Space design and skateboarding

Space, Design &

Skateboarding I. PDF processed with CutePDF evaluation edition www.CutePDF.com

Dissertation

Space, Design and Skateboarding Skating is a continual search for the unknown.

GUIDE: - PROF. S.K.ADITYA COORDINATOR: - PROF. ARPITA DAYAL

Date of Submission: - 13/Nov./2017 NIKHIL SHARMA A/2486/2012 4th Year, Sec.-A

Skateboarding as a process for rethinking architectures manifold possibilities.

DECLARATION The Research work embodied in this dissertation entitled “Space, Design and Architecture” has been carried out undergraduate dissertation programme in School of Planning and architecture (Department of Architecture -New Delhi) under the supervision of Prof. Arpita Dayal.

The undersigned hereby that this is a original work and has not been plagiarized in part or full form from any source.

NIKHIL SHARMA FOURTH YEAR UNDERGRADUATE SCHOOL OF PLANNING AND ARCHITECTURE NEW DELHI.

Sr. No.

CONTENTS

Page No.

I.

Abstract_______________________________________ ______1

II.

Acknowledgements_________________________________ ___2

III.

Introduction

3

IV.

Research Question

4

Aim Objectives Scope V.

Research methodology

5

VI.

Skateboarding History

6

Ramps in India VII.

Skateboarding towards a brighter future

______ _10

VIII.

Skateboarder’s Perspective

12

IX.

Skateboarding and Imagination

13

X.

Skating as an Act of Spatial Reinterpretation

15

XI.

Skateboarding and Architecture

16

XII.

Basic Urban Sidewalk Requirements

19

Paving Materials Desirable Sidewalk Width General Study of Road Sections XIII.

Community of Skateboarders

22

XIV.

Case Study - Pragati Maidan__________________________ ___23

XV.

Case Study - Skate Villa by Philipp Schuster_________ ________25

XVI.

Skateboarding in Public Areas

26

XVII.

Skatespots in India you can’t skate

27

XVIII.

Case Study - Delhi’s First Skatepark

29

XIX.

Case Study- India’s First Rural Skate Park

31

XX.

Conclusions

33

XXI.

References

34

List of Figures Figure 1Skateboard Art in India (https://www.redbull.com) ............................................................... 3 Figure 2 Small Kids are doing Skateboarding in Janwaar Village MP (https://www.woohoo.com) .. 4 Figure 3 Free Skateboarding (http://hobbyboyz.com/) ........................................................................ 7 Figure 4Play Arena Bengaluru (https://www.redbull.com) ................................................................. 9 Figure 5Holystoked Skatepark, Bengaluru (https://www.redbull.com) ............................................ 10 Figure 6 Skateboarding Academy, New Delhi (https://www.redbull.com)....................................... 10 Figure 7Baba Saheb Ambedkar Skate Park, Pune (https://www.redbull.com) ................................. 11 Figure 8We the School, Janwaar (https://www.redbull.com) ............................................................ 11 Figure 9Atita Verghese on Skateboard (https://girlsareawesome.com) ............................................ 12 Figure 10 Anita with skaters (https://www.active8sports.com)........................................................ 13 Figure 11 Atita teaching skateboarding (http://www.notey.com) .................................................... 13 Figure 12Sagar Wagela Skateboarding Delhi Streets (https://www.redbull.com) ............................ 20 Figure 13 General Road Section (http://www.cleveland.com) .......................................................... 22 Figure 14 Riding on the road (http://www.indianshowbiz.com) ....................................................... 22 Figure 15 Riding on the road (http://www.indianshowbiz.com) ....................................................... 22 Figure 16Andrews Ganj Crossing - Right of Way-50.5m ................................................................. 23 Figure 17Panchsheel Enclave - Right of Way-46m ........................................................................... 23 Figure 18Lajpat Nagar - Right of Way-72m...................................................................................... 23 Figure 19 Sunder Nagar - Right of Way-48m ................................................................................... 23 Figure 20Eddie Pereira Preforming Trick (By: Author) .................................................................... 25 Figure 21 Public Plaza Plan (https://earth.google.com)..................................................................... 25 Figure 22 View from the Plaza to outside (By: Author) .................................................................... 26 Figure 23 View from Underpass into Plaza (By: Author) ................................................................. 26 Figure 24 View into the plaza (By: Author) ...................................................................................... 26 Figure 25 View from road to the plaza (By: Author) ........................................................................ 26 Figure 26 Eddie Pereira Preforming Trick at Plaza (https://www.redbull.com) ............................... 26 Figure 27 Lobby view (https://www.dezeen.com) ............................................................................ 27 Figure 28 Fire Place (https://www.dezeen.com)................................................................................ 27 Figure 29 Window (https://www.dezeen.com) .................................................................................. 27 Space, Design and Skateboarding.

Figure 30 Lobby Floral Wall (https://www.dezeen.com) .................................................................. 27 Figure 31Amer fort (http://www.alamy.com) .................................................................................... 29 Figure 32 Amer fort (http://www.alamy.com) ................................................................................... 29 Figure 33Matri Mandir (https://www.redbull.com) ........................................................................... 29 Figure 34Matri Mandir (https://www.redbull.com) ........................................................................... 29 Figure 35ISKCON temple (http://rbasd198.wixsite.com) ................................................................. 30 Figure 36ISKCON temple (http://www.clicksandtales.com) ............................................................ 30 Figure 37Moti Masjid (https://www.indianholiday.com) .................................................................. 30 Figure 38Moti Masjid (http://www.columbia.edu)............................................................................ 30 Figure 39 Skateboarder Mr. Weightman (http://www.supdelhi.com) ............................................... 31 Figure 40 Skateboarding trick at Freemotion SK8 (http://www.supdelhi.com) ................................ 32 Figure 41Freemotion SK8 Park (http://www.supdelhi.com) ............................................................. 32 Figure 42Tricks (https://homegrown.co.in) ....................................................................................... 32 Figure 43 Janwaar Village (http://www.hindustantimes.com) .......................................................... 33 Figure 44 Skatepark Janwaar (http://www.hindustantimes.com) ...................................................... 33 Figure 45Ulrike Reinhard (http://www.hindustantimes.com) ........................................................... 33 Figure 46 Girls Skateboarding in Janwaar (http://www.hindustantimes.com) .................................. 34

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ABSTRACT Skateboarders - skaters or 'sk8ers' for short, see themselves in opposition to these ordinary people.

What sets skaters apart from the rest of society, in their eyes and others?

Author is going to look at the construction of skateboarding and architecture, individual and collective through mapping both the internal and external influences on the skateboarders and the designing of the public space like plazas, squares, sidewalks and streets.

As well as looking at the specifics of skateboarders’ thought process and the basic requirement of space, this research attempts to explain in more depth what skateboarding actually is. Is it a lifestyle, a sport, a hobby, a subculture, or something not yet defined? This is a difficult area because there is no clear-cut answer. Even skaters themselves are not a hundred per cent sure about how to define the activity. There are over 11.08 million active skateboarders in the world today and the skateboarding industry is worth 4.8 billion dollars. These numbers are only growing every year.

'Skateboarding offers the same excitement as surfing and skiing. It has an advantage over these sports however, because it can be enjoyed by those who have no access to surf beaches or snow-covered slopes. It is an urban sport, offering an exhilarated mixture of speed, skill and fun' (Arnold 1977: 11).

'A skateboard is no longer a piece of sporting equipment, like a tennis racket. Instead, it’s more like an electric guitar, an instrument for aggressive, irreverent, spontaneous selfexpression' (Beato 2001: 2).

Figure 1 Skateboard Art in India (https://www.redbull.com)

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I extend my deepest gratefulness towards the institute, friends and faculty for helping and guiding me towards the successful completion of the research project.

I thank my guide, Mr. S. K. Aditya, whose patience and understanding directed my research ahead and his valuable feedbacks always lending a new perspective.

My regards and thanks to my coordinator Ms. Arpita Dayal for her impartial opinions and advices in achieving a better understanding of research methods.

Lastly, I would like to thank my friends and family for their love and support in the hours of informal discussions which helped me broaden my views and complete my research successfully.

Figure 2 Small Kids are doing Skateboarding in Janwaar Village MP (https://www.woohoo.com)

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Introduction In recent decades skateboarding has moved from driveways and skateparks to city parks and streets.

It has expanded from recreation into a form of transportation. Skateboarding has been studied by researchers in urban design, geography, gender studies, sports behavior, trauma medicine, and cultural ethnography.

Whereas many cities around the world have continued to push skateboarding out from homes, shopping streets and other public areas, they have also had to accept that skateboarding is here to stay. Propelled by the rise of street-based skateboarding since the early 1990s, by the popularity of spectacular events like the X-Games and by pro-skater Tony Hawk’s PlayStation video game, skateboarding has entered the cultural mainstream to become a global phenomenon with tens of millions of active practitioners. It is also a multibillion dollar business, with skate shoe company Vans alone turning over $2bn in 2014. On top of this has come the realisation that skateboarding can be actually a good thing. Apart from the obvious benefits of young skaters doing something that is relatively healthy, affordable and accessible, skateboarding is increasingly being recognised as encouraging a whole series of qualities from creativity and entrepreneurship to resilience, confidence and independence.

Through all these ventures, skateboarding is no longer something to be condemned or repelled.

Instead, in the new city skateboarding is increasingly central to debates about the value of public spaces, while simultaneously adding artistic, cultural, educational and commercial value to our urban lives. It is even helping to address some of our most difficult social challenges, and providing hugely disadvantaged, children and youths with new hopes, skills and futures. Far from the narrowminded view of skateboarding as purely countercultural and somehow separate to society, in the new skate city, skateboarding is being celebrated as something diverse, positive and very welcome.

The growing influence of Hollywood and ‘Americana’ is another major reason why the educated Indian classes are growing towards skateboarding. South Delhi has over 500 skateboarders alone and the numbers are rising each day. From a realist point, skateboarding may be the next big extreme city sport in the next 10 years and Delhi is filled with a jillion spots where you can have a great time skateboarding. The metro stations like Saket, Hauz Khas, CP, the pavilions of Pragati Maidan and Ansal Plaza.

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Research Question How can architects address and introduce in their designing concepts of public spaces to the experience of a space by adding sports such as skateboarding in the urban built context?

Aim Aim to understand skateboarder’s appropriate architecture by understanding space requirements and anthropometrics for different techniques of spatial appreciation while designing public spaces also to find challenge of both the form and political mechanics of urban life to investigate the nature of urban space and in particular the role that different peoples' experiences of space.

To investigate the methodological implications of Henri Lefebvre's ideas regarding the social production of space and everyday life for our understanding of architecture, cities and urban space.

To contribute to debates, understandings, policy, skate park design and other skateboard-related activities in the wider public realm.

Objectives Trying to understand the relationship between skateboarding and architecture by understanding the functional aspect as well as design aspect of our existing public spaces, in the context of Delhi city and provide certain directives to make the public spaces of the city more skateboarding friendly.

Trying to understand the engagements between average pedestrian and a skateboarder by the study of street architecture and the scope of skateboarding by adding it as a mode of transportation.

Trying to understand architectural design, subcultural identity and urban experience by including the existing skateboarder’s interviews and their experiences in the city like Delhi.

Scope This dissertation focusses on the basic concept of spaces and its relation with urban context so that to have a clear understanding of the term architecture and skateboarding. This dissertation will also focus upon the factors which will affect the ‘urban built context’ as well as trying to understand the scope of adding the skateboarding as a mode of transportation in our cities for short distances to connect places like markets and metro stations.

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Research methodology Author’s views on skateboarding has typically focused on research exploring public space conflicts, skating as a recreational use, and skate culture’s role in adolescent identity formation. The purpose of this research is to gather initial information on skateboarding and designing public plazas such as public streets and landscapes and as a mode of transportation, to map out the general shape of this sub-field, and to identify topics for further research. Through internet surveys and focus groups of skateboarders in Delhi and various cities in India, this research gathered information directly from individuals who use skating as an experience it in their daily life and a mode of transportation for sort distances, and exploring their perspectives and recording the experiences they have had using skateboards while doing in public places in Delhi and to travel in the urban street system.

Some issues of landscape architecture in skatepark design and siting are addressed occasionally in the land use planning literature, and will only be covered later in relation to themes emerging from the study findings since they generally fall under recreational use rather than transportation. Content produced by skaters for the skate subculture was not used in this research, in the interest of keeping an academic focus and our recognition of the existing anthropological work on skating.

Finally, this research will approach skateboarding as a valid means of designing public spaces and transportation. Author feels that the time has come for research which integrates skating with other travel modes for short distances and designing our public spaces like pathways, streets, gardens for pedestrian as well as skateboarding friendly. A range of external pressures support this position, the rising financial and environmental burdens of fuel, the increased value placed on active transportation by both the public health and planning sectors, and the fact that skating are already being utilized for transportation all justify designing and transportation focused research on skateboarding.

Figure 3 Free Skateboarding (http://hobbyboyz.com/)

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Skateboarding History Skateboarding appeals to all kinds of people. Although a majority of skaters are teenage males, a visit to any popular skatepark will present a diverse collection of patrons. In 2009 there were 9,281,500 skateboarders in the United States. The number goes up and down from year to year but on average has been rising steadily since the 1970s. 6.3-million skateboarders in the United States.

Let us consider how significant 9,281,500 people are in a national sense. In 2010 there were 308,747,508 people in the United States. That means that 2.9% of US citizens stepped on a skateboard at some time that year.

Core skaters are defined as having skated 52+ times per year (once a week, on average). Casual skateboarding participation varies from year to year, likely based on various skateboarding trends such as long-boards and cruisers.

The percentage of core skateboarders has been steadily rising for over a decade. In 2009, the core represented 27.8% of all skateboarding, whereas in 2010 it was 45.2%. Nearly all core skaters start out as casual skaters, so the number of casual skaters can help us predict what tomorrow’s core numbers may look like.

Over 40% of skateboarders ride both long-boards and “trick” boards. Long-boards are used primarily for transportation and just cruising around. This suggests that a significant portion of all skaters use their skateboards for both recreation and transportation.

Skateboarding, for many, becomes the recreational activity of choice well into adulthood. Market research studies reveal that skateboarders are, on average, 14 year old males. This is the thickest point of the bell curve.

Skateboarding began in the beach cities of California, as a surfer’s activity, emulating the surf moves on the hard surfaces of urban subdivisions and concrete. Skateboarding has therefore, always been about appropriating the city.

“The good thing about the Indian consumer is, unlike economies such as China, we are an Englishspeaking population and our connect with the youth across the world is much stronger in that sense and the good thing is that it is not just the rebellious youth who are getting into skateboarding like when it started in the West. It’s more mainstream in India, which is a good sign,”

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Today, we have 11 skate parks or ramps spread across eight cities, with four built just this year.

Earlier in January, India had its first ever skate competition ‘The Third Eye Skate Tour’ and is now becoming a regular stop for international pro-skaters. The numbers are still small, but there’s already a distinct sub-culture rising with its own slang, style and a strong sense of community that transcends social and economic barriers. In Bangalore, for example, approximately thirty IT professionals skate and hang out with much younger street kids who seem right at home. And it’s not just about the stickers on your board or the skate company logo on your T-shirt. It’s also about inspiring a rule-breaking, risk-taking spirit, about playing with laws of physics and society alike.

Much of the credit for the rise of the scene goes to Bangalore-based Holystoked Collective, a group that builds free skate parks, conducts workshops and supports young skaters across the country. It’s never just about the act of skateboarding. Mostly it’s about the sense of community, having something to do together. If a skateboarder meet someone with a board, no matter how different they are from me, we’re automatically connected.

Ramps in India 1. Play Arena, Bangalore Officially the first public skate park in India, this one has a 10ft bowl, a 30ft run and is littered with boxes, spines, ramps, half pipes and quarter pipes to practice your tricks. This park hosts a wide array of obstacles including two kidney shaped bowls one with the deep end being 6 ft. and the other a whopping 12 ft.

Figure 4 Play Arena Bengaluru (https://www.redbull.com)

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2. Holystoked Skatepark, Bengaluru, Karnataka At the time of creation, it was the country's first-ever free skatepark. It was completely funded by Levi's International and this skatepark was constructed within a record time of twenty one days with build crews from five different countries. This 4,000 sq. ft. flow park with a 6 ft. quarter pipe, a super tight cradle.

Figure 5 Holystoked Skatepark, Bengaluru (https://www.redbull.com)

3. Skateboarding Academy, New Delhi Built in a basement in Freedom Fighters Colony, Neb Sarai, this is a small but expertly crafted space with ramps, pillars and graffiti to boot. They also sell boards, stickers and apparel. Also, this is the only park in the country to be made entirely out of wood. This park is roughly 3000 sq. ft. and has a series of quarter pipes and flat bar rails.

Figure 6 Skateboarding Academy, New Delhi (https://www.redbull.com)

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4. Baba Saheb Ambedkar Skate Park, Pune, Maharashtra This is a mad massive bowl bang in the middle of Pune. It’s 10 km. south from Pune Central and is a government built and maintained skatepark. The park does not feature a variety of obstacles but instead just a big bowl with a hip and a 12 ft. vert deep end. The bowl features an 'L' angle metal coping at the top which makes it hard to lock on to grinds.

Figure 7 Baba Saheb Ambedkar Skate Park, Pune (https://www.redbull.com)

5. We The School, Janwar, Madhya Pradesh This massive 15,000 sq. ft. skatepark was an initiative of Skate Aid, Germany and Ulrike Reinhard.

This is part of a tribal school in a densely populated tiger reserve and the closest place for accommodation is 40 km. away. It features skate plaza like stairs with china banks and an 8 ft. vert quarter pipe.

Figure 8 We the School, Janwaar (https://www.redbull.com)

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Skateboarding towards a brighter future When India’s first professional female skateboarder, Atita Verghese, and her team of 12 female skateboarders took the city’s skating scene by storm. The 22-year old Atita spearheads the Girls Skate India Tour, the first of its kind, where an all-female, self-funded crew of skateboarders, filmers, camerapersons and a skate-yoga guide, have toured Kovalam, before they made a stop at Bengaluru, and are now headed to Goa and Janwaar.

Figure 9 Atita Verghese on Skateboard (https://girlsareawesome.com)

Atita is determined to shatter the socio-cultural barriers that prevent gender equality in sport. “There is something inherently wrong with the way in which society has conditioned our idea of femininity,” she says. “The misconception here is that one needs to be meek in order to be feminine. Consequently, girls grow up to be very conscious of their bodies. Young girls need to understand that you can be strong, get on the skateboard, and go home and wear nail polish, all at the same time,”

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“Our societal structure is such that, once a girl hits puberty, it is considered inappropriate for her to be seen jumping around outside. Generation after generation of female oppression has resulted in women lagging behind physically.”

The tour is her attempt at inspiring Indian girls to shed their inhibitions and get on that skateboard.

“Girls tend to be hesitant and often shy about falling while learning. It becomes necessary to hold their hands, show them what is possible and get them involved in the alternate sub-culture that is evolving in cities such as Bangalore,” The future of skateboarding in the country looks bright as Atita declares that it is at the cusp of change.

She can still count the number of female skateboarders in the country but is excited that girls are at least getting involved in the sport which was previously an all-male bastion.

She attributes this change to the growth of an encouraging and supportive skateboarding community that is open to all regardless of age or gender.

Atita hopes to build a collective of female skateboarders and help the underprivileged, for whom skateboarding as a sport is largely inaccessible in terms of equipment and ramps. With an inspiring vision and her eyes set on the future, Atita and her team make for the proverbial ray of sunshine on a cloudy day.

Figure 11 Atita teaching skateboarding (http://www.notey.com)

Figure 10 Anita with skaters (https://www.active8sports.com)

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Skateboarder’s Perspective Author’s interest in skateboarding began well before my interest in architecture. It is not architecture history or theory but skateboarding that influences my social, spatial and conceptual understanding of architecture. My appreciation of the city is through the intimate desire to find new possibilities of representing, imagining and experiencing architecture. The followings investigates skateboarding as a legitimate means of architecture criticism and spatial appropriation.

Traditional architecture theory conceptualises the city as an absolute it is recognised as an object that is not only static but also grounded by regulation. Through the values of skateboarding however, the city is reconceptualised as an amorphous space in constant transition, a space for the flow of ideas, events and activities. French Sociologist Henri Lefebvre argued that ‘In addition to being a means of production and reproduction, space must serve as a tool for thought and action.’

Skateboarding is perhaps an unusual object for study in architecture. However, it is precisely its marginal position that enables skateboarding to function as a critical exterior to the profession.

Skateboarding is fundamentally concerned with the perspicacity of experience.

Author’s own perception of architecture recognises space for production and reproduction. Space is neither stable nor fixed, but is constituted by the discourses and practices of social life. Architecture should be understood beyond the construction of built space and through the practice of skateboarding, architecture can be defined broadly to be the tools, experiences, mappings, compositional processes and social relations that pertain in space.

Architects have often worked alongside the city to deter skateboarders from using public or private space. The danger that skateboarders possesses to the city goes beyond physical considerations and legalities it is about what they symbolise. Skateboarding is the freedom of movement, it does not produce a commodity, and it is an unpredictable and unconventional anti-capitalist value.

The skateboarder requires the skateboard, it involves great effort but produces no commodity in exchange. In contrast, architects exist because they produce a commodity (the building), they inherently support and make money from capitalism.

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Skateboarding and Imagination Architecture criticism is traditionally conveyed through writing. However, skateboarding is also a form of architecture criticism entirely different to writing, drawing or theorising. In the participatory movement of the skateboarder’s body across urban space lies the central critique of the city. It also forms a critique on architecture criticism and considers the need for criticism when concerned with experience to extend beyond the realm of writing. The path of the architect shows his or her critiques of the site through passive observation. Conversely, the skateboarder critiques through movement and incites an active reassertion of touch, hearing, adrenalin, rhythms, balance and focus. The overlapping lines and specific areas of density within the skateboarder’s movement show his or her focus on specific and isolated objects.

Skateboarder Todd Kelly describes skateboarding as the enhanced understanding of spatial meaning ‘I don’t just walk through space without learning anything about it, or without having a relationship with it.’ The skateboarder analyses architecture not for historical, symbolic or authorial content, but for how surfaces present themselves. Architecture theorist and skateboarder Iain Borden advocates skateboarding as a productive means to critique the city.

Borden states ‘architects can learn from the protestant work ethic of skateboarding, which suggests architects can produce different things: to explore building not as a product but as the production of emotions, actions, effort and play.’ When the movement of the skateboarder is applied to the application of criticism, it explores the need to understand buildings beyond visual appreciation and writing. Skateboarding reveals the need to represent the joy and experience of space through participation.

Skateboarding’s critique of capitalism is through the negative dialectic that denies exchange and through the positive dialectic that restlessly searches for new possibilities of representing, imagining and experiencing the city. Skateboarding is not only a critique upon the product of architecture but also upon the role of the architect. Skateboarding describes the need for architecture to consider social value, to be productive of things, and to encourage activities that are not explicitly commoditised. The value of skateboarding when applied to architecture requires the architect to question the city in its conventional arrangement of floors, walls and stairs to reevaluate the importance of spatial experience.

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The skateboarder responds to everyday architecture and appropriates new edits, mappings, meanings and actions. Skateboarding denies the standardisation and repetition of the city as the serial production of building types, functions and discrete objects; it decenters building-objects in time and space in order to re-compose them in a strung-out yet newly synchronous arrangement.

Within Borden’s theory, Skateboarding rejects the idea of the architect as the creator and their work as a project. Production is not seen as the production of things but of desires and actions, the purpose of space is for use rather than exchange, richness is social wealth not ownership, place is composed of time and speed, and the city is the interrogator rather than the determinant of the self.

Deconstructive Architect Bernard Tschumi (1991) describes the need for architecture to focus on the events and actions that must be facilitated within space. Tschumi describes his work as ‘anti-form, anti-hierarchy, anti-structure—the opposite of all that architecture stands for and it is precisely for that reason.’ If architects were to consider the activity of reproducing space, architecture might develop in a manner that allows the pedestrian, like the skateboarder, to appropriate space as they desire. He employs diagrams from dance choreography, music and sports in order to document the intangible movements within space. In the "Manhattan Transcripts," he makes these diagrams/actions the main focus of his project outlining three relations: transformational, spatial and programmatic sequence.

Tschmui questions the casual links between spaces and its events asking, "Do cylindrical spaces go with religion and rectangular with industry?" By supplementing traditional architectural drawing with methods borrowed from other disciplines, which are concerned with the contained, not the container, he attempts to verify if there is a one-to-one relationship at work.

With the follies in the Parc de la Villette in Paris, Tschumi again attacks the space and content relationship by disassociating program from their respective traditional forms and employing methods from the "Manhattan Transcripts" project. He is mainly concerned with ideas of dislocation, disassociation and rupture. With these concepts, Tschumi creates the framework for multiple combinations and substitutions that exist simultaneously. In Architecture and Disjunction, he outlines three concepts crossprogramming, transprogramming and disprogramming. Crossprogramming is the use of a space not as intended; Transprogramming is the combination of disparate programs; and Disprogramming is disparate programs that contaminate each other. These operations offer possibilities of combinations and permutation of existing programs as well new programs. In a sense it is a glossary for the skateboarder’s use of the built environment.

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Skating as an Act of Spatial Reinterpretation Architecture is fundamentally limited to the conception of the building-as-object a theoretical and historical fixation that erases the social and political experiences of the city. By doing so, it neglects the reproduction and experience of architecture. Lefebvre argues that ‘architecture must produce activities and experiences of social and cultural importance.' Skateboarding uses the left over objects of architecture to produce experience and meaning: ‘Two hundred years of technology has unwittingly created a massive cement playground of unlimited potential.’

Architecture rarely considers buildings as the facilitators of social and cultural autonomy.

Architect Lebbeus Woods (1988) responded by creating moments of ‘freespace’ a space with no commodity or pre-determined use that allows pedestrians to use the space socially and culturally however they choose. The skateboarder applies the ideas of ‘freespace’ throughout the entire city and has therefore developed an unorthodox appreciation and ability to seek out potential social relations.

Skateboarding uses the built environment in unanticipated ways. In street skating stair railings become slide rails, benches become jumps. Skating interacts with the built environment with the utmost physicality - a good skate trick has a phase of preparation followed by execution, a landing, and a constant visible fight between the rider and board, momentum, gravity, and the landscape.

Because of this different approach to the built environment skating becomes a topic of contention among stakeholders with various value systems relating the built environment, and skating also becomes a topic of interest for researchers looking for new lenses through which to examine the built environment.

Borden describes the architect as the creator of hierarchies, “of architecture-as-object, architectureas-drawing or architecture-as-idea; the skateboarder disregards these hierarchies to create architecture-as-process, continually repeated, yet forever new.”

While rejecting the current condition of the city skateboarding begins to re-conceptualise the city.

Skateboarders appropriate architecture through different techniques. Each skateboarder finds a different technique and priority for spatial appropriation and creates a different map through space and time.

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Skateboarding and architecture The average pedestrian engages architecture and urban space at only one level, while skateboarders engage in multiple functional levels. An ambler sees a bench and sits on it? Exactly what the architect and designer intended. A skateboarder sees a bench and contemplates. How many different ways can he engage the form of this bench with my wooden board, metal trucks and four rubber wheels? First, I’ll do a rail slide. Then perhaps a grind, regular then goofy footed, maybe into a rail slide. Lastly, perhaps a tail slide or a foot plant and then continue down the street until the next obstacle. They operate tactically, adjusting to the environment like a soldier in the jungle. This modus operandi is the essential difference between the pedestrian and skateboarder.

The average pedestrian experiences architecture a casual and indirect level, one that places architecture in the background of the user. For the skateboarder, the architectural landscape is the main focus; they experience it on a direct and specific level. It is a relationship of board to surface that relies on foot-driven improvisational thinking. For instance, a conventional wall generally differs from other surfaces due to its vertical orientation. A skateboarder does not discriminate on the basis of axis rather all surfaces are treated with equal vigor, engaging everything every which way they can. While financial districts in many cities throughout the world are empty on the weekend, you’ll be sure to see skateboarders making use of public space by grinding and sliding away on corporate headquarters. An argument can be made that skateboarders are the most functional users of this architecture. Similar to the homeless, they engage architecture with a purist’s devotion, optimizing every nuance of the urban realm.

Skateboarding is also a political act. An age group that cannot vote and is not well represented in public office, skateboarders are often restricted by law in their pursuit of architecture.

"No Skateboarding" signs are commonplace on city streets and plazas in an attempt to keep the youth from grinding and sliding away on benches, handrail, steps, fountains and planters. While it is okay for office workers to eat brown bag lunches in the sanctioned "public space" of a corporate tower, skateboarders are shut down. With the police and security guards watching over them, skateboarders struggle to define their public territory. Unhappy and bored with skateparks created to keep them contained, they search for the next rail slide the urban landscape has to offer.

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If we are to completely understand the impact of skateboarding in an urban environment, we must hold a very non biased view toward both the activity of skateboarding and its role to play in the modern city. We must question our nation of ownership and be able to notice the new exclusionary nature of public space. We should also look into how defensive architecture is now setting limits, how we use these so called 'public spaces'. When we talk about an activity like skateboarding it obviously will have its own set of implications on the environment and the other users of the space.

The author maintains that skateboarding is in away critique of negative architectural space, spaces that have been left unused or misused. The activity began in unused parking lots, redevelopment areas and drained swimming pools. Al these are examples of spaces that are not in regular use or are largely unfrequented.

Skateboarding had a huge and growing underground population of enthusiasts, mostly the most impressionable consumer-teenagers. Soon companies, even large corporations like Nike began to take notice as they were losing too many prospective clients. They noticed the huge potential in the field.

Skateboarders remained loyal to the homegrown rooted beards but never the less, this caused a dramatic shift in the way skateboarding was perceived across the US and led to mass marketing propaganda. Not only did skateboarding become more popular, it became profitable, a multimillion dollar industry. The X. Games was conceived of. Never before had a skateboarder referred to skateboarding as extreme before. However, the new appeal to the masochistic extreme tag only led to heighten the craze regarding skateboarding. Video games like ‘Tony Hawk Pro Skater’ suddenly took the world by storm.

A lot of varied perspectives are offered in different texts, which helps one develop one's own largely unbiased perspective on the topic. In any case, we realize that in order for skateboarding to be marketed in the right way, we could use factors such as these, the rejuvenation of unused spots or the health benefits of the activity. The physical activity skateboarding entails makes it a moderately intense aerobic activity according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Whether you're performing daring tricks or cruising down the sidewalk, skateboarding burns calories and improves your health. A 150 minutes of skateboarding in a week is very healthy for an individual. On the other hand, a new industry O generated along with the new market. This will fuel the possibility of employment generation in this sector making the marketing potential immense.

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The abstract space of capitalism harbors many contradictions, not the least being the simultaneous dissolution of old relations and generation of new relations; as such, abstract space is destined not to last forever, and already contains the birth of a new space within itself, Lefebvre’s putative differential space in which socio-spatial differences are emphasised and celebrated. Skateboarding, author propose, is a critical practice, challenging of both the form and political mechanics of urban life, and so in its own small way is part of this birth of differential space. Through an everyday practice, skateboarding suggests that pleasure rather than work, use values rather than exchange values, activity rather than passivity are potential components of the future, as yet unknown city.

Skateboarding creates maps composed from the opportunities offered by the physical and emotional contours of the city and are enacted through new spaces and moments. We must understand that pedestrians use the city to create moments that are different to what is intended. Architects should encourage the ability for spatial appropriation, in order to allow social freedom and experience. By understanding appropriation as important to architecture, architects may begin to focus on the experience of space as opposed to the object.

Skateboarders take over and consume space conceptually as well as physically, and thus strike at the heart of what everyone else understands the city to be. The skateboarder dissolves the physicality of the modern city into the imagination of another micro-space. When applied to architecture, architects must question what is conventionally understood as the city and this will help to shape new appreciations of appropriation and spatial meaning. ‘Surely it is the supreme illusion to defer to architects, urbanists or planners as being experts or ultimate authorities in matters with relation to space.’ Ian Borden proposes, that skateboarding actually becomes architecture, not as the object, but as the production and reproduction of space.

Without license, authority or professional obligations, the skateboarder creates personal space with intimate and subjective meaning.

Figure 12 Sagar Wagela Skateboarding Delhi Streets (https://www.redbull.com)

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Basic Urban Sidewalk Requirements The skateboarding community in India is small – most people haven’t even heard of the sport. From its roots in 1950s California, skateboarding has developed its own subculture, replete with graphic t-shirts and slang like “gnarly.” It also boasts a global star in Tony Hawk.

“In Delhi, we really don’t have any nice sidewalks or roads and stuff, so we can’t skate here. It’s really a pain,” Sarveh Mamgain, a 19-year-old skater, said as he nursed a damaged ankle after practicing in a street of Connaught Place in Delhi because of a sudden drop in the smooth pathway.

Falls and injuries are part of the sport, especially for beginners.

Skateboarding is not being utilized as a transportation mode on our streets. Currently there are no established data sets for evaluating the needs and travel behaviors of skaters. For this research a mixed-methods approach was selected in order to discover similarities between skating and other nonmotorised modes, and also to open an opportunity for skateboarders to share narrative explanations of their decisions and experiences.

All urban sidewalks require the following basic ingredients for success adequate width of travel lanes, a buffer from the travel lane, curbing, minimum width, gentle cross-slope, a buffer to private properties, adequate sight distances around corners and at driveways, shy distances to walls and other structures, a clear path of travel free of street furniture, continuity, a well-maintained condition, ramps at corners, and flat areas across driveways. Sidewalks also require sufficient storage capacity at corners so that the predicted volume of pedestrians can gain access to and depart from signalized intersections in an orderly and efficient manner.

Street surface quality was important to all skaters. The types of poor quality surfaces and problems with skate surfaces were consistent with survey findings reported in the Disadvantages section and the graph of Advantages and Barriers, above. Low traffic volumes were a priority for most participants, mostly as a way to reduce conflict with other modes. Participants agreed that low traffic streets were generally preferable to sidewalks, since they gave skaters enough room to move side to side for breaking and other maneuvers.

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Paving Materials Although most sidewalks are made of concrete, in some instances, asphalt can provide a useful surface. On trails, joggers and some others prefer asphalt. As a general rule, however, the long life of concrete, and the distinct pattern and lighter color are preferred. Paver stones can also be used, and in some applications, they have distinct advantages.

Desirable Sidewalk Width The desirable width for a sidewalk is often much

greater.

Some

shopping districts

require 12, 20, 30, and even 40 feet of width to handle the volumes of pedestrian traffic they encounter.

Designers must pay close attention to minimums, and only use variances below Figure 13 General Road Section (http://www.cleveland.com)

these levels for short sections. On the other

side of the width equation, overly ample sidewalk widths are rarely justified. It is essential to work out the peak volumes of transit discharge, the likely commercial appeal of an area, and the influence of large tour buses and other factors when designing public space.

Be sure to calculate the commercial need for outdoor cafes, kiosks, corner gathering spots, and other social needs for a sidewalk. Sidewalk widths have not been given sufficient attention by most designers. The safety needs from motorists and bicyclists in the roadway must be considered when determining the desirable widths of adjacent sidewalks.

Figure 15 Riding on the road (http://www.indianshowbiz.com)

Figure 14 Riding on the road (http://www.indianshowbiz.com)

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General Study of Road Sections

Figure 16 Andrews Ganj Crossing - Right of Way-50.5m

Figure 17 Panchsheel Enclave - Right of Way-46m

Figure 18 Lajpat Nagar - Right of Way-72m

Figure 19 Sunder Nagar - Right of Way-48m

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Community of Skateboarders Skateboarders are dedicated they show up to practice, rain, shine, or snow (if they have a place to do it) without a schedule. No coach tells them when to arrive, how long to work, or what the next trick is. And yet they make progress. Even when the next trick involves staring down a 7-stair jump, dropping into a bowl that secretly terrifies their mom, or trying a 360 flip to manual for 12 years before landing it, skateboarders keep at it.

Skateboarders have a unique community; they teach, coach, learn, practice, and regulate their practice area silently but effectively. If you have ever watched skaters at a skate park, you know that two skaters cannot drop into the bowl at the same time. Avoiding collision in the bowl is crucial to avoid a trip to the hospital. And yet, no queue is formed because everyone wants to start their run from a different place in the park. Somehow, an unspoken arrangement plays out where everyone gets their turn.

When newer skaters show up who don’t yet know the arrangement, they are gently guided, then chided about how to assess the park and determine whose turn is next. Better skaters coach weaker skaters saying things like, “your weight needs to be forward,” “bend your knees more,” or just, “try dude, you can do this.” No one thinks twice if the more advanced skater is 8 years old and the skater getting the advice is 45.

Skaters are independent and self-sufficient; the sport is built on American principles we hold dear.

They gently enforce a set of guidelines for the benefit of the greater whole with the elders firmly but fairly guiding the next generation.

Despite these admirable qualities and the development of a sport that everyone wants to watch on television, communities still refuse to support this sport and skaters continue to be viewed as trouble. Skate institutions (like my own family’s summer home away from home, Lake Owen Camp), are shutting down. Police stop skaters while business owners and citizens shoo away these athletes with thinly veiled threats. To be sure, some skaters want to be perceived as outsiders.

Rebellion is part of the allure of the sport. But this edge has emerged because of the continued wholesale rejection of the sport and its athletes. And, despite the stereotype, skateboarders are no more likely to smoke pot than any other teenage boys.

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Pragati Maidan Pragati Maidan has public spaces across the road connected with an underpass build with marble and tile finish. This plaza designed in a way that it has different levels and sitting spaces build with planters. Its free and open public space.

Figure 20 Eddie Pereira Preforming Trick (By: Author)

Figure 21 Public Plaza Plan (https://earth.google.com)

Plaza having multiple sitting spaces and multiple planters on an average intervals. Level difference is around 1m down as compare to the road level. And a green belt in between the road and plaza gives a sitting area to the viewers.

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Traveling is one of the best things about skateboarding. India isn't known for its expansive marble plazas or storied skate scene, but sometimes those things are secondary to simply experiencing a new place.

Figure 23 View from Underpass into Plaza (By: Author)

Figure 22 View from the Plaza to outside (By: Author)

Figure 25 View from road to the plaza (By: Author)

Figure 24 View into the plaza (By: Author)

Figure 26 Eddie Pereira Preforming Trick at Plaza (https://www.redbull.com)

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Skate Villa by Philipp Schuster A few tons of concrete was all professional skateboarder Philipp Schuster needed to turn this derelict hunting lodge in Salzburg, Austria, into an indoor skate park.

Figure 27 Lobby view (https://www.dezeen.com)

Figure 28 Fire Place (https://www.dezeen.com)

Once the concrete had set, and rebuilding the place, they installed ramps and then reinstalled a load of the vintage furniture and hunting trophies to reference its former use as a hunter's residence to give the place a bit of character and originality, creating a really cool effect different to most indoor skate spots in that it’s basically an art-deco skatepark rather than a rugged collection of ramps.

Figure 29 Window (https://www.dezeen.com)

Figure 30 Lobby Floral Wall (https://www.dezeen.com)

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Skateboarding in Public Areas Should skateboarding be banned in public places? There are all sorts of opinions on this question from skateboarders, pedestrians and authorities. Philadelphia introduces a ban on skating public sculptures, Laguna Beach set to ban downhill skating, police crackdown in Barcelona Skating isn’t always freedom of movement and sometimes it’s impossible to know where or where not to skate.

But here are 4 cities where authorities welcome skateboarders with open space, allowing them to roam free and even go so far as to encourage the activity.

1) Portland, USA, 2) Malmo, Sweden 3) San Diego, USA, 4) Shenzhen, China Skateboarding emerged in the 1960s, developed by surfers for an activity when the ocean waves were no good. It took off and was perceived as a money-making fad by big business in the 1970s.

But skateboarding is a profoundly difficult and technical sport, leading many skaters to give up, and institutional backers pulled out. The primary skate magazine, Quarterly Skateboarder, was published from 1964-1965, and was revived in 1975 as Skateboarder only to fail again in the early 1980s.

In the 1970s and ‘80s, cities enacted ordinances prohibiting skateboarding, skate parks were filled in, and people who had fallen in love with the sport of skateboarding were left with nothing more than their skateboards and the curb in the local grocery store parking lot. And then only until the manager shooed them off his private property. That’s when skaters started to create their own culture, networks, and commerce from the ground up.

Resistance to skateboarding and skateboarders at the local level despite the commercial and corporate success of the sport are astounding. Companies such as Fallen, Anti-hero, Spit Fire, and Independent support the sport as well as more mainstream corporations like Vans and Nike.

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Skate spots in India you can’t skate There are tons of spots in India which would be amazing to skate on but you just can't because of security, public opinion and sometimes plain respect and decency. Here are some places in India here you could go have a great session in case the authorities change their mind.

Amber Palace, Rajasthan Well, it is a heritage site but just imagine the photo of a kick-flip down the front stairs with the beautiful facade of the building. There are many opportunities on the inside for manual combos and ledge tricks. There are lots of stairs all ending in smooth marble floors.

Figure 31 Amer fort (http://www.alamy.com)

Figure 32 Amer fort (http://www.alamy.com)

Matri Mandir, Pondicherry The Matri Mandir is in Auroville and is sacred to the followers of the 'Mother' who was a 'Aurobindo Bhakth'. The temple was built along with some cool volcano structure giving you massive possibilities. The hitch is that if you skate here you will never be allowed near Auroville.

Figure 33 Matri Mandir (https://www.redbull.com)

Figure 34 Matri Mandir (https://www.redbull.com)

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ISKCON temple, New delhi ISKCON temples are built all over India and each one of them is probably an amazing potential skate spot. The one in New Delhi is no exception with smooth marble and stair combos everywhere.

Since it is built on different levels you can find some cool lines from the top to the bottom.

Figure 36 ISKCON temple (http://www.clicksandtales.com)

Figure 35 ISKCON temple (http://rbasd198.wixsite.com)

Moti Masjid, Agra Everyone goes to Agra to see the Taj Mahal, skaters should go and visit the Moti Masjid instead. It is made of the same type of smooth marble as the Taj and has sprawling flats with lots of grindy areas!

Figure 38 Moti Masjid (http://www.columbia.edu)

Figure 37)) Moti Masjid (https://www.indianholiday.com)

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Delhi’s First Skatepark Freemotion Sk8 The man behind the park is Steve Weightman, a 45-year-old Californian who has spent most of the last 10 years living in India with his family. Crowds of onlookers would gather whenever he skated in public spaces in the Indian capital and that, he says, got him thinking.

Figure 39 Skateboarder Mr. Weightman (http://www.supdelhi.com)

“I wanted skateboarding to be accessible for anybody,” says Mr. Weightman, who began skating at an early age.” The skatepark, named Freemotion Sk8, is tucked in the basement of a half-empty retail complex in Neb Sarai, a south Delhi neighborhood. It opened in January. The mini ramp is the main attraction, but the park also has a quarter pipe, two funboxes and a pole jam for skateboarders to perform tricks and jumps. “People from nearby have come, from north Delhi and even from out of the city. The reaction has been very positive,” Mr. Weightman said.

“Being able to bring people from all over the world to join in on the project was great… For all of the skateboarders, it was a way to give back to skateboarding, something that has brought them so much joy their entire lives,” Space, Design and Skateboarding.

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Skateparks are ideal for India, better not to do it on the public roads.

Figure 40 Skateboarding trick at Freemotion SK8 (http://www.supdelhi.com)

“The good thing about the Indian consumer is, unlike economies such as China, we are an Englishspeaking population and connect with the youth across the world is much stronger in that sense.

“The good thing is that it is not just the rebellious youth who are getting into skateboarding like when it started in the West. It’s more mainstream in India, which is a good sign,”

Figure 41 Freemotion SK8 Park (http://www.supdelhi.com)

Figure 42 Tricks (https://homegrown.co.in)

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No School, No Skateboarding: India’s First Rural Skate Park Located along the fringes of the Panna National Tiger Reserve, the Janwaar Skating Park is a non-profit project that teaches village children skateboarding free of cost.

For the student studying in primary school at Manilal, one of several goatherds, makes his way through the village. The village was formed when these villagers were relocated here from within the forest area.

Figure 43 Janwaar Village (http://www.hindustantimes.com)

The first rural skatepark in India is an island of fun for the village children. The park, popularly known as Janwaar Castle, was built by German community activist ‘Ulrike Reinhard’ as a centerof the skateboarding for the local kids. Children start training here as young as the age of 5, practicing twice every day.

“I started with the idea to empower the kids,

Figure 44 Skatepark Janwaar (http://www.hindustantimes.com)

help them learn a new skill, and encourage them to study in the school — girls, as much as boys,” says ‘Ulrike Reinhard’, the German activist who built the park.

Children have access to the skate park only as long as they attend school regularly.

Reinhard says the attendance at school has gone up since the park started.

Figure 45 Ulrike Reinhard (http://www.hindustantimes.com)

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The park is a place for unfettered fun, but has two strict ground rules. Rule number one, girls first.

And rule number two, no school- no skateboarding.

The number of girls attending school has gone up in recent times. At the park, too, girls get preference. The kids share 15 boards, but like good young gentlemen, the boys must let the girls go first.

The park bridges caste disparities by bringing together the village’s Adivasi and upper caste Yadav and Kushwaha children to play together.

The kids are so attached to their skateboards that they rarely let go of them. To them, it’s the ultimate definition of fun. The skate-park attracts 50 to 60 children every day. They skateboard and, while awaiting their turn.

She is gratified that the children love skateboarding and find it "cool". "To skate and hang out there and participate in our activities, they would do anything -- even going to school," Speaking of skate-boarding, she said, "It teaches you to fall and rise, take risks and most importantly, maintain balance."

Figure 46 Girls Skateboarding in Janwaar (http://www.hindustantimes.com)

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Conclusions Skateboarding has a deep appreciation and understanding of architecture, regardless of how unconventional or subversive it may be. Ultimately, skateboarding helps to rethink architecture’s manifold possibilities. Through the movement of the skateboarder across urban space, and in its direct interaction with the city, skateboarding forms its critique on architecture. When skateboarding values are applied to architecture, architects must reconsider conventional conceptions of space, values of experience, notions of control, ideals of freedom and architecture’s contribution to corporate structures.

It’s time to make some changes. When a skater is practicing on a curb or stairwell, stop and admire his or her grace and athleticism. Compliment the trick. If your baby is sleeping or you are in a meeting and the noise is bothering you, consider explaining this to skaters rather than simply yelling, “I’m calling the cops!” Then, encourage your city to build a skate park (or at least don’t protest it) because, as the skaters will tell you, “if your town does not have a skate park, then your town is a skate park.”

So what can skateboarders offer architects?

First, we must admit that the connection between space and program is shaky. Second, we have to attempt to document these dynamic relationships between the architecture and its user. Last, we need to utilize these documents to begin to create a space that holds the possibility of improvisation by the user. With these attempts, the potential of new programs and spaces arises. Basically, architects must grind (Practice Skateboarding).

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References: 1. Wikipedia.(2010). Henri Lefebvre. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henri_Lefebvre.

2. Gavin, F.(2007).Street Renegades: New Underground Art. Lauren King Publishing Ltd., London, UK. 3. Borden, I. (2001).Skateboarding Space and the City; Architecture and the Body. Berg, Oxford.

4. Pooley, J. (2007).Skateboarding vs Architecture. Viewed 23 September 2010, http://www.skynoise.net/2007/09/15/skateboarding-vs-architecture/.

5. Lefebvre, H. (1991b).The Production of Space. Pg 4. Blackwell, Oxford.

6. Borden, I. (2001).Skateboarding Space and the City; Architecture and the Body. Berg, Oxford.

7. Mainter, J. (2010), pers. comm. Interview conducted by Linda Bennett.

8. Shudder speed. (1981), Thrasher magazine.

9. Nobel, P. (2010), pers. comm. (email) Interview conducted by Linda Bennett.

10. laura-beth-nielsen/skateboarding-laws 11. rolling-4-skater-friendly-cities.

12. skateboard-cities 13. Richard Untermann, Accommodating the Pedestrian.

14. http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/no-school-no-skateboarding-india-s-first-rural 15. https://www.redbull.com/in-en/7-awesome-skatespots-in-india-you-can-skate 16. https://www.dezeen.com/2012/06/09/skate-villa-by-philipp-schuster/ 17. http://www.cleveland.com/architecture/index.ssf/2015/01/preliminary_version_of_east_si.html 18. https://www.pexels.com/search/skateboard/ 19. http://www.vans.co.in/article/girl-stake-india-1/ 20. http://www.holystoked.com/blog/ Space, Design and Skateboarding.