Competition Project

The Living Machine

An Eco-Brut Manifesto

Year: May 2026
Classification: Competition Project
Status: Competition entry
Location: Belgrade, Serbia
Team: Gökalp Kalfa
Zehra Çelik
Consultants: TutorChristopher MaloneyAlberto V. Yebenes
Organizer: Saint-Gobain
Area: 120,000 m²
Recognition: Mention, 2026

SHEAFS Diagram

The Concept: From Béton Brut to Eco-Brut

Belgrade is a city of historical intersections and collective resilience. Rooted in the Yugoslavian ideals of unity and the uncompromising honesty of Brutalist architecture, The Living Machine evolves these values for a sustainable future. The project introduces the “Eco-Brut” manifesto, reinterpreting Le Corbusier’s “Béton Brut” (raw concrete) through the use of brut (raw) timber. This approach prioritizes material honesty and structural clarity, bridging the gap between Belgrade’s monumental past and a carbon-neutral future. It is a celebration of “Unity”, not just between people, but between the built environment and the natural world.

The Shell: Architecture as an Assembly Apparatus

Central to the project is “The Shell” a kinetic spine that functions as an active construction machine. Unlike static structures, the Shell is a mobile factory on rails, housing multi-axis crane that allow for a “crane-less” site. This enclosed production environment minimizes dust and noise, providing maximum protection for the local protected cormorant population. Once assembly is complete, the machine transitions into a permanent climatic skin, “parking” over the indoor sports block to function as a massive Solar Shader. It remains a living part of the building’s metabolism, facilitating future maintenance and ensuring long-term operational efficiency.

Urban Strategy: The Slices and Resilience

The masterplan is organized into Linear Slices that manage the transition from the noisy urban infrastructure to the calm Green Corridor. To mitigate noise from the adjacent railway, a strategic green buffer consisting of Rain Gardens and dense vegetation is placed as a first line of defense. The residential units are oriented toward these green lungs to maximize visual comfort and privacy. At the ground level, the “Machine” remains entirely porous; a series of flexible kiosks and public plazas create a vibrant “Urban Hub” where athletes and Belgrade citizens can interact, ensuring the project is a social catalyst rather than an isolated enclave.

Technical Excellence: Net Zero and Modular Precision

In pursuit of Saint-Gobain’s sustainability goals, the project minimizes both embodied and operational carbon. The foundation utilizes 70% GGBS concrete to drastically reduce the initial carbon footprint. The primary living units are designed as Prefabricated Timber Modules, manufactured in a controlled environment to achieve the millimetric precision required for Passive House standards. This modular approach ensures high-performance thermal insulation, exceptional airtightness, and a rapid, zero-waste construction timeline, meeting the urgent needs of the Expo 2027 schedule.

Legacy: Future-Proofing and Adaptive Reuse

The Living Machine is programmed for a permanent evolution that extends far beyond the Expo. The Shell provides the structural framework for a “Vertical Legacy,” allowing residential blocks to expand by up to two additional floors as Belgrade’s housing demands shift. Urban repair strategy also reclaims the adjacent abandoned railway, transforming it into a vibrant pedestrian and cycle path that connects the site to the wider city fabric.

The revitalization of the historic Yacht Club serves as a critical anchor for this waterfront regeneration. The existing structure is wrapped in an skin, upgrading the building to Passive House standards through advanced insulation and reorganized circulation. Functional nautical integration is further refined through a redesigned boat launch point, repositioned based on wind analysis for optimal safety. To complete the promenade, a prefabricated “Swivel Bridge” is introduced; its rotating segments allow marina traffic to pass without interrupting the continuity of the public waterfront, ensuring a perfect harmony between maritime activity and urban life.

Project Film

Masterplan

Site plan on an aerial photograph with a numbered legend of 22 elements, from the statue plaza and bioretention basins to the renovated yacht club and repurposed railway line. — 02Site plan.

Long site section through the residential hubs, outdoor gym, rain garden and yacht club, showing uninterrupted flow along the waterfront. — 03Site section — uninterrupted flow from the residential hubs to the yacht club.

Concept & Site Analysis

01 / 04

Concrete Utopia collage combining Belgrade's brutalist landmarks with a green waterfront cycle path and cormorants. — 01Concrete Utopia — Belgrade's brutalist heritage meets a green waterfront.

Site reading drawing of designers around a map of Belgrade, with notes on urban nodes, the Sava–Danube confluence, the cormorant habitat and existing vegetation. — 02Reading the site — landmarks, ecology and the questions behind the project.

Three circular maps showing the cycling network, pedestrian network and green infrastructure strategy around the project area. — 03Cycling, pedestrian and green infrastructure networks.

Four circular site diagrams showing the design phases from understanding the site to positioning the green buffer zones. — 04Design phases — from understanding the site to positioning the green zones.

Construction Strategy

Axonometric of the Shell's steel structure with an overhead crane moving along X, Y and Z axes on travel rails above the crane operation zone. — 01The Shell — overhead crane, travel rails and crane operation zone.

Six circular axonometric diagrams showing the construction sequence, from assembling the crane to its final position above the sports facility. — 02Construction phases — from crane assembly to final positioning.

Modules & Floor Plans

01 / 06

Exploded diagram of four prefabricated timber module types and the steel connection node, broken down into structure, space plan, stuff and services with their lifespans and quantities. — 01Modules — structure, space plan, stuff and services, each with its own lifespan.

Exploded axonometric of the residential block from the commercial ground floor to the solar and green roof, with two circulation cores. — 02Exploded axonometric — ground floor to roof level.

Ground floor plan with reception, storage, two cores and pop-up shops set within planted landscape. — 03Ground floor — reception and pop-up shops.

First floor plan with gym, sauna, resident amphitheatre, game area, terrace, cinema room and communal kitchen. — 04First floor — gym and social lounge.

Second floor plan with double and single rooms around a central planted atrium. — 05Second floor — double and single rooms around the atrium.

Third floor plan with double and single rooms around voids over the atrium. — 06Third floor — double and single rooms.

Technical Strategies

01 / 08

Carbon life-cycle board with section A-A', LCA charts rating the building at 27 kg CO2e per square metre, and a circular timber diagram from sustainable forestry to stored carbon. — 01Carbon life cycle — low embodied carbon and circular timber use.

Structural board with section A-A', an exploded axonometric of the glulam and CLT frame over a 70% GGBS concrete base, and three steps of modular assembly. — 02Structure — hybrid concrete base and modular timber frame.

Environmental board with a sun-path section, a 14.31% window-to-wall ratio calculation and build-ups for glazing, external wall and green roof with U-values. — 03Environmental strategy — sun angles, window-to-wall ratio and envelope build-ups.

Thermal comfort board with a section showing stack effect and passive cooling, a water-source heat pump diagram using the Sava river, and an exploded axonometric of the mechanical rooms. — 04Thermal comfort — stack effect, passive cooling and a river-source heat pump.

Water management board with a section of rainwater collection to the ground-floor tank and filtration unit, and an exploded axonometric of grey and clean water pipes. — 05Water management — rainwater harvesting and separate grey and clean water networks.

Maintenance board showing the crane lifting a module out of section A-A', the modular plywood wall system and modular carpet tile replacement steps. — 06Maintenance — crane-lifted modules, replaceable wall panels and carpet tiles.

Acoustic comfort board with a section showing the green buffer zone against railway noise and build-ups for internal wall, external wall, carpet tile floor and green roof with acoustic values. — 07Acoustic comfort — green buffer zone and layered build-ups.

Visual comfort board with a lighting section and a before-and-after comparison of rooms facing other buildings versus rooms oriented toward the park. — 08Visual comfort — daylight, landscape views and privacy.

Yacht Club

01 / 04

Yacht club ground floor plan with a 245 square metre yacht storage hall, male and female changing rooms, an office and boats moored alongside. — 02Yacht club — ground floor, yacht storage and changing rooms.

Yacht club first floor plan with a social lounge, gym, WCs and a 275 square metre outdoor terrace. — 03Yacht club — first floor, social lounge, gym and terrace.

Section through the yacht club showing the existing building inside the new Shell frame with planted balconies. — 04Yacht club — section A-A through the existing building and the Shell.

Additional Site Elements

01 / 05

Three circular axonometric phases of the pedestrian swing bridge beside the yacht club — closed for pedestrians, rotating, and open for boats. — 01Pedestrian swing bridge — closed, opening and open phases.

Section through the closed sports facility with an indoor court raised on tapered columns above a water tank, framed by the Shell and its overhead crane. — 02Closed sport facility — section under the Shell.

Nine 1:10 landscape details of drainage grate, corten edging, lighting foundation and paving finishes in permeable concrete, turf, planting, terracotta and travertine. — 03Landscape details — edges, drainage, lighting and surface finishes at 1:10.

Section detail of courtside stepped seating in stainless steel box sections under a 70% GGBS concrete sun canopy, beside a steel mesh court divider. — 04Shade canopy and courtside seating detail.

Section through two rain gardens and a gabion-edged drainage path, with engineered soil layers above perforated water storage chambers. — 05Rain garden — section with underground water storage.

Visualisations

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Aerial render of a residential hub with a green roof and solar panels above yellow paths, planted islands and a basketball court. — 01Aerial view — green roof, yellow paths and courts.

Render of athletes arriving by coach at a residential hub with yellow shutters, with the Shell in the background. — 02Arrival at the residential hub.

Render of a residential hub with planted balconies raised on concrete columns over shops, with people walking and cycling along a yellow path. — 03Residential hub and ground-floor shops.

Render of joggers on a yellow park path between rounded shrubs, with a residential hub and the Shell behind. — 04Running path through the park.

Render of the outdoor amphitheatre with people sitting on steps and children on scooters, a residential hub behind the trees. — 05Outdoor amphitheatre.

Render of a five-a-side football match with spectators under a concrete canopy and a residential hub beyond the trees. — 06Football pitch and covered stands.

Render of spectators on timber stands under a sculptural concrete canopy, with the Shell's louvred facade and yellow frames behind. — 07Concrete canopy stands in front of the Shell.

Render of two people playing table tennis on a terracotta surface surrounded by lavender planting. — 08Outdoor table tennis among the planting.

Render of the statue plaza with a sailing-themed sculpture, a yellow walkway over a planted basin and the railway bridge behind. — 09Statue plaza by the railway bridge.

Render of the repurposed steel railway bridge with a timber walkway, planted benches and a yellow cycle lane over the river. — 10Repurposed railway line as a walking and cycling bridge.

Render of the pedestrian swing bridge in front of the yacht club, with a fisherman mending nets in a boat and cormorants on the water. — 11Pedestrian swing bridge and the yacht club.

Render of the renovated yacht club inside its yellow Shell frame with planted walls, sailing dinghies on the launch deck and the river beyond. — 12Renovated yacht club and launching deck.

Night render of the residential hubs lit from within, with glowing lamps along the park paths and families walking. — 13The residential hubs at night.