Doma Summer School 2024

Overview

DOMa Summer School is an international architectural workshop. By engaging important figures globally and sparking conversation locally, the DOMa Summer School aims to enrich architectural education.

Brief

Although tourism development has been one of the most important narratives of modern Greece, the global problem of overtourism has radically changed the common feeling about travel. The journey has lost its innocence. Visiting another place usually satisfies the desire for a change, the transition to another culture and a complete experience of contact with the unknown. Until recently, this was also the vision promoted by short-term rental platforms, describing an authentic experience in another neighborhood, in another city. However, when the population of a neighborhood consists mainly of visitors, the authenticity is nullified.

In this context, architecture maintains a passive, non-critical stance. Sometimes it is called upon to fill the void of identity created by overtourism by staging local conditions, and in other cases, it is seduced by the frenzied pace of development, shrinking its practice into flashy architectural experiments aimed at an elite of visitors.

Tourism has moved away from its original promise. However, it should not be demonized. What could be architecture's influence today in order to inspire new tourism paradigms? It is like going back in time when Greece first tried to develop tourism with the 'Xenia' program which led to a series of high quality hotels, but accessible to most social classes. It's like we're going back to the first architectural formulation for an issue that will become quite complex along the way.

Conference

As part of the workshop, a conference was held on January 26 in Romantso, on the topic of "Overcoming Overtourism", and speakers were professors from all the architecture schools of the country.

The conference started with Thanasis Manis and Haris Biskos, curators of the DOMa Summer School, and continued with the guest speakers, Manolis Oikonomou (Editor-in-Chief, Archetype), Theoni Xanthi (Democritius University of Thrace), Sofia Tsiraki (National Technical University of Metsovia), Apostolos Kalfopoulos (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki), Leonida Papalampropoulos (University of Patras), Irida Lykourioti (University of Thessaly), Nikos Skoutelis (Polytechnic of Crete) while at the end a text was read on behalf of Andreas Nikolovgenis (University of Ioannina).

The speakers approached the topic of overtourism through different perspectives, from degrowth to new infrastructures. The presentations ranged from nostalgic narratives and personal experiences to legislative issues. At the conference, in addition to the well-known images of Aris Konstantinides and Aristomenes Provelegios, interventions in archaeological sites and some early examples of mass tourism such as the case of Blackpool in the United Kingdom were analyzed.

Venue

The workshop will take place in Xenia Andritsaina, a project by Kaiti Dialisma, built in 1959, and one of the few examples of Xenia, which have preserved the original design and furnishings.

Outcome

The students, led by Piovenefabi from Milan, will design and implement a structure in the public space of Andritsaina. On the last day of the workshop, the speakers from the "Overcoming Overtourism" conference will be present to discuss the outcome with the students, the workshop leaders and the curators.

Participation fee

The participation fee includes accommodation (7 nights with breakfast) and attending the workshop.

Quadruple - €200 / person
Triple room - 300€ / person
Double room - 400€ / person
Single - 600€ / person

Application

Submit your application here and you will be informed about the next steps.
A strict priority order will be followed.