Neoplastic Intervention: Re-Imagining Cairo's Public Realm

Abstract

Neoplastic intervention is derived from the medical term of neoplasm, which is an abnormal growth that continues to grow and evolve after the initial stimuli ceases. Architecturally, this neoplastic intervention at a more localized region will serve as scaffolding to catalyze revitalization by providing public space to a district of Cairo. With a civic space focused design, I aim to restructure an informal Cairo district to provide continuity, identity and architectural reform. This thesis studies the historic context of Cairo, analysis of case studies in slum reform in other regions, extract the DNA from these interventions, and apply it to a design for re-imagined public space in Cairo. The culminating proposal unites the study of the context of Cairo, existing public space in Cairo, precedent analysis, and the application of these analyses to propose a new public realm for a district in Cairo to serve as a paradigm for revitalization.