The term terrain vague represents an architectural condition. The noun terrain and the adjective vague are in opposition. The first refers to an enclosed, defined space whereas the second is related to the dislocation of each consolidated space. The resulting meaning refers more to the potential energy generated by the contrast between the two differing semantic fields, than to the existence of a unified train of thought.

'It has no center, or you might try to find a center in this place but you really can’t.'
From Robert Smithson's 'Hotel Palenque'

The typical fragmentation of the terrain vague derives from the process of erosion that ultimately generates a degradation of the territory. This increasing entropy or disarray produces a tension reduction of the system, whereupon vagueness ensues.

While the city is based on explicit geometrical relationships in accordance with human proportions, the vague terrain does not have a single reference point. Elements of all kinds occupy an unplanned terrain whereby the relations between different entities and the free interaction of the prevailing forces generate an ambiguous border between the city that is and the city that has still to grow. These conditions occur principally in the city's periphery. The design research began with an analysis of several anonymous peripheral areas around Benidorm. For this purpose the city proper was conceived as a modern ruin-in-reverse and the surrounding territory as an archaeological stage set. The terrain vague was investigated using a tectonic interpretation based on particular erosive processes occurring at both the macro and micro scale. Comparative maps based on a random collection of traces were then drawn up to demonstrate the drastic transformations gone through during 40 years of intense urban development. The 'hermeneutic reading' of the terrain vague, conceived as a stratified assemblage of lost memories and traces that need preserving against the urban growth, suggested the design proposal for a cemetery. This function could improve the frail relations between the tourist city and the abandoned hinterland.

The different components of the design are emblematic of the components of the programme they contain. Thus, for example, there are three underground cemeteries, a crematorium, a tanatorium, a public pathway and a park. All buildings and structures have been placed under the ground at positions meticulously chosen according to the topographical and physical characteristics of the landscape. The buildings emphasize the hidden relationship with the natural erosion and the forgotten relationship with the dried-up river bed. Moreover, the materials and building techniques respect the qualities of the local soil and the Celtiberian funerary procedures.

The scale models and the materials used during the design process - clay, paper, plaster, concrete, recycled wood - are not just intended as purely representative resources but as instruments for the methodological exploration of entropic qualities. Even the drawings and illustrations are treated in accordance with erosive procedures that inform the project as a whole.

Place of education: TU Delft
Specialization: architecture
Tutors: Marc Schoonderbeek, Olga Vasquez-Ruano