Design Brief
Individually, we were tasked with creating a new urban public space for a connected society. The aim is to either make people more ‘active’ or getting them to stop, relfect or contemplate in a ‘calm’ setting. The size of land provided was 15×15 metres and the scale i used was 1:100.
Research
As a small group task, we were given a location to take photos of and evaluate the possibilities, positives and negatives. We were given Bell Street Car Park (Location 11) and took the following photos:
Locations Link:
Google Maps
Inspiration:
I chose to have my social space outside the V&A so I could mix in with the design of the area. I found inspiration from some of Kengo Kuma’s Designs and images off pintrest.
The elongated shape created by thin pieces stacked up, gave me inspiration for how my bench would be assembled and look.
The bench’s first idea was that it would curve around in the shape of a river in one continuous piece and would flow like a wave. (Shown in the sketches below).
Sketches and Models
After more thought, I wanted to make the bench more fun to interact with, so instead of having a solid wave appearance, it would be more interactive to have it physically moving. If there were pistons that were able to move the bench above, they could replicate the motion of a wave along the bench. A thick piece of material would help keep it smooth so that the pistons pushing up would not move one area and nothing else.
The model then developed further so that the pistons were instead attached to floats. This would work as a trench of water would go underneath and the seat would make the users feel like they are floating without being in the water or able to see it. To me, the feeling of bobbing up and down is very soothing and on the flip side, you would be able to make ripples along the bench which would be fun to interact with.
The water would create a soothing sound as it would slush around under the bench and add to the calm atmosphere.
To make the outside area more natural, grass would be added around the perimiter of the bench to bring more people closer to interact with it. This would also make it feel less industrial and more natural.
Trees would also create a more shaded and enclosed area which would add a little more complexity to the open design as, well as providing a more secure feeling of not being surrounded by nothing.
Furthermore, a small wave machine could be added to the end of the trench to create larger waves in the bench which would be a fun element that could be temporary if it was too annoying for people using the bench to calm down.
Conclusion and Evaluation
The making of the model was successful as I made a small prototype and that lead to the idea of using the staples, since they were the perfect side in the 1:100 scale (meaning they were one metre in width). This was my first ever social space/architecture model so I am pleased with my outcome. I feel i could do more detailed sketches and use colour to help present what I am aiming for, which would also add colour to my blog posts and make it more aesthetically pleasing to read.
Tape