Your ‘Grandfather’ space by shaunhuang21

Huang Junjie Shaun Glasgow School of Art

What does it mean to inhabit a public space?

This project aims to investigate the inhabitation of public spaces in Singapore as the way people inhabit the space may not necessarily be the way it was designed. Specifically, I will be looking at public spaces through the lens of American urbanist and sociologist William H. Whyte who studied human behaviour in urban settings.

Research & Questions

does public spaces simply become habitable with objects of habitation in it?

A collage questioning the idea of inhabitation in a public space

Your “Grandfather” space Adjective 1. A Singaporean term used to describe a sense of ownership or behaving however way one wants or feels. “Why do you cross the road without looking at the cars, do you think this is your grandfather’s road?”

INHABITING PUBLIC S

SPACES SPACES This project was inspired by the phenomenon inhabitations of people in public spaces. An example will be how people can behave so comfortably in public spaces by lying or sitting however they like, removing their footwears, owning the space.

Exploration

CONTENTS Research and Questions

Site Findings

Methodologies of Investigations

Exploration

Timeline of Public Spaces

112

Intervention

The “ideal” public space

117

Phase 3

Precedent Studies

122

Site Findings

Phase 1

136

Exploration

Site Findings

142

Intervention

Exploration

148

Conclusion

Intervention

Phase 2

What methodologies were employed in this investigaion of public inhabitation in Singapore?

METHODOLOGIES OF INVESTIGATIONS

Understanding observations

inhabitations

through

This ideal of observing people in public spaces in my project was inspired from William H. Whyte book on ‘ The Social Life of Small Urban Spaces’. Through his observations and documentations, Whyte then concluded which public spaces were successful in getting people to inhabit them rather then just passing by. He dissected public spaces into several elements such as sitting space, food, “undesirables” and effective capacity before evaluating what works and what doesn’t. Similarly, this method will be carried out on my specific site before evaluating on the intervention.

Understanding public precedent studies

spaces

through

A timeline of notable public spaces over the years will be gathered in an attempt to disect and understand how the idea of public space had changed over the years before evaluating and deciding on which is the “ideal” public space that should be in today’s context.

Methodologies of Investigations

A collage of words taken from a newspaper that is representing the public space I envision

SO WHAT KIND OF OBSERVATION STUDIES DID WHYTE DOCUMENTED?

As mentioned before, Whyte had came up with several elements to look at while observing a public space, I however will be just looking into sitting space and “undesirables”. With sitting being the posture or way people dwell/sit in a space and “undesirable” as the way people act or behave might not be desirably right such as sleeping in public or removing one’s footwear in public.

As shown below, William managed to capture the unscripted inhabitations of people in the public space such as lying down or sitting in a certain posture to their own comfort.

Methodologies of Investigations

This way of observation and documentations will be carried out at my site in an attempt to capture these unscripted inhabitations, showing how people prefer to inhabit in public before evaluating and re-designing a public space for the people.

A few photographs of unscripted inhabitation in public space captured by William H. Whyte

SO HOW HAS PUBLIC SPACES CHANGED OVER TIME? Here is a timeline of notable public spaces collated and reflected by me in an attempt to find the “ideal” charcteristics of a public space that should be model of all public space today.

Public space dates back to ancient Rome and Greek period where people used it for gathering on a poltical stand.

Greek Agora, focal point of poltical, economic and social life

The idea of public space evolved over time where it became a place of trade or a large piazza where people can inhabit and watch people. However, with it comes tension such as debates over privacy and upper class citizens taking over the space.

Medieval Market Square, a place for trading, tension between public and private space 1700s

600 - 500 B.C 1600s

Roman Forum,religious and civic activities as well as council and political meetings

The San Marco Square, residential quaters around square primarily for the upper class. Restricting the public access to the use of the squares

During the modernist period, the city was envisioned as a system whereas public space was regarded as a non-essential.

To me, this event of the Paris riot represented the “ideal” of a public space, a place where people should be able to act freely.

However, in today’s context, public space have been diluted and commercialized where people just see it as place of rest or seating.

The Grand Central Shopping Mall in Birmingham. Public spaces in contemporary cities are under the pressure of capital and privatization. This lead to a significant reduction of the public realm and the loss of public space.

Le Corbusier’s Plan Voisin for Paris. The city and its public space were designed as an organized system, the modernists paid little attention to the historically created public spaces

1968 Present

1925

Students protesting in Paris, May ’68. Photograph. Protestors frequently appropriated public spaces, and sometimes private ones, to voice their dissent

For Singapore, public space was controlled from the start by the government where people were told where they could inhabit. However, the Padang became an iconic place where people could express themself similar to the Paris Riot in 1968.

The Jackson Plan which segregated the colonials from the indigenous and other ethnic group to control them

As time pass, more guest workers came into Singapore which resulting in forming the “Sunday enclaves” where unscripted inhabitations of using public space happened such as pinics on the streets.

Malay riots in the Padang after the celebration of Prophet Muhammad’s birthday

1945

1823

The Padang served as a symbolic venue where the Japanese surrendered The Padang became a “people’s place” and “a site of representation” during the 1950s to 1960s

1990s

1964

Public space on the weekends were a peculiar phenomenon as groups of guest workers form “Sunday enclaves” that impact public spaces in the city like Lucky Plaza.

Timeline of Public Spaces

The Speaker’s Corner gave people a platform to voice out but there was still a sense of control by the government unlike the unscripted inhabitations of the “Sunday enclaves”.

The government allocated public gathering space such as pavilions and void decks in the neighbourhood for people but up till date, people still could not act however they want with many restrictions and fines.

“Public Space and Urban Waterfront Masterplan” by the URA transformed spaces into a mixed and multi-use space for commercial, residential and entertainment envisioning “Live-WorkPlay”

Precinct pavilions are developed in favor to the void decks that are discontinued. It solves as a religious and ceremonial needs of the residents at the same time maximizing spaces of utility

2003 2000

20002010

As a response to free speech, a Speaker’s corner was launched at Hong Lim Green, a small forgotten park in the city.

SO WHAT IS THE “IDEAL” PUBLIC SPACE TO ME?

Looking at the timeline of events, I will like to look back at the times where public spaces were defined by the people rather than built for the people by the government.

Here is a quote from an article titled “Public Spaces: Places of Protest, Expression and Social Engagement” Written by Christele Harrouk.

‘“Public space” is a legal terminology that tackles the notion of land ownership, suggesting that this type of parcel does not belong to anyone in particular, but to the state itself. Open, free, accessible to all, and financed by public money, these spaces are not only the results of planning, but the consequences of the public practices they hold. Actually, people define how public space is used and what it means.’

From William H. Whyte ‘The Social Life of Small Urban Spaces’. He mentioned about this term of people known as the “Undesirables” where people will attempt to chase them away from the public space to prevent them from loitering, sleeping, eating or sitting.

Public space are meant for all without exception of social class, gender and race. However, as Whyte noticed, the public space was designed with an intention of chasing them away.

“So it is the benches that are made too short to sleep, that spikes are put in ledges; most important, many needed spaces are not provided at all, or the plans for them scuttled”

I envision public space as a space for anyone and everyone. Similar to the unscripted inhabitations of the Paris Riot in ‘68 and the “Sunday enclaves”. A space where the people owns, a space that is defined by the users, giving them a sense of belonging and allowing them to act or speak without any restriction.

A collage showing people torn from the public spaces they are in, which are irrelevant now because it is them who define the space

Are there any local interventions in public spaces of Singapore that may have envision a similar context of public space inhabitation?

PRECEDENT STUDIES Here are two precdent studies in Singapore that I feel shared similar characteristics of what an ideal public space is to me: Project Oasis at Little India

An image of people doing yoga in the rejuvenated public space. Source: https://www.straitstimes.com/lifestyle/home-design/shades-of-fun-in-public-spaces

Project Oasis is an installation done by Marthalia Budiman. Her

intentions were to rejuvenate the space into a more positive and

functional space for the community as when it gets crowded during the weekends, there were not many publics spaces for people to gather. The umbrellas were used to bring shade at the

same time highlighting it as a gathering space for the communi-

ty, the vibrant colours used were to integrate the Indian Culture into the space.

The takeaway from this project will be to observe and understand the community in the public space properly before injecting any form of design into the space which may end up disrupt-

ing the essence of the space. The design should then rejuvenate the space and be for the people, the community there.

Precedent Studies

Shifting concretes: “Can we lepak better at Orchard Road?”

Images of the installation and users interacting with it on Orchard Road. Source: https://www.quekjiaqi.com/shifting-concretes-can-we-ldquolepakrdquo-better-at-orchard-road1.html

Shifting concretes: “ Can we lepak better at Orchard Road?” was

a public art intervention co-hosted by The Substation. The aim was to provide a comfortable space for people walking along

Orchard road to rest and at the same time interact and create their own space to “lepak” (rest) with the materials available like cushions, rugs, bean bags and many more.

This project was successful in getting user to interact with it

despite being in the city. The intervention should be subtle to invite user into the space without them feeling like they are being watch.

Phase one - The Neighbourhood

PHASE ONE - THE “RIGHTS” TO SIT IN YOUR NEIGHBOURHOOD

The first investigation will be located at a neighborhood district as people will be less conservative. There will be more opporunities of capturing unscripted inhabitations of people making the public “home-like” for them. Specifically, the first exploration aims to create an experience of homeliness and rights for the users inhabitating the space.

Phase One

DOCUMENTING THE SITE FINDINGS

The site chosen is a pavilion located in the heart of a bustling neighborhood district situated at Tampines Ave 7. The site

is chosen as the pavilion is a popular gathering spot for the community in the area which allows opportunity for observing human interaction with the space.

Interestingly back when the Tampines disctrict was being build 1970s - 1980s, the pavilion was not there but the present footpath is. It can be inferred that the pavilion was specifically placed there as people will be forced to interact with it somehow whether physically or visually as they make their way through the footpath towards the communities of wet market and eateries.

Site Findings

A place of trade

Upon exploring the amenities around the pavilion, a wet market was found which reminded of how public space was once a place of trade.

This significant finding should be highly considered to incorporate into the intervention as it represents a distinct part of the community in this public area at the same time it creates the opportunity to bring back this essence of “trade” into public space.

Site Findings

A place of rest and dwelling

Site Findings

Upon entering the pavilion, there is a

clear distinct between the benches on

the left where there are more individual inhabitants with unscripted way of sitting the benches and concrete platform on the

right where more groups seating tend to happen.

It is important to keep this distinct hierarchy of seatings between the left

and the right so that there will still be

a sense of familiarity for the inhabitants after the intervention is introduced.

A place of privacy and comfort

This man was bird feeding before getting fruastrated with me capturing his image and confronting me. From this I learned that it is important to respect the inhabitant’s privacy despite it being a public space where everyone can see you.

However, it was intriguing to study the way the inhabitants sits in the public seating as it seems everyone have their own way

of using the default sitting to achieve their optimum comfort. By sitting in a specfic way also creates some form of private boundary.

Exploration

A place of dining

Everyone seems to know everyone, as one by one another individual on an errand would pass by and stop to converse with their friends.

Some would even have their meals here all set up nicely as if on a picnic date. This dining experience is important to recreate in the intervention.

Site Findings

An empty shell during the nights

The maximum time limit a person would

sit there at night was only up to 1015 mins as they just needed to catch a breather before heading home or just

catch a quick meal. A huge contrast to

the day where the people would stay there for almost a few hours.

Site Findings

Compared to the day, the night was a

huge contrast in terms of life. There was barely any inhabitants in the space hence I captured a few objects which tells the story of the inhabitants before I arrived.

It seems the inhabitants already have

their spot in this pavilion as this man chose to sit nearest to the bin with the

ash tray so that he could easily get up for a smoke.

So what does it really mean to inhabit a public space?

What does it mean to inhabit a space? How does one sit or dwell in it?

To understand the inhabitants of the site inhabit and dwell, I tried to trace the way the sit, their posture, how they eat, how they inhabit the space and made themselves comfortable in the public space.

Exploration

As the night was rather quiet, the shadows, lights and objects left by the inhabitants stood out more.

EXPLORING FORMS OF INHABITATIONS

An egg tray module was used to explore and understand different forms of dwelling and inhabitation better. As the egg shell opens up, it creates different variation of privacy and dwelling-ness for a person to inhabit in. The egg tray module was used as it resembles a form of dwelling to me like how the egg sits comfortably in it.

Panton installation of seating depicts a sense of free form seating where the user can dictate where to sit in this continuity flow of seating. Similarly, with these series of makings, I was trying to explore the boundaries of form that is ideal for sitting or dwelling. Visiona 2, exhibition for Bayer, Cologne Furniture Fair by Verner Panton Source: https:// archive.curbed.com/2018/9/4/17806432/ verner-panton-chair-interior-design

Exploration

Technically anywhere can be inhabited as long as the user perceived as a space of inhabitation, similarly to the concept of a public space where the user should be able to use the space freely.

By compressing the egg tray module, it creates different spatial opporunity for users to inhabit in.

Using the same method of exploration, this time with one and a half module and three modules of egg tray. The results where that more opening or voids were created where people can also inhabit in.

Exploration

But having too many opening may be too awkward or attract too much attention of the person inhabiting it, hence I reconstructed the long module by closing up all the holes and the result was as shown below.

In conclusion, from this makings, I have learned how open or close the form should be to create the level of privacy and comfort for the inhabitants.

EXPLORING SITTING AS A FORM OF INHABITATION From William H. Whyte perspective on sittings in ‘The Social Life of Small Urban Spaces’, he mentioned a term integral sitting.

And I quote:

“Ideally, sitting should be physically comfortable-benches with backrests, well-contoured chairs. Its more important, however, that it be socially comfortable. This means choice: sitting up front, in back, to the side, in the sun, in the shade, in groups, off alone.” Therefore, in order to design this ideal form of seatings, I will used the documented silhouette of the people in the public space to design a form that compliments the way they sit or dwell in the space to create a sense of homeliness and comfort.

By overlaying the outlines of the way the inhabitants sit, a distinct difference in forms can be seen from people that behave orderly and sit how the public seatings were intended compared to people that sit however they want making themselves comfortable and owning the space itself.

Exploration

The form from the egg shell was used to see if it could accomdate the current postures of the inhabitants. However, the form looks quite disruptive and alienated which will not compliment the exisiting site.

Instead of starting with a form, I tried exploring the forms base on how to inhabitants postures were. For example, inhabitants that were seen using their phone while waiting for their friends were leaning on the surfaces which do not require a full seating hence the form on the right.

EXPLORING THE SEQUENCE OF SEATINGS Individual inhabitations

Individual seatings will remain on the left as it initially was but with different various forms based on the way the users sat and dwelled. Whereas on the right it will be designated for group and community seatings and activities where initially the people were already having their group meet ups and meals there.

This installation creates an experiece of various seating but still maintaining a form throughout which is something my intervention will want to achieve.

A seating installation titled Please Be Seated by Paul Cocksedge Source: https://www.londondesignfestival. com/event/please-be-seated

Communal inhabitations

Exploration

The intervention should be a continuous flow of seatings that varies depending on the inhabitants. It should not disrupt the main flow of traffic in the center that the people use to get to the amenities.

EXPLORING MAKING

SEATINGS

Making from scratch To visualize the space better, I attempted to mould the form for the individual inhabitation with a little site context of the columns to see how the form will flow.

THROUGH

The form of seating or rather space of dwelling and inhabitation changes based on how the people used and percieved the previous regular seating For example, the seating becomes a half leaning seating for users that does not inhabit the space for long and only needs a little edge to lean on while waiting.

Exploration

Or how the seating becomes more concaved and enclosed the user giving them more privacy to really go all out lying down or sitting with their legs out comfortably.

The model was sketched out in an attempt to refine and clean up the form. At the same time, exploring the sequences of which variation of seating comes first.

The manga pod was designed with the ergonomics of how manga readers sit while reading, letting them inhabit the space comfortably with a sense of privacy. The intervention aims to achieve a similar outcome but instead of manga reader it will be based on the users of the site and how they inhabit it.

Manga Pod by Atelier Bow-Wow Source: https://www.art-u-room. com/0409mangapod-eng

Exploration

The curves of the seating gives subtle hints as to how it should be used with the leaning, lying or just sitting to have a meal. But at the same time there is a sense of ambivalence where the user inhabits the space up to their own interpretation of using it, creating this sense of “rights” of how the inhabitants want to use the space.

Sculpting the overall form

I began moulding the final form onto the actual site at a 1:50 scale model. The people will be greeted by regular seatings before they transit to seatings of different forms and purpose.

Exploration

As seen by the forms of the seating inspired by how the users sat previously in the public space, there is many ways and interpretation to the seatings, literally any part of the intervention could be sat on or dwelled in which creates this experience where the user can own the space.

Refining the details of the form

As some people don’t stay for long, this kind of seating is made for them with just a ledge to lean on and they can also charge their phone will waiting for their friends.

Exploration

By keeping the stage, it allows an opporunity for public performances to bond the community

Bringing the wet market into the space as a place of trade was once a public space. Rails and bars will be inserted to hang the goods to be sold.

However, i felt that the intervention was too raw and snake-like. Hence looking back at the round-ness of the site, I attempted to contour out the movements and inhabitation points of the people to achieve cohesive-ness. The different permutations were then attempted to be mould into three-dimensional forms.

Exploration

Here is what i envisioned neighbourhood public space to be

THE “RIGHTS” TO SIT IN YOUR NEIGHBOURHOOD

Intervention

The final material used is the mosaic tile on the void deck seatings to create a sense of familarity and comfort for the inhabitants. This intervention aims to provide a home-like experience for the inhabitants with its curves that cater to different posture of sitting.

Intervention

Phase 2 - The City

PHASE TWO - THE “RIGHTS” TO RECLAIM THE CITY

The second investigation will be located in the city district. This time other than understanding the “rights” of the people in the public space, I must also take into account of introducing an intervention that does not disrupt the commercial side of the space like the retail shops as the owners themselves paid rent and too have the “rights” to the space. The second exploration aims to create an experience of freedom of using the public space in the buzzing city, at the same time incorporating an engaging shopping experience for the people and the owners. Moving forward, much of the documentation of the people in the city may be domestic workers, however this project does not revolve designing for them but rather just studying the way they inhabit the city and ask why do we not inhabit it the same way? To clarify, this project is not targeted on any specific community in the city but rather the people of the city in general.

Phase Two

A collage showing the city scapes with unscripted inhabitations by the people

So how do people of the city inhabit differently from the people of the neighbourhood?

DOCUMENTING THE SITE FINDINGS 2.0

Site Findings

The site chosen for this phase is Lucky Plaza as I felt the place had lost its “rights” of public inhabitation as shown there were signs placed around preventing the people to inhabit the public area. This may be due to the recent pandemic. Below, the red circles showed where people moved to inhabit instead as there were no restrictions. The second investigation aims to restore the “rights” of public inhabitation into the streets of Lucky Plaza without disrupting the commercial shops but rather create an engaging shopping experience as well.

The Street and the Shops 1

The whole stretch of the street level was documented from 1 -4 order. This is important as the shop placement, context (eg. clothes, food, etc) and vacancy will dictate the placement and context of the intervention later on.

Site Findings

The way they inhabit beside Lucky Plaza

On Sunday, the public seating outside Tangs were barricaded off as it look like

an attempt to prevent public inhabitation which might disrupt their business.

Heres what it looked like on any other

day except a Sunday. As compared to the neighbourhood setting, inhabitants are

more conserative in terms of not sitting however they like but rather orderly.

Site Findings

The way they inhabit opposite Lucky Plaza

Site Findings

Similarly to the first finding beside Lucky Plaza, there is a distinct different of inhabitations between a Sunday and any other days as shown as shown on the left and right.

It is amazing how the people of the city could fully utilized any structural elements

as a form of inhabitation. One thing to look into will be this sense of overcrowding as space constraint is one of the factor of the city.

The way they inhabit on steps

Heres what it looked like on any other

day except a Sunday. As compared to the neighbourhood setting, inhabitants are

more conserative in terms of not sitting however they like but rather orderly.

Site Findings

Moving forward, the explorations will be catering to the overcrowded inhabitations with the knowledge that people of the city can inhabit on any structural elements and height similar to the inhabitations on the steps.

EXPLORING INHABITATION ON DIFFERENT HEIGHTS

The Overlook is organized as a single ribbon of concrete that emerges from the earth, rising and falling as it moves to the edge of the bluff. From a distance, the form dissolves and reemerges as line or plane in response to the quality of light, the weather, time of day and changing point of view. Similarly, the exploration was done in a similar movement to mimic the appearance of seatings appearing and disappearing. Maryhill Overlook by Allied Form Works Source: https://alliedworks.com/projects/ maryhill-interpretive-overlook

Exploration

This series of exploration was done in a way of creating seatings of different height using a different cuts on a single element. This was an attempt to re-create the play of different height similar to the documentation of steps in the city. However, the makings explored could be unsuccessful in being too disruptive in a narrow shopping district.

the way they inhabit the City

I went back to a similar approach as phase one where i traced and study the posture of the city inhabitants.

However, the city inhabits differently as I see a sense of overcrowding inhabitation.

EXPLORING THE INHABITATIONS

BOUNDARIES

OF Excrescent Utopia by Milo Ayden De Luca Source: https://www.miloaydendeluca.com/ excrescent-utopia

Excrescent Utopia is a conceptual parasite dwelling providing a new generation of homeless citizens temporary shelter through the occupation of the urban fabric’s invisible spaces, proposing a new identity and raising awareness of society’s neglect. Horizontal boxes would provide areas for lying down and sleeping, while vertical spaces would provide a space for busking, he suggested.

Boundaries of inhabitants

Similarly, I will be using this technique of boxing to understand better the boundaries and space needed for this series of crowd inhabitations. The idea is not to box the people up but just to see what series of modules can be configured base on the postures.

Looking back at ‘The Social Life of Small Urban Spaces’, Whyte too talked about how much sitting space is enough as he measured all the sitting space in plaza but realised that one configuration of sitting offers unless combinations of choices in terms of the way the inhabitant can sit. This is to put emphasis on the point inhabitants can always make the most of the given space.

Exploration

100

Modules of inhabitations

Exploration

101

Here are a few modules of inhabitation boundaries based on the inhabitants. On the left shows a series of modules attempted to configure on to the site to show a conceptual sketch of how the intervention will look like.

102

Adding details and functionality to the modules

Moving forward with the modules, it is explored on what it can be by becoming a platform, a frame, a block depending on the functionality and experience intended for the section of the street. I will look into applying and configuring the module with the shopping street photos documented at the start. On the right is a rough sketech of a possible configured outcome. The outcome will hang onto the sheltered roof on certain parts to prevent disruption of shopping traffic.

Exploration

103

A porus cloth can be used to cover certain parts of the frame to create a sense of privacy for the inhabitants but at the same time invoke a sense curiousity to the passerby. A concept model was made to explore thus configuration with a translucent paper user to subsitute the porus cloth.

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Mapping out the configurations

Exploration

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Exploration

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Modelling the configuration

Here is a 1:50 scale model of the configuration, however this is only the first half of the street as the modules can be repeated depending on the context of the shops

Exploration

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Here is what i envisioned inhabitation in the city to be

112

THE “RIGHTS” TO OVERCROWD THE CITY

The installation for the street aims to provide both inhabitations and a engaging shopper experience for the inhabitants so that it is a win/win for both shop owners and inhabitants. However, this, failed in a way not being more subtle with its large frame like structure which can be further refined.

Intervention

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Intervention

115

Phase 3 - The City Within

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PHASE THREE - THE “RIGHTS” TO THE CITY WITHIN

The third investigation will be located inside city itself which in this case, inside Lucky Plaza itself. The idea being that malls with large atriums missed out on the opportunity for public inhabitations. Specifically, the third exploration aims to create an experience of public inhabitations where the people and shops within the mall will have some form of connectivity and interaction. However, this phase will be rather speculated and conceptual.

Tay Kheng Soon, a veteran Singaporean architect designed People’s Park Complex with a large atrium with an idea of it being a “city room” where the people can inhabit. Similarly, Lucky Plaza have a large atrium with a misopportunity of public inhabitations.

“But the city is not architecture: the city is a continuous spatial system, that’s all.” -Tay Kheng Soon

Phase Three

119

A collage showing an idea of “city room” inhabitations in an atrium.

120

AN IDEA OF A VERTICAL ATRIUM

Phase Three

121

“In Tokyo, I learned that you don’t have to shop on the street level. As long as you have escalators, you can go as high as you want.” -Tay Kheng Soon

Due to the atrium being large vertically, it allows for an opportunity of vertical inhabitation in order to avoid disruption on the ground floor. On the left is a conceptual sketch of escalators connecting upwards showing a possbile intervention inbetween the atrium hanging.

122

DOCUMENTING THE SITE FINDINGS 3.0 First encounter with the atrium

Upon entering the atrium, I was humbled by the natural lighting cast into the atrium through the skylight. This is definitely a factor not to be disrupted with but rather used to enhance the experience of the intervention.

I was also greeted by this “no waiting” sign which shows the inhabitation in the atrium is rather restricted. Therefore, placing the intervention above the atrium is only way not to disrupt the ground level.

Site Findings

123

124

Exploring the sunlight in the atrium

As show in the timeline, Italian Piazza have been a known public space where there will be inhabitants and the watchers which create this form of interaction.

The way the sunlight cast itself onto the ground level creates the opporunity of shadows casted with the light and shadow almost looking like a form of material. The idea would be to use a porus material like a net or cloth where the light can pass through so that the activities and inhabitants on it will be reflected onto the ground level, creating this experience of connectivity and interaction with the shoppers of ground. This is similar to the Piazzas of Italy where there are the inhabitants and the watchers.

Exploration

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Exploration

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Exploration

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Site Findings

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Exploring the possible inhabitants

This is a similar approach as the first two phases, however I felt that this would not work much as the main factor will still be the sunlight hence I will be exploring materiality and form through model making next.

Site Findings

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EXPLORING THE PLACEMENT OF THE INTERVENTION

Even tho the material is porus, the intervention should still be strategically placed as to allow as much sunlight to still be able to cast into the space.

Exploration

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EXPLORING THE MATERIAL AND FORM THROUGH MAKING Exploring with a foam sheet

I first explored this foam sheet which have a certain structure to it but not to porus that light can fully pass through.

Exploring with a net-like cloth

Next was this mesh cloth which I explored trying to create a form of pocket or nesting without cutting it.

Exploration

137

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Exploring with a white mesh cloth

Next is a simialr mesh cloth which I cut into pieces in an attempt to place them strategically for more light to pass through.

Exploring with paper mesh

Lastly, I explored with this paper mesh which have a certain structure to it as well as flexbility to create pockets of form. This was the material chosen to develop a more refined outcome, however all materials were viable as well and could swap to cater different time of the year for different experience and events.

Exploration

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Here is what i envisioned “city room” inhabitations to be

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THE “RIGHTS” TO THE CITY ROOM

Here is the final outcome which creates an experience of a vertial Piazza where the inhabitants will be on top and the watches will be below. The outcome is still rather speculated as it a inhabitation envision for possible atriums to come in the future. The practicality of this project is not thorougly considered yet as there is only the intended experience and interaction developed.

Exploration

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Intervention

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So what is the next step for public space inhabitations?

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CONCLUSION In conclusion, public space should be designed in a way that put people’s rights ahead of aesthetic or function needs. The outcomes of this investigation may not be the ultimate solution to every public space of the same context but these are the outcomes based on the explorations conducted.

Conclusion

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