Tallinn’s medieval city wall once stood as a powerful structure of defence. It was a strong threshold that divided inside from outside, us from them. While it played a vital role in shaping the city’s historic identity, its defensive purpose has long expired. Today, much of the wall sits idle, treated primarily as a visual relic or economic asset for tourism, rather than as an active part of daily life. This project seeks to challenge that condition by reimagining the wall as a living monument. The design hopes to respect the historical and collective value of the city wall while opening new possibilities for contemporary use.

Through a series of careful interventions in the walkway, towers, and neighbouring courtyard, the design rebuilds the relationship between the city and its wall. It introduces new programs that invite everyday interaction from locals, reconnects separated sides, and repurposes the defensive geometry as a framework for gathering, learning, and cohabitation. The architecture engages the existing wall not just as a backdrop, but as a structure to inhabit, reinterpret, and build upon. Interventions are designed as a response to the city wall in terms of its spatial arrangements, materiality, structural systems, and more. At its core, the project reverses the logic of fortification: from dividing to connecting, from repelling to inviting.

It asks —
Can a wall built to separate become a path that connects?

The Hongkong & Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) Building stands as the headquarter of the most powerful bank in Hong Kong. Designed by the renowned architect Sir Norman Foster and celebrated as an icon of High-tech architecture, it holds a significant position among the city's landmarks. In addition to its significance, the HSBC Building has also been involved in numerous major events in Hong Kong, particularly those related to financial and political power. Given the prominent background of HSBC Building, what urban and architectural elements signify financial and political power? How does the perception of power within the building evolve over its forty-year history? This research investigates the two questions by examining HSBC Building's interaction with financial and political power across the urban, architectural exterior, and architectural interior scales. This thesis argues that power, though abstract and multifaceted, manifests in tangible forms within HSBC Building. Significant displays of power are evident in the building's urban setting, architectural style, construction, and spatial arrangement. However, recent architectural alterations and gestures suggest a shift in power dynamics. This change reveals the role of architecture as a tool for showcasing, providing, and retracting power.