardens and parks If to undertake an attempt to generalize the main semantic ideas in garden planning over the entire historical

period, the outcome will be as follows: 1) the idea of a garden as Paradise, Eden, an enclosed protected space, a

different world, existing in accordance with its rules, inhabited by outlandish birds and animals, an afterworld

where immortality or youth granting trees grow; 2) the idea of a garden as a Book, a holy text which is only

available for initiates to read; and 3) a Garden as a model of the Universe, the whole cosmic world order. Persian garden of “Paradise”. Image on a carpet.

The so-called “garden carpet” – a kind of Persian carpet

design. Isfahan, 17-18th century.

The rug precisely replicated design of “the garden of

pleasures” with irrigation canals, trees, flower beds and

garden walks, laid out according to the four cardinal

directions. The first similar carpet is known as of the

reign of Sassanid Dynasty (531- 579 AD), its area was 60 m2

Concept of the Philosophical Park

Problem and current situation If we had a task to come up with an idea for the Philosophical Park of Peter the Great times or the period after his reign, it would likely have been a regular park with

strict geometry of alleys. On each side of the alleys, there would have been sculpture images,

allegories of one or another philosophical category and for example half-rotundas with the

centrally placed sculptural busts of the most famous thinkers of different times, starting from the

ancient. It could be possible to imagine that we would have received an image resembling

existing magnificent palace architectural and park ensembles similar to Versailles, the park in

Tsarskoye Selo, the park at Oranienbaum or Letny Sad (Summer Garden) in Saint Petersburg.

However, an expert on garden and park semantics Dmitry Likhachev wrote: “A garden always

expresses some philosophy, aesthetic ideas about the world, human attitude towards nature; this

is a micro world in its ideal representation”. This tells us that it is necessary to think about the

inner world of modern man, his knowledge, ability to “read” the message communicated by a

garden and park ensemble in one or another form.

In his book “Poetry of gardens”, D.S. Likhachev also wrote: ‘The loss of ability “to read” gardens as

iconological systems and perceive them in the light of “aesthetic climate” of the era of their

creation, is related to the dramatic decline (during approximately the last hundred years) in the

ability of iconological perceptions and rudiments of knowledge of traditional symbols and

emblems in general”.

Examples of randomly placed compositions in

the space of the contemporary park

“The perception of the iconological system in gardens is especially

complicated because in gardens more often than in other arts secret

symbolism and iconological systems are hidden”.

Therefore, it appears to be unreasonable to reckon upon the world of an

educated man from the Renaissance, the Baroque or the Romantic when

thinking about the image of the contemporary park. Thus, the semantic structure of the contemporary park shall

be based on the pattern of thoughts and knowledge of the contemporary educated man.

When thinking about what the philosophical park is, we have arrived at an idea that main function of such a park

for philosophers and usual visitors should be immersion in meditation.

On the one hand, due to the alternation of different landscape structures and their harmonious organization

(ponds, slight uplifting or lowering of the landscape, planting arrangements), the organized change of visual

impressions, the absence of discordant elements, dominant flowing lines open to the eye at a single glance and

perspectives leading the eye toward the immense landscape, any park space switches a visitor to a different mindset and stimulates slower deliberate, a kind of a

distant way of thinking. To comply with this strategy we could turn exclusively to the tools of a landscape architect and designer. However we have a task to come up

with a concept of the Philosophical Park, which implies an extra focus on the philosophical aspect.

At present, the layout of alleys of Kneiphof Island (Kant Island) has a thought-out geometry: there is a distinguished main axis, a central alley, from which narrow

alleys radiate diagonally.

Since it is designed to lay a new street connecting the Entrails and Blacksmith Bridges to be reconstructed and to restore the building of the town hall, the location of

the diagonal alleys comes in discordance as to the overall composition of all architectural elements and existing provisional zones of the park.

At present, Kant Island is called the park of sculptures. There have been provisionally defined some zones hosting busts and sculptures by different artists in

accordance with a specific theme. For example, there are portrait busts, including the portrait of Yury Gagarin, along of the alleys located near the Estacada Bridge.

Over the years, some of sculptures have been lost (stolen) or partially damaged. The overall composition of the existing layout of sculptures on the island leaves much

to be desired. The tablets with inscriptions are missing near the sculptures. Some of the sculptures by unknown creators look like a memory of the long gone ideology

of communism. In the overall park ensemble, some of sculptures seem to be randomly and poorly located in terms of composition, as for example the monument to

Maxim Gorky.

In terms of composition, trees are not always well arranged on the island either: the trees are mainly located along the alleys and along the perimeter of the park, but

there are also some isolated trees of various species that do not create any clear compositional groups as for example in the extreme end of the island facing

westward (the sport complex Yunost). This is why we consider it important to engage some landscape architects to make planting in some places more densely,

particularly where the lines of planting framing the island or individual green areas are discontinued and a certain rhythm is missing. It would be also good to

diversify the species composition with regard to the semantics of the philosophical park (now the tree planting mainly consists of chestnut and linden).

Concept of the Philosophical Park

Semantics of the island location The green area of the park looks currently as a precinct due to tree planting along

the perimeter of the park. Trees (mostly chestnuts) are about 60 years old

(according to approximate estimations), demonstrating the viability of existing

plantations and no need to remove them for sanitary or aesthetic purposes. The

trees planted along the perimeter of the park correspond to the idea of a garden as

a guarded precinct mentioned in the above examples (a historical background).

The insular location of the park correlates, in an interesting way, with the above

concept of a paradise garden, located on an island (the island of HXi Wang Mu, the

island of Avalon, the island of Sid, the Islands of Blessed and the Islands of Eternal

Youth). The Pregolya river arms skirting around the island correlated with the

observation about the Ganges, where the river branches run apart in order to

reunite similarly to the duality of the world. The above said implies that the

selection based only on geographical prerequisites makes it already impossible to

find any better place for the Philosophical Park in Kaliningrad Region.

If the central location of the island on the map of Kaliningrad is provisionally referred to the idea of the ancient people about the search for the center of the World,

the hub of the universe, the central axis (which, according to many versions of myths, is continued by the World Tree (a mythological archetype, the universal tree

uniting all spheres of macrocosm. As a rule, its branches are associated with the heaven, its trunk – with the earth, roots – with the underworld.)), it turns out that on

the map of Kaliningrad, it is difficult to find any other better place for searching for connections with the Higher Mind and for addressing it. Furthermore, we already

know that the island is a burial ground for philosopher Immanuel Kant. Thus, if we recall the above mentioned garden of Academy where Plato was buried and his

followers had been practicing rhetoric, the idea to lay out a philosophical park on Kant Island will be considered as a tribute to the philosophical tradition.

Concept of the Philosophical Park

Fundamental idea This approach involves the implementation of the idea

of “scanning” the objects in the park space, reading of

the “text” of park items as a Book, which has a

historical justification (described above). In philosophy,

each new trend or a new school forms a new view of

the perception of ontological issues. A visitor who

comes to the park has been informed that he is

supposed to look for the points which can be

designated as “assemblage points”. This process is

similar to the one when philosophy searches for

answers to fundamental questions, proposing a new

conceptual toolkit, offering new perspectives on Time,

Space and Being.

Each group of objects located on a certain axis may be

united by some introduced idea about a philosophical

category. Each group of

objects should be

elaborated, conceived and

located in space by one

author (a sculptor or an

artist) or a team of authors.

Statuary may sequentially

appear in the space of the

park, on one axis after

another (except for

intersecting ones). If we

assume that the island has a workshop or an art-residence for the group of invited artists or sculptors from other countries, or other cities of Russia, statuary could

Legend

1 Main Building of Museum complex

2 Green area of Philosophical park

3 Kuznechny (Blacksmith) Bridge

4 Potrokhovy (Entrails) Bridge

5 Pedestrian zone along the trajectory of

historical streets on the level of

pediment (exposing survived and

recreated paving)

6 Junker garden (lowered embankment

functioning as a berth)

Museum complex “Kant Museum and Philosophical Park” on the Island of Kneiphof

Site plan on the combined contemporary and historical underlay

Scale 1:2000

Area of the

Philosophical Park

Axes along which

sculptures are

located

Approximate

locations of

sculptures

Point for a viewer to

see the whole

conception

appear in line with the preliminary set work schedule of artists and sculptors, for example within one-two years (considering the most favorable time for work is a

warm season (April – October). For sculptors, who will be invited to the art-residence, it will be necessary to elaborate the philosophical texts to be “incorporated in

the space” of the park. Each time sculptors together with landscape architects and designers should, in their own way, play around with the gradients for this zone of

the park; “adjust” the shapes of the tree groups, framing those park zones where sculptures will be located.

Philosophical Park

Zoning layout

Scale 1 : 2000

Legend

No Functional zones of the park Area

1 Western coastal area 4330 m²

2 Lavochnaya (Merchant) zone 14920 m²

3 Kuznechnaya (Blacksmith) zone 9240 m²

4 Ratushnaya (Town Hall) zone 5530 m²

5 Medovaya (Honey) zone 19670 m²

Total:

53690 m²

SECTION B Development scenario for the new

Main building of the Kant Museum

*Extract from the section

by Alexander Popadin

Development scenario for the new Main building of the Kant Museum*

Problem formulation

Questions to be answered by the scenario

Political aspect of problem formulation

By 2018 (as an intermediate date) and by Immanuel Kant’s anniversary in 2024, Kaliningrad Region and Russia need to build new facilities and renovate old sites

related to the name of the great philosopher, bearing in mind his worldwide importance as well as educational role and tourist potential of future decisions.

Practical aspect of problem formulation

1. Consumer profile

A. The estimated consumer profile: 60% of tourists, 40% of citizens of Kaliningrad and the region. The leisure function cannot be independent and is only possible to

be implemented if deriving from the basic functions of the museum.

B. The number of visits to the Cathedral and the memorial porch “Stoa Kantiana” (Kant’s grave) on Kneiphof is estimated to be no less than 300 000 visitors a year

(excluding mandatory visits to the concert hall of the Cathedral and its museum areas) therefore the number of potential consumers of the new museum (complex)

can be estimated as the same.

C. The location, the character and the functional structure of the museum (complex) shall meet the needs of tourists as well as citizens, both those who use

sightseeing services and those who do not.

2. Requirements to exposition

To provide an option of the culturological concept within the framework of a single spatial concept of the Kant Museum and the island of Kant with due consideration

of the archaeological and dendrological potential of the former. The advanced (maximum) task requires that the exhibition would not only tell/demonstrate Kant’s

philosophy and life but also provide the illustration of the Enlightenment in Königsberg as well as the demonstration of the history and the current status of European

philosophy. Architectural, spatial and other proposals may be illustrations of the philosophical theses or basic assumptions of Immanuel Kant’s philosophy and of

philosophy as a whole. The museum exposition may also be located outside the main halls of the museum.

3. Tasks and functions of the complex

Expositional demonstration of biography, philosophical postulates and the role of Immanuel Kant in European philosophy. To give proposals on the development of

the museum (complex) in view of the forthcoming anniversary of Kant and related festivities.

SECTION B Development scenario for the new

Main building of the Kant Museum

*Extract from the section

by Alexander Popadin

Expositional concept of the Main building

of the Kant Museum of the 21st century One of the problematic aspects of any “philosophical museum” is that philosophy has neither object or, as a matter of fact, its own language.

Any objects, that make it possible “to exhibit philosophy”, are borrowed, for example, from “the history of things”, biographical collections etc.

This problem is proposed to be solved through the historical context, especially as the sufficient media for this has been provided both by the site itself (Kneiphof, the

medieval town of European Königsberg) and by potentially available authentic elements.

According to our proposal the Main Building shall have spaces for the Archaeological exhibition demonstrating the items found during excavations, rooms for

Historical exposition and premises for Philosophical exhibition.

There should be also a conference-hall here, where philosophical disputes and training sessions will take place. There should be also a visual aid room (the element of

“soft” infrastructure) and a library with a reference room where different editions of Kant will be available for reading. The Main Building will host public services with

separate entrance-exit (a book store and a café) as well as premises for the holdings of archaeological collection, representative premises of the complex

administration and back office location (particularly for archaeologists).

We propose to use a method common all three exhibitions, which suggests “an expositional narrative” moving “from the context to a phenomenon”, “from the

background to an object” through the description of historical contexts for the phenomenon of Kant and his philosophy as such.

Philosophical exhibition “History of philosophy and Immanuel Kant” Besides Kant’s biography and his works, this exhibition is proposed to provide the characteristics of his time and era, including the description of his discussion with

opponents, particularly with Lessing, who was depicted “in the immediate vicinity” in pathetic sculptures of the 18th century; with Hamann and others. It is also

proposed to present the history of European philosophy and, possibly, a palette of contemporary philosophical thought.

Each of three exhibitions – Archaelogical, Historical and Philosophical – should have its underlying logic and, at the same time, generate a cumulative effect of “a

story about Kant, against the background of Kant and with account of the character of Kant”.

SECTION B Development scenario for the new

Main building of the Kant Museum

* Developed by NP Urban Planning Bureau

“Heart of the City”

(Approximate)

Functional zoning layout*

of the ground floor,

Main Building of the Museum complex

Scale 1 : 400

Legend Exhibition of the archaeological excavations

of the foundation and basements of the

Town Hall of Kneiphof, including its inner

yard paving and wooden bridge walkways

over foundations

-1570 m²

Exhibition site “House of Hans Sagan” -68 m²

Public services (tourist and information

centre, gift shop and others)

-308 m²

Entrance groups equipped with stairs and an

elevator for handicapped people

-89 m²

Utility and area maintenance rooms -220 m²

SECTION B Development scenario for the new

Main building of the Kant Museum

* Developed by NP Urban Planning Bureau

“Heart of the City”

(Approximate)

Functional zoning layout*

of the first floor,

Main Building of the Museum complex

Scale 1 : 400

Legend

Exhibition rooms of the historical and

archaeological collection

-342 m²

Exhibition site “House of Hans Sagan” - 72 m²

Public services (café, book store) -386 m²

Inner gallery with an atrium, stairs and an

elevator for handicapped people

-414 m²

Lobby with a cloakroom and WCs -176 m²

Administrative premises and a conference-hall - 408 m²

Utility and area maintenance rooms -54 m²

SECTION B Development scenario for the new

Main building of the Kant Museum

* Developed by NP Urban Planning Bureau

“Heart of the City”

(Approximate)

Functional zoning layout*

of the second floor,

Main Building of the Museum complex

Scale 1 : 400

Legend

Exhibition rooms of the history of Philosophy -778 m²

Exhibition site “House of Hans Sagan” - 72 m²

Inner gallery with an atrium, stairs and an

elevator for handicapped people

-403 m²

Administrative premises -228 m²

Museum depository -365 m²

Utility rooms -8 m²

SECTION B Development scenario for the new

Main building of the Kant Museum

* Developed by NP Urban Planning Bureau

“Heart of the City”

Site plan

of the Museum complex

Scale 1 : 2000

LEGEND

Existing roads to be retained

The historical streets, designed to be

reconstructed, enabling the passage of vehicles

Historical streets paving (pedestrian zone),

designed to be reconstructed

Designed green area of the Philosophical Park

Legend

No Description Comments

1 Cathedral Exist.

2 Königsberg Stock Exchange building Exist.

3 Medovy (Honey) Bridge Exist.

4 Estacada Bridge Exist.

5 Kuznechny (Blacksmith) Bridge to be

reconstructed

Design.

6 Potrokhovy (Entrails) Bridge to be

reconstructed

Design.

7 Main Building of the Museum complex Design.

8 Lowered berth Junkergarten to be

reconstructed

Design.

9 Sculptor’s workshop Design.

10 Service yard of the Park Design.