Portfolio_ Urban Design & Arch_ Sofia Croso Mazzuco

Sofia Croso Mazzuco

Professional work

Sofia Croso Mazzuco is an architect, urban designer, and urban researcher.

She has worked in a variety of different scale projects and varying global contexts.

Empathy Walks | London

Her research and work is mostly focused on the Urban Commons, public space collaborative regeneration, and social innovation.

Escadaria Criativa Cambuci / Creative Public Stairway | S達o Paulo Green Stream Linear Park - DBB | S達o Paulo CSA Environmental | Twigworth, UK Golf Club Apartment | S達o Paulo

Academic work RESHAPE: RESilient HAmmersmith Productive Ecosystem | London Repurposing Public Spaces into Urban Commons | London Poplar Urban Acupuncture | London Quotidian Cultural Centre | S達o Paulo A Retreat from Mechanical Living | London Ridley Road Market and Gillet Square - Public Space Analysis | London

PROFESSIONAL

Empathy Walks London, São Paulo, Mumbai

Empathy Walks (EW) is a project that proves the city as a patchwork of different voices and makes these voices mutually heard through shared walks. EW is based on walking other people’s daily paths to understand how different citizens jointly co-create cities. It unfolds everyday urban stories, with a special interest on immigrants, to create more empathy and tolerance between people from different backgrounds.

Our methodology is based on six steps: - Step 1 : identify and invite someone to be a walk leader.

- Step 2 : interview walk leader to understand its ways of belonging to the city.

- Step 3 : create a personal route in collaboration with walk leader, who defines what paths of his daily life would be relevant to show to walk participants.

- Step 4 : create walk event and invite people through social media and established network.

- Step 5 : document walk through photos, videos, writing, and by a map of personal impressions distributed to walk participants to collect personal impressions.

- Step 6 : disseminate knowledge online and both through events and exhibitions.

Empathy Walks received the 2017 Young Urbanists Grant from the Academy of Urbanism, in London.

OUTREACH EMPATHY WALKS

WALK LEADERS

POLICY MAKING & PLANNING

COMMUNITY GROUPS

ACADEMIA

ORGANISATIONS

METHODOLOGY

NETWORKS

PLANNING

MAPPING

Jan Gehl Saskia Sassen Jane Jacobs Suzanne Hall Monica Degen

/ Just Space / Reclaim Our Spaces / Civic Wise / Impact Hubs / Time Banks / Museum of Walking

/ Community outreach / Co-design + Co-planning / Qualitative data / Giving a voice

/ Just maps / Living Maps

/ public space / sociology / walkability / ethnography / senses

COLLABORATION

COMMUNITIES

/ Royal College of Arts / University College London / Arts and Humanity /Research Council / Academy of Urbanism

/ Pembroke House

/ ... we are always open

T

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TRAINING

/ Training officers and councillors on EW methodology / Enriching consultations / Inspiring students / Online open platform

ORGANISATIONS / Indoamerican Refugee and Migrant Organisation / London Migrants Network

/ ... we are always open

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PRE-WALK

WALK

AFTER-WALK

CONNECT

PRODUCE

DISSEMINATE

. Now .

. Spring 2017 Onwards .

. Long Term .

- Exhibition - Connecting with organisations and people - Connect the unbound points rather than filling a gap - Mapping what’s already there

- Video and audio recording - Mental mapping - Maps produced out of the walks

- Produce empathy data - Develop online platform

+ Applying for further funding and grants

+ Use data for action with public bodies and policy makers

EMPATHY

path is a relati el ne ter in nglish and other latin lang ages the first ti e it appeared in English was in1909, created by Edward Tichner to translate the term “einfühlung” in Germany which means “feeling into”.

For the English word the roots are from ancient Greek:

EM - in; PATH - feeling; Y E M P A T H Y

First used 108 years ago

T I M E L I N E

1909

1917

1934

1980

1997

2008

2014

Einfühlung means “feeling into”.Use of visual arts in psychology

Cognitive processes : Understanding other’s feelings better

Role taking to understand people better

Heinz Kohut (American) Empathy as basis for all human interaction

Barret-Lennard - (American) Empathy connects people

Obama acknowledges “Empathy deficit

Social relation revolution

E M P A T H Y

C O N D I T I O N S

Cognitive

Affective

objective understanding role taking “take role of other person to understand” (Hebert uad, 19 iaget, 19

visceral feelings reactivity to others “...feeling ourselves into them” (Titchner, 19 )

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O T C O M E “Affective response more appropriate to another’s situation” (Hoffman, 19 )

P O C E S S “is the e perience of foreign conciouness” (Stein,191 )

EMPATHY

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E M E N T S

Empathy is always towards other people.

Empathy is to be aware of the presence of other, perceive the other, care with the other without judging and with respect.

Being able to build momentaneous bridges between strangers with no other e pectatives. t can also e defined as a caref l awaraness about otherness, and a great trigger is identification

“

E M P A T H Y

AL S

Em athy forms the very asis of all human interaction olhut 1 80

ESCADARIA CRIATIVA CAMBUCI Nomas

This project was selected to be showcased in the X Architecture Biennial in São Paulo which theme was “Modos de Colaborar” (‘Ways to Collaborate’); it was created in collaboration with a multidisciplinary team. Escadaria Criative Cambuci (meaning Cambuci Creative Stairway) was developed to support different social activities inherent to Cambuci neighborhood, in São Paulo. We defined four distinct sections of social activities for the stair aimed at different group ages and interests. These sections are: green stair, cultural stair, ludic stair, and cultural stair. The green area counts with urban allotments for food growing and agricultural knowledge exchange; the cultural area features an open library, a study space, and an open air cinema screen and seats; the ludic area hosts a children playground; and, finally, the cultural area is for artistic workshops and capoeira classes.

The project is based on the idea that activities inherent to a neighborhood should be enhanced in regeneration projects, keeping the sense of belonging and local identity which is crucial for the social development of any area.

green stream linear park Davis Brody Bond + Aedas The Parque Linear do Córrego Verde (meaning Green Stream Linear Park) was designed to resolve two main urban issues in the city of São Paulo: the big flooding issue (that occurs mainly because most of the rivers in the city were pipelined and the water still tries to find its way through its original paths) and the availability of quality public spaces. Vila Madalena neighborhood, like in many areas of São Paulo, has many idle public spaces - despite being a pole of cultural activities with the best Carnival in town and many artsy spaces.

This project has a functional role (counting with elements such as a pavement designed to drain excessive rainwater) while creating a public space network that enhances livability and the rich cultural context of the area. The large masterplan, that embraces all of Vila Madalena, is divided into six main areas developed in detail. This project was developed in partnership with the local municipality of the city of São Paulo.

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Extensão aproximada Área total aproximada

NASCENTE

PRAÇA JACQUES BELLANGE E GAL. OLIVEIRA ÁLVARES - SITUACAO ATUAL

PLANTA: PRAÇA DAS ÁGUAS

PRAÇA DAS

DBBAedas ® 2011

500

1670 m 65.410 m2

ÁGUAS

PEDRA

PLANÍCIE

CHARCO

DESÁGUE

TWIGWORTH

Site Boundary

CSA Environmental

Main vehicular routes through Twigworth To Norton

Working at CSA as an Urban Designer was an opportunity to understand how to develop sites through an integrated sustainable approach, looking at design, landscaping, and ecological factors. I was working on different sites across England and the demand for housing projects was very high due to the ongoing housing crisis in the country.

Other documents included: opportunities and influence study, development framework plan, illustrative masterplan, layout principles, and land use plan. For every project CSA organized exhibitions and community consultation in order to get input, thus seeking also social sustainability of every design proposition.

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Draft Green Belt Boundary DOWN HATHERLEY

(Source: Joint Core Strategy 2011-2031)

Ancient Replanted Woodland

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To Sandhurst

Existing public footpaths DOWN HATHERLEY LANE

To Down Hatherley Existing bridleways

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- Gloucestershire Way

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Existing recreational route

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Orchard Park

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Properties on Brook LaneTWIGWORTH

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The urban study of sites involved investigation of elements such as policies that applied to given areas, nearby transport modes and other facilities, heritage sites and monuments, and designations. It also Holmewood involved the social study of sites and its surroundings.

Green Belt

To Longford G

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SHIRE

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Figure 3.1: Site context.

View from the northern boundary of the Site looking south east.

Abandoned Nursery

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View from the south eastern corner of the Site looking north west.

Dwelling at Yew Tree Farm

The Manor House

The Old Coach House

Tewkesbury Road, Twigworth - May 2017

Sandhurst Hill

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Figure 5.2: Illustrative masterplan.

ORCHARD PARK

Proposed drainage pumping station

Proposed location for underground surface water drainage tanks

Proposed location for emergency access & pedestrian/cycle links

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Green Belt

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New development to be set back to respect the setting of the Listed Buildings

Proposed access off Tewkesbury Road

Figure 4.1:

A38 to Gloucester

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Grade II Listed: Court Farm House

Grade II Listed: Milestone

Proposed children's play area

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Potential location for children’s play area

Proposed pedestrian & cycle link to existing bridleway

Shared surface areas form focal points and aid legibility through the development

Maintain green corridor to preserve Great Crested Newt habitat

development

Proposed new boundary landscaping (with long grass

Site's habitat for wildlife

New landscaping including a new wildlife pond to create an attractive feature at the edge of the development, with the

Retain and enhance existing vegetation with new tree planting

Potential location for a wildlife pond

Potential vehicular access point

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A38 to Norton

LAN

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Existing bridleway

Existing footpath

Proposed location for underground surface water storage tanks Proposed drainage pumping station

Proposed recreational routes

Proposed new pedestrian & cycle links

Proposed emergency access & pedestrian/cycle link

Tewkesbury Road, Twigworth - May 2017

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Proposed new wildlife pond

Proposed children's play area

Proposed public open space (to include new landscaping and tree planting)

Existing vegetation

Proposed residential development

Site Boundary

Tewkesbury Road, Twigworth - May 2017

ASH

Green corridor to maintain Great Crested Newt habitat

Opportunity for potential new pedestrian link to connect to the existing footway

Opportunity for new recreational route through development

the development

Opportunity for new boundary

Potential public open space offers on-site green space to meet the needs of the new community

B ES

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Opportunity for potential new pedestrian link to connect to the existing public footpath

Proposed pedestrian & cycle link to Tewkesbury Road pedestrian link to existing footpath

Potential location for pumping station and underground storage for surface water

Existing integral vegetation to be strengthened to form part of the network of public open space

Existing buildings within the Site to be demolished

Potential emergency and pedestrian/cycle access point

Grade II Listed: Yew Tree Cottage

3.5 +1

Existing buildings within the Site to be demolished

Existing ponds

Root protection area

Existing trees and hedgerows

Grade II Listed Buildings

Existing public rights of way

Contour lines

Constraints:

Opportunity to overlook Tewkesbury Road

Potential pedestrian/cycle links

Potential new recreational route

Potential new landscaping

Existing integral vegetation to be strenghtened Potential to strengthen existing vegetation

Potential public open space

Potential location for children's play area

Potential location for pumping station & underground storage for surface water

Potential developable area

Potential emergency access point

New development to be set back to respect the existing Listed Buildings

+13.0

Potential vehicular access point

+13.5

Opportunities:

+14.0

Existing bus routes and bus stops

+13.5

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+14.0

Site boundary: 3.12ha

+14.0 +14.0

SANDHURST LANE

BROOK LANE

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golf club apartment São Paulo | Personal project During nearly two years I was leading my own firm and developing personal projects. This 300 square meter apartment was my first project, which location building dates from the 70s. The client was willing to keep some of the apartment’s original features while integrating other more modern elements. My firm partner and myself decided to keep the original pavements of most rooms, and the layout and imbued furniture of a few rooms. Areas like the kitchen, home office, living room, and corridor, were completely restructured with new layout, furniture and personalized woodwork design. The apartment gained a clean but eclectic style with characteristics from different ages. Great attention was given to the detailing of every designed element. On top of client relationship, I was leading all of the design and construction follow up stages, including the coordination of a contractor and different service providers.

ACADEMIC

RESHAPE - Resilient Hammersmith Productive Ecosystem Bartlett, UCL This project envisions how the predicted demolition of the car traffic flyover in Hammersmith, West London, could give space to a productive urban ecosystem. It is based on the concept of food security, with citizens’ locally producing their food while also participating on the production and management of the built environment. The existing buildings gain a new space on their rooftops, namely greenhouses, while boats located along Ham River are adapted to support allotment growing, and pedestrian underpasses become ideal places to grow mushrooms.

Legibility map, based on one-to-one in-situ interviews

Temporal pedestrian and traffic map & diagrams

Land use

Open space

social opportunities Social opportunities map

The different phases of the project involve gradual evolution of citizens’ participation until reaching thorough food sovereignty and a circular economy.

The housing strategy is adapted to a model of community land trust in order for the local community to have more ownership of their living environment. More people equals less market.

Road hierarchy

FURTHER PHASES PHASE 3 PHASE 2 PHASE 1

Tactical Interventions

Productive Ecosystem (Retrofitting)

initial strategy for hammersmith retrofit

Sovereignty: Development of further projects supporting holistic sustainability and local economy

New Housing based on Land Trust

intended connectivity with surroundings

OUTPUTS INPUTS

Homes Restaurants

People

Resilience

Locally grown food

Productivity

Skilled workers

Learning & Experience

Money ££££££

Investment Jobs Money £££££ Masterplan strategy: long-term development

REPURPOSING PUBLIC SPACES INTO URBAN COMMONS Bartlett, UCL

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This project is the result of my MSc thesis.

After a thorough study of the Urban Commons I have created a framework for it, which is composed of four main elements: regenerated public space, collective governance, hands-on activities, and resulting community benefits. This framework proves the power of public space to support community resilience through active citizenship. On this project I suggest adapting the passive participatory urbanism model in the UK (reliant on citizens’ consultation) into a hands-on participation process where citizens become active in the development of their communities.

Applied in Gospel Oak

GOVERNANCE Collective

ACTIVITIES

PUBLIC SPACE

Hands-on

Repurposed

BENEFITS Community Development

Collective regeneration of public spaces into Urban Commons - spaces and

resources where communities engage in the co-production of goods and services - is the backbone of this proposal, hypothetically applied in Gospel Oak neighborhood, North London. The different repurposed public spaces create a network of urban commons in Gospel Oak with activities ranging from indoor workshops to outdoor training, and regenerated street market specialized in locally hand-made circus tools.

The central benefit resulting of this proposal is the emergence of a locally-led social economy based on the circus arts, which triggers active wellbeing and holistic community resilience.

underused public spaces in gospel oak

INDIRECT (PASSIVE) PARTICIPATION:

HANDS-ON PARTICIPATION:

Community being asked to opinate on a consultation document

Community actively engaging on local regeneration and being regenerated simultaneously, while learning

COUNCIL

Defining what and how change should take place.

Mistakenly considering community opinion as empowerment.

CONSULTATION

Stating opinion is unlike to address the need for individual and community empowerment.

?

PASSIVE COMMUNITY

Direct participation: co-organisation, co-building, co-benefitting

Community gets connected to collaboratively drive change

DIVIDED COMMUNITY

ACTIVE COMMUNITY

ACTIVE REGENERATION

AWARENESS

PERFORMANCE MATTERS

TACTICAL URBANISM

HANDS-ON LEARNING

CONNECTING THE DOTS

RECYCLING

SOCIAL CAPITAL

NETWORK OF COMMONS

MAJOR COLLABORATION

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SUPPORTING NETWORKS

Poplar Urban Acupuncture Bartlett, UCL This regeneration strategy is based on the concept of Urban Acupuncture - small scale interventions that cause a ripple effect on the socio-spatial fabric of a given environment. Four kiosks with different activities are suggested to gradually regenerate Poplar, East London, by socially reactivating spaces underused due to car domination. Social capital and public life are pursued as the central element for urban regeneration, and the connection of the different kiosks through urban adaptations enhances life on the street including the pedestrian and bicycle flow.

The design of the kiosks integrates spaces for social life and for biodiversity. It is based on modules of 2x2m that can be combined as desired by local residents to create different typologies. This concept gets inspiration from the work of the artist Alexander Calder, who played with the idea of interactive structures that embrace both fixed and variable elements to become more responsive to the viewer; in the kiosks, the grid is the fixed element and its arrangement and use the flexible variant to be decided by its users.

Kiosk 3 READ

funds

Kiosk 4 PLAY

... further holistic development

all else is mistery and surprise

funds

light it up

Kiosk 2 ART

walk in colour

funds

stay for a while

Kiosk 1 EAT

Elements can be assembled in four directions and give different shapes to the kiosks. There is no rigid format and the kiosks can expand over time and have its structure adapted to upcoming needs.

breathe the green

Community fundraising

[ 2 KIOSKS ASSEMBLED]

climbing wall A

wood + biodiversity

A ITAT

READ

connect

PLAY

green roof G

glass panel

EAT

ART

connect

infinite possibilities and arrangements.

(2) ( )

[ 1 KIOSK ]

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A NATURE HABITAT

[ 2 KIOSKS ASSEMBLED ]

[ 2 KIOSKS ASSEMBLED]

[3 KIOSKS ASSEMBLED]

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QUOTIDIEN CULTURAL CENTRE

space avoiding interaction

car dominance: street as socially dead and intimidating space

space embracing unpredictability

food market effect: street as happenning and spontaneous space

Mackenzie University

design principle of this project is to avoid the disconnection between people and intensify local social exchanges, seen as valuable for urban livability and social capital.

The Quotidian Cultural Centre looks at how architecture can host spontaneous social activities inherent to a given place. It was inspired by the difference noticed on its location street during two opposite events: the street as a functional space for car traffic, and the street hosting a food market and allowing pedestrian traffic only (the second event occurring on weekends). The first event was recognized as a barrier for social exchanges, while the second a trigger for it. Thus, the main

Based on this intention, the functional space of the corridor (or footbridge) was projected as a generous space where social exchanges and events could occur spontaneously at any time of the day – it is not just a transit space but also a space for happenings. To invite pedestrian traffic into the new cultural center the building’s internal and external spaces adopt the same pavement of the street, thus being acknowledged as an extension of the street.

cobogรณ: brazilian style faรงade element - see through

arts labs

vertical circulation

green

open use

A Retreat from Mechanical Living Architectural Association

the cell module

This retreat proposes reconnecting man and architecture to nature and its speedless timing; it is designed to collect nature. The ceiling opening in the cell, on the higher floor of the retreat, frames a slice of sky while inviting rainwater in to be carried below to the allotments by the stalk column. The column and water pipes have not only a functional purpose but are also meant to support vertical growth of the vegetation on ground floor to blend the retreat into nature (thus supporting architecture as a non-icon). The design of the stalk column was inspired by the shape of a given sewer cover in London, and repurposed as both a functional and contemplative element in the retreat. Each retreat floor is characterized by a different degree of privacy - the higher the floor, the higher the privacy.

Different combinations of the retreat module, namely different typologies, are arranged to be connected to the existing fabric of the city of London, and could be inserted in different urban contexts.

ground floor

first floor

second floor

solo Retreat

Monastery retreat

studio Retreat

common room Retreat

Ridley Road Market & Gillet Square Public Space Analysis Bartlett, UCL

This public space analysis evaluates formality and informality in Dalston, South London, using three parameters for evaluation: urban design theory, design intentions, and empirical reality of places.

The analysis reveals controversies between all three. Conclusions are: a) informality naturally arises in spaces designed for formality as a result of spontaneous daily occupation, and; b) formality is engendered by given social groups in spaces intentionally designed to host informality. Thus, the urban designer has limited control over the use of designed spaces and social exclusion can occur in both formal and informal public spaces.

The methodology used in this analysis combines the six urban dimensions set by Matthew Carmona (social, visual, temporal, functional, morphological, and perceptual) and the urban livability indicators defined

by Jan Gehl (playability, meeting, human scale, micro climate, visual, cycling, walking, and staying). Analytical tools include: observation, photographing, surveying, people counting, and interacting in-situ with different people.

The layout of the pages displaying the analysis was designed with the intention to capture the dynamics of both public spaces, featuring a strike of confusion and unpredictability.

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ANALYTICAL TOOLS

TEMPORAL:

- Photographing -Observing -Comparing theory intention with reality - Surveying - Lived Experience - Buying food to sense relationships

“JAN GEHL CHECK”

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On a regular market day ...

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THEORY vs REALITY e

FORMALITY OR INFORMALITY ?

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“Above all do not lose your desire to walk: every day I walk myself into a state of wellbeing and walk myself away from every illness: I have walked myself into my best thoughts and I know of no thought so burdensome that one cannot walk away from it...

Thus, if one just keeps on walking, everything will be alright.”

Søren Kierkegaard

walking the walk Strollers in London