Week 10

the direction i am currently heading in, involves designing a place of respite and escape for the city dweller

currently (sometime in the future where our cities are overpopulated) living spaces are undesirably small and uncomfortable to be in however if we transform the unused spaces of the city into places where locals can escape their busy lifestyles, this may make living conditions a little more bearable.

some existing examples of ways to ease the problems of urban living

Hush: A perfect pod for personal retreat

In this fast moving world, we all are constantly busy with some or the other thing, and hardly find time for ourselves. It’s difficult to devote even half an hour to our privacy and comfort. Therefore, to solve this problem, many designers are constantly designing some unique pieces of furniture that allow us to get cut from all the social elements, at least for some time. Earlier, we have seen designs like Nuovo personal pod that allows to read in solitude or Terrace Bar Seating pod that gives you some space. Yet again, this need of privacy was thought by recent design school graduate Freyja Sewell who has designed an innovative Seating Pod for the one who wants to hide himself in solitude.

This Seating Pod is aptly named as Hush and cuts you from all the social elements and gives you space to rejuvenate for some time. This piece is a pod like in shape and can be inflate in a womb like structure so that you can perfectly crawl inside a dark room. The slit on one side never closes completely so that you can peep out and get enough oxygen to breath in.

Although, we know it will be a bit weird to carry it somewhere along with you, but for the people who do not want to socialize at all, it is a portable one and can be carried anywhere you want. If you are a little eco conscious then let us tell you that this amazing piece is made of 100% wool that can be recycled. This pod is of multi-use as it can be converted into a regular couch to give your living room an elegant look. The designer has also made cushion to compliment this piece and filled it with 100% recyclable wool. The production will start in winters and the price will be out then. So, for now, just hide yourself in solitude and get relaxed.

http://www.bornrich.com/entry/hush-perfect-pod-personal-retreat/ 

Interactive Urban Prairie | in square lab

 Urban Prairie is an intuitive and interactive motion recognitive installation conceived and designed collaboratively by London architecture firm In Square Lab, post production and visual effects specialist MPC Digital and software developer Existential.Inspired by the rapid reduction of green spaces due to urbanisation of cities, Urban Prairie seeks to recreate a 1000sqm sea of prairie from a 5m wide shop window. Green spaces are known to have positive effects on the image and vitality of spaces and provide valuable resources and focus for the communities. Green spaces provide a respite from the built environment and give an opportunity for recreation; promote health, well-being and quality of life.Using an array of optical sensors and arduino boards, urban prairie captures and comprehends the movements of passersby in front of the installation. This digital data is then translated into kinetic responses via a series of servos; creating the phenomenon of a sea of grass swaying in the breeze. The motion of the ‘real’ grass is in turn measured by the specially designed software and translated to a field of virtual prairie on screens behind the ‘real’ grass. The combined result is an ‘Urban Prairie’ which passersby can engage and interact with through their movements in space. By varying their speed and location in front of the windows, passersby can generate wind disturbance that travels from the ‘real’ grass to the virtual prairie seamlessly and eventually fading off into the horizon.

http://plusmood.com/2011/05/interactive-urban-prairie-in-square-lab/

confetti

Confetti Light, being a colorful and innovative project, was designed by Spanish architect Sergio Sebatian. Covering a 1000m2 area, the Confetti gives another dimension to a modified place.“The most important feature of confeti (confetti) is that it doesn´t sleep during the day, worrying the pedestrian with cables, lights off, and “gray” structures, but becomes an active system which dialogues with citizens, in a sparkling plane that paints colours on the ground, using the largest lighting source, and the most economical we have: the sun. In sunny mornings, children play with dots that colour the granitic soil, young people enjoy a snack of colors, and old people chat around an orange circle which acts as a “moderator.” Looking up is like wearing coloured glasses that glad and decorate the urban landscape surrounding the square, filters which glad the balcony of Mrs.Vicenta (the woman who lives in the second floor), changing its colour for a few days .” Sergio Sebastian When the night falls, these colour plates are transformed into a bright confetti falling from the sky and express joy, and why not, the festive character of Christmas; it deals with producing an event, the singularity of a fact which doesn´t happen every day … Exiting the subway and find a ceiling that covers us by surprise, which reflects all the light it receives, and generates a large coloured carpet, on which people meets.Confeti is a scenery system that works for the city 24 hours a day as a reducing element of remaining light, noise attenuation, and a comedian-entertainer of urban theater, colonizing the gaps through coloured and circular pieces of recycled plastic, opaque and translucent, in which also can be attached photoluminescent particles; so the illumination is generated from the reception in these plates of all existing light sources in the surrounding area, public and private, of projector and supporting lamps, and of course, the sun.
http://laud8.wordpress.com/2011/04/13/confeti/

urban farm in queens

Since 1999, New York’s Museum of Modern Art and its sister institution, the PS1 Contemporary Art Center has hosted the Young Architects Program (YAP) to design a temporary installation in the courtyards of PS1 in Queens, NY for their summer “Warm Up” parties. Every intervention has expanded upon the theme of the “Urban Beach.”

In 2008, 40 years after the Summer of ’68, we felt it was time for a new leisure revolution, one that creates a new symbol of liberation, knowledge, power and fun for today’s cities. Leaving behind the Urban Beach, our project became the Urban Farm — as a symbol of our generations’ preoccupations and hopes for a better and different future. As cities have finally proven their superiority over their suburban counterparts — in everything from quality of life to environmental impact — they should again become our much needed laboratories of experimentation.
Channeling the last utopian architectural projects about the City that examined its potential, represented its promises of liberation, and captured its pleasures — from Superstudio’s Continuous Monument to Koolhaas’s Exodus — Public Farm 1 (P.F.1) is an architectural and urban manifesto to engage play and reinvent our cities, and our world, once again.

http://lustik.tumblr.com/post/1367962191/urban-farm
http://work.ac/pf-1/

jc karich, martin de bie + martin le tiec: sandbox

france-based designers jc karich, martin de bie, and martin le tiec have produced the installation, 'sandbox', an interface for
capturing and sharing short audio clips. composed of light-sensitive voice recording systems buried under the sand, the work
encourages visitors to create and bury messages for others to dig up and discover.
'our main idea was to be able to create rich material that could store data and become a platform for people to exchange
secrets and ideas anonymously,' the designers explain. 'this project is an example of how natural materials can become a
richer interface for playing, creating new ways of communication thanks to a simple interaction.
'sandbox' is filled with regular sand but features an electronic and audio layer underneath, composed of an arduinco microprocessor
with a voice memory module. this allows multiple control points under the sand, with each including a photocell, LED, microphone,
and speaker. when the point is revealed, the LDR photocell triggers the recording mechanism if the voice memory module is empty.
if not, it plays the last message recorded and stored.

http://www.designboom.com/weblog/cat/10/view/15779/jc-karich-martin-de-bie-martin-le-tiec-sandbox.html

flyerboxes to planterboxes

Think of better ways than “Garbage Can” to reimagine the interior spaces of these flyerboxes- better ways to make use of the whole box- not just the exterior walls; Posterchild brings color to the streets of Toronto, Canada. The boxes makes a perfect platform for planters- and with them you can guerrilla garden almost anywhere in the inhospitable concrete city! Best of all, it leaves the sides open for writers and artists. http://laud8.wordpress.com/page/5/  the high line  “High Line is named for the railroad line which connected the industrial section of downtown Manhattan with the West Side. Since 2002 the High Line Project has been turning the remnants of the rail line into a new urban park.” Mark Behnke The High Line was originally constructed in the 1930s, to lift dangerous freight trains off Manhattan’s streets. Section 1 of the High Line is open as a public park, owned by the City of New York and operated under the jurisdiction of the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation. Friends of the High Line is the conservancy charged with raising private funds for the park and overseeing its maintenance and operations, pursuant to an agreement with the Parks Department.It features an integrated landscape, designed by landscape architects James Corner Field Operations, with architects Diller Scofidio + Renfro, combining meandering concrete pathways with naturalistic plantings. Fixed and movable seating, lighting, and special features are also included in the park. http://laud8.wordpress.com/page/5/ okay so i now feel like im going around in circles... until now, not one simple idea has come into my head, i have plenty of ideas that I believe may or may not work and there are so many difficult variable attached to them but i may just have come up with a final solution... personal bike carts! this design will address each design issue: confined living spaces, lack of green space and loss of human interaction with one simple solution!  i wanted to create a bike cart/pod system which worked with hire bikes and each person could have one. i wanted to create a system in the city to promote healthy living, physically and mentally however my tutor didn't really see the potential in this idea so I am  just going to have to keep looking for inspiration... new bike hire system for copenhagen In order to significantly increase bicycle commuting, RAFAA figures that the city of Copenhagen would need approximately 25,000 bicycles. Along with the increased number of bikes, you need a lot of storage (about 20,000 sq meters) and an advanced method for tracking the bikes. RAFAA proposes installing a GPS tracking system in addition to a wireless networking system, so the bikes are connected to both each other and to a large reservation system. This will help enable the city to more accurately judge where bikes should be placed. The online system would also allow riders to reserve bikes before their arrival, say at a train station, and bikes can be checked out with a credit card or a Maestro card. In order for bike share programs to catch on in cities around the world, there needs to be an effective system in place to make it easy for riders to find and use the bikes. RAFFA Arhictecture & Design has developed a city-wide bike sharing plan for Copenhagen that could increase ridership from 37% up to 50% by 2015. The green transportation system features real-time GPS tracking, an online reservation system, and attractive bikes that can be stored anywhere -- even atop lamp posts! http://inhabitat.com/a-high-tech-bike-share-plan-for-copenhagen/ new hybrid transit system   Designer Chiyu Chen has conceived of an ingenious transit system that encourages the use of sustainable transportation by crediting people for renting and riding bicycles. His Hybrid2 system consists of a fleet of rentable bicycles that are capable of generating and storing kinetic energy, which is then used to power the city’s hybrid electric buses. Simply rent a bike, charge it up with kinetic energy from pedal power, and then return it to a kiosk – the station feeds energy into the city’s smart grid, and you receive a credit towards your next bus pass! The core of Hybrid2 is Chen’s regenerative braking system for bikes, dubbed “Hybrake”, which allows riders to generate and store energy from braking and normal biking in an ultracapacitor. In Chen’s vision, the more energy a bicyclist generates, the more monetary credit they are given to use on public transportation. The designer also proposes a solar-powered bike stand outfitted with an RFID card reader to lock and unlock bikes. Personal ID cards will be used to store credit gained from biking for future bus rides, and the whole thing is tied together with a hookup to transfer energy from bikes to the smart grid. Sounds like an ingenious plan for any city trying to reduce traffic congestion! http://inhabitat.com/hybrid-squared-an-energy-generating-bike-rental-system/hybrid051/ my tutor suggested for me to look at floating architecture and use the brisbane river... london river walk The walkway will not only be environmentally friendly with lots of open outdoor space, but will also complement the culture of the city of London. Placed in the heart of the city, the long horizontal park connects many landmarks that are otherwise located down diagonal and difficult to navigate streets. The pathway itself will become a tourist destination with its ferry service, lush gardens , dining areas and even an open-air swimming pool. Along the river park, visitors will also see anywhere from 5 to 8 pavilions that exemplify London. One will be dedicated to green energy, with displays of sustainable architecture, food, and gardening. Another pavilion will be geared towards education, with museum information and a family learning center available for visitors. An innovation pavilion will also grace the walkway, showcasing London’s newest tech gadgets and games, while the events pavilion will host concerts, operas, and special events. After honoring the London river walk with the “Planning Excellence” award last year, Mayor Boris Johnson said, “The sheer beauty and design brilliance of this structure will provide yet another amazing and unique attraction for the capital. We will work… to ensure that one of the most famous and cherished waterfronts in the world is enhanced for the benefit of our great capital.” The structure is fast-tracked to be completed in time for next summer’s 2012 Olympic games in London, where it is expected to be visited by nearly 10 million people. http://inhabitat.com/gensler-to-break-ground-on-floating-thames-river-park-for-london/gensler-river-park2/?extend=1 Offshore oil rig escape pods used as floating hotel rooms in the netherlands These offshore oil rig escape pods seem sturdy enough to survive an explosion, or to even make it to the moon and back, but what about as a cozy refuge? Dutch garbage artist/architect, Denis Oudendijk came across these neat little capsules while searching for an enclosed boat from which to do his research. He enjoyed them so much that he bought more and turned them into a floating hotel based out of Den Haag in the Netherlands. For a mere 60 euros a night, you can sleep in the comfort of a capsule hotel room, complete with fishing net and a hammock!His grand idea is to have a whole community of these floating survival pods, but the pods can be on the expensive side if they need to be transported very far. http://inhabitat.com/offshore-oil-rig-escape-pods-used-as-floating-hotel-rooms-in-the-netherlands/ Petit-Bain: Green-Roofed Floating Building Sets Sail on the Seine in Paris France's Guinguette Pirate has been transforming forgotten barges into cultural venues for over 15 years - and they just unveiled a beautiful new barge-turned-floating building that comes complete with a concert venue, a restaurant, a bar and a lush green roof. Designed by Encore Heureux Architectes and set on the Seine in Paris, the Petit-Bain is a mobile party venue that can easily set sail to switch locations. Petit-Bain’s steel exterior is clad in vertical larch beams, which make the boat look more like a building while adding a beach club atmosphere. The three-storey Petit-Bain is centered around a theater and nightclub, which spans the two-level height, plus a few extra feet via a floor that is submerged in the hull. Paying tribute to its former life, Encore Heureux turned a buoy into a disco ball, which is strung from the ceiling of the theater. It throws dazzling lights around the venue while bands and DJs play. The restaurant sits at river level, and is arranged to encourage social interaction, rather than quiet, private dinners. The interior is inexpensive pine plywood, which compliment the larch exterior. The windows overlook the Seine outside, and there is a bar up top that looks down upon the concert hall as well as the river. Ticket offices, dressing rooms, a coat check, offices and bathrooms are tucked within the Petit-Bain’s interior, accessible by three-foot bridges that fold away when the building is “at sea.” From the outside, the structure extends the quay’s public park space, as it is crowned by a green terrace and hanging gardens. The perimeter of the terrace is lined with 33 white bathtubs from a housing project that have been repurposed into planters. Each tub is planted with aquatic plants from the area. The bright yellow details of the Petit-Bain, mixed with the greenery, serve to enliven the dull grey dock area. http://inhabitat.com/petit-bain-green-roofed-floating-building-sets-sail-on-the-seine-in-paris/

flood harvesting housing

 

Eco Factor: Floating housing concept to generate hydroelectric power. While researchers are trying hard to figure out the best possible way to convert the abundant energy of waves into electricity, architects are providing a number of examples where it can be done with ease and grace. GRO Architects has unveiled their FH2 Flood Harvesting Housing project that can make people live in a sustainable space that generates hydroelectricity. The floating architecture is designed to extend from piers and use river current to power large hydroelectric turbines that will generate electricity. The turbines will generate electricity silently and the space between the networks of turbines can be used in a variety of ways that includes walkways, public spaces and even residences. he newest design features enclosed passageways with trees and other plants also making their way in. The architects don’t mention the amount of power each module will be able to generate and what kind of cost are they looking forward to, but the design definitely shows a green world where energy generation will no longer be dominated by fossil fuels.  

http://www.ecofriend.com/entry/eco-architecture-flood-harvesting-housing-will-generate-renewable-energy-from-water/ 

 AquaDomi Floating Hotel

As its name implies, the AquaDomi Star Hotel is star-shaped. The star shape secures views and balconies towards the water for all rooms, and can easily be turned and adapted to suit different locations. At the same time, it creates three soft bays which allow access to the water for the key functions and provide natural mooring spots for small boats. The dynamic figure also provides the necessary symmetrical balance in the water, and reduces the length of the corridors.The hotel concept has been designed with the option to be scaled from about 100 to 200 double rooms, with modular sizes ranging from 24 m2, and several suites in various sizes up to 100 m2. Beside its rooms, the hotel also contains a restaurant, conference room, lounge bar, hall, reception, personnel facilities, storerooms and production kitchen. 

http://www.homezdesign.com/search/floating+architecture

Floating Island Uses Human Power to Purify Water

Eco Factor: Human-powered water purification floating island. Jakub Szczesny of design collective Centrala has come up with a floating island as a part of the Sychronicity architecture/art festival in Warsaw, Poland. The floating island consists of a set of exercise machines, which when used pump water from the polluted Vistula River to a filtration device.  The filtration device located overhead at the center of the platform purifies water, which at the end of the purification cycle is ready to be used for drinking. The system can serve as a prototype machine which uses human power for purifying water and can be a boon for areas that have no dearth of polluted water that needs to be cleaned with minimum impact on the ecosystem.

http://www.ecofriend.com/entry/eco-architecture-floating-island-uses-human-power-to-purify-water/ 

 http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/17/Brisbane-River-Bridges-Map-New.jpg 

http://chatterbox.typepad.com/portlandarchitecture/2009/03/psu-students-imagine-a-caf%C3%A9-on-the-hawthorne-bridge.html

Prefab Parasite

http://raddblog.wordpress.com/category/research/page/4/ 

Italian Highway Reuse for Parasitic City

http://www.architecture-view.com/2010/10/21/italian-highway-reuse-for-parasitic-city/parasitic-city-slow-uprising-plan/

Bridge Building Idea: Modular Mobile Green River Homes

http://dornob.com/bridge-building-idea-modular-mobile-green-river-homes/?ref=search

Turbine and Solar Bridge 

http://www.greenlaunches.com/architecture/italian-bridge-to-have-wind-turbines-and-solar-panels-hooked-to-underbelly.php 

Parasitic Homes for Post-Disaster Relief

http://www.magicalurbanism.com/archives/3905

UC Planners Envision 'Bay Line' Park on the Old Bay Bridge Span

http://sf.streetsblog.org/2009/09/09/uc-planners-envision-bay-line-park-on-the-old-bay-bridge-span/ 

Some More Floating Architecture Inspiration

http://urbnfutr.theurbn.com/2011/01/meeting-in-the-ecopolis/

http://bubuiainstitute.wordpress.com/page/3/ 

http://www.eirannejad.com/2008/04/16/london-2012-floating-gallery-competition-presentation/

http://www.architecturelist.com/tag/abu-dhabi/

http://www.infoteli.com/beautiful-architecture-spectacular-building-design-concept.htm

OFL Architecture and Fueralab: London Floating Gallery

http://www.designboom.com/weblog/cat/9/view/8754/ofl-architecture-fueralab-london-floating-gallery.html

Futuristic Floating and Flood-Powered Public City Park Design

http://dornob.com/futuristic-floating-flood-powered-public-city-park-design/

Taiwan Tower Floating Observatories and Museum-Winning Design

 http://wordlesstech.com/2010/11/19/taiwan-tower-conceptual-floating-observatories-and-museum/#.TpI6L3EpM18

Floating Cities: Solution Incontestable Environmental Concerns?

http://thg.com.au/news/blog/read/1079/

9h Capsule Hotel 

http://hoteldesign.nu/9h-capsule-hotel-692