Module 4 Representation of Space

Aalborg Waterfront Phase II

Located in Aalborg, Denmark - Project Year: 2015

Architect and Landscaping: C.F. Møller

Engineer: COWI

Lighting Design:  AF Hansen & Hennedberg

Area: 170,000sqm

 

This urban design project links the city’s medieval center with adjacent fjord (a long, narrow, deep inlet of the sea between high cliffs). The designers made this waterfront more accessible to citizens by tying it in with the opening in the urban fabric. They drew inspiration from the meeting between the dunes and the flat foreshore. This design was a second stage to a “Phase I” which drew together elements to make a more uniform space. The central idea of the second phase is the continuation of the waterfront walkway as a "marsh" in combination with a light curving platform, upon which the buildings are located to represent a raised dune landscape. The building platforms provide a raised base which unifies the area's distinctive freestanding buildings including university buildings, student housing and the concert hall. This urban design project also provides flood protection, so it is not only about access to the waterfront or aesthetic properties, but it acts as a practical structural element. The designers utilized every aspect of their additions to create a usable space. For instance, on the urban plinth there are spaces carved out to create a series of functioning seated steps, protected from the wind by the plinth’s sides. The Aalborg Waterfront urban design project also has spacious plazas integrated into the walkway areas creating a lush green space with dense groves of trees. The planting consists of trees, shrubs and grasses that are native to North Jutland fjord landscape of Denmark. I found this to be a very successful design in the way in which they took into account environmental elements and designed with them in mind to create a comfortable space. I plan to integrate this into my own designs to create a more comfortable outdoor environment, such as through blocking winds and adding more green space.

Dilli Haat

Located in Janakpuri, New Delhi, Delhi, India - Project Year 2014

Architects: Archohm Consults

Area/Site : 16,000sqm (6 acre) Northwest facing contiguous piece that turns southeast towards the end

Located by the main bus terminus. A national prison on the other side and a large commercial road in the front.

The complex has two entrances: a primary face with vehicular and pedestrian zones and a secondary rear entry for pedestrians into the craft-only zone.

 

Dilli Haat is an open-air food plaza and craft bazaar located in Delhi, run by Delhi Tourism and Transportation Development Corporation. Unlike the traditional weekly market, the village Haat, Dilli Haat is permanent (Wikipedia). This urban space started off as a design competition entry in 20005 known as ‘Haat Beat’. The site is located in a largely residential area with very few places to go out. The idea behind this urabn design project was to create a space where music can be promoted and bring people together. This acted as the underlying layer that bonded the overall program of formal and informal shops to sell crafts and celebrate culture; to inject a new life into this part of Delhi and be its rhythmic ‘heart beat’. Design philosophy was heavily called upon when taking to account the identity of this haat. They had to be progressive, in tune with today’s times and respecting the craft and cultural centricity of the project. The design solution therefore, is a conversation between the past and the present, acknowledgement of the traditional and its adaptation in contemporary times, in concept and in construction. This urban program thus has a music theme to the center which can hold concerts and sales. This urban space provide a mix of flowing indoor and outdoor spaces such as an open-air amphitheater, a multipurpose exposition space, basket style houses with a music museum, a music store, a music workshop along with tourism offices and cafes. A large, air-conditioned food court extends into shaded courtyards and expansive greens for the basic need of spill overs. Formal, informal and open shop spaces are created to bring in the required sensitive adaptations of malls, markets and bazaars into this haat. So this is a large scale urban design project with multiples program areas that draw in a large crowd. Outdoor shops with roofing canopies and craft shops to hold artisans’ workshops are integral to the Dilli haat theme. There are some air conditioned spaces and even a children’s play area tucked into a small green patch. The site plan is knit together efficiently. Free-flowing open spaces bind various activities on two levels. Huge signage and sculptural elements help with wayfinding in this extensive space. The material palette is a mix of modern and traditional using a lot of bamboo such as in the structures for shading, sculptures, and street furniture. The clusters of spaces are connected with small green patches and paved walkways connecting the urban form to create a flowing interconnected space. I found this project to be very compelling and beautiful. The urban design was successful in my opinion and is a convening place in regards to attracting tourism. 

The Hills

Located in New York City – Project Year 2016

By West 8 Landscape Architects

 This urban design project is located on Governors Island, a 172 acre island in the heart of New York Harbor.  The first 30 acres opened to the public in 2014 and include recreational fields, food concessions, seating, a public plaza, a hammock zone, a hedge maze and more. This new addition known as “The Hills” added on a 2.2-mile promenade encircling the island and picnic point. The park also features ten acres of sloping landscapes that will provide residents and visitors with slides, art and unparalleled views of the New York Harbor. There are four hills with a different urban theme to each. The smallest grassy slope is perfect for naps, relaxation, and overlooks the Manhattan landscape and skyline and even the Statue of Liberty. One area encourages play and activity with four slides that have been carved into the landscape, including the longest slide in New York City. The third hill, known as Discovery Hill, is dedicated to contemplation and a site-specific sculptural piece which embodies the urban fabric. The tallest hill, with a height of 70 feet, offers accessible pathways to the most dramatic lookout point on the island. There is also a more adventurous parkway constructed out of reclaimed granite seawall blocks that visitor climb up to reach the outlook. “The Hills” have been constructed from recycled demolition debris, general fill and lightweight pumice held together with geotechnical reinforcement. This urban development not only celebrates the gathering of people but also serves the practical purpose to combat erosion through the incorporation of shrubs, trees, and grassy lawns. The dramatic topography also does more than just offer views, but it helped to improve the islands resilience to volatile weather conditions and rising sea levels.  “Sculpted topography works in concert with winding pathways and trees to create ‘conceal and reveal’ vistas, choreographing the park experience,” said design director Adriaan Geuze, co-founder of West 8. “It maximizes the sense of anticipation, pulling a visitor through the park or signaling a place to sit and stay just a bit longer. The topography defines the very character of the area.” From a design standpoint, this urban design project was well put together, and aesthetically pleasing, but fails in its accessibility to the site. As an island, you need some sort of water transportation to get there. It is a planned ordeal, and possibility even a cost. But, in turn, this can make the space more desirable to visit. The process to get there is a celebration in and of itself, and adventure of sorts. 

Sources:

1.     “Aalborg Waterfront Phase II / C.F. Møller”. Arch daily. Sep 30 2015

2.     “Dilli Haat / Archohm Consults” Arch Daily. Published Nov. 23, 2015

3.     Lynch, Patric. “"The Hills" by West 8 Set to Open on Governors Island”. Arch daily. Jul, 15, 2016.

& govisland.com

Module 3 Influential Urban Design Thinker - Kevin Lynch

For this module I have chosen Kevin Lynch as an influential urban thinker to research. Lynch was an American urban planner and author from around the 40’s-80s. He wrote The Image of the City (1960) in which he discusses five urban categories and how people in urban situations orient themselves through mental maps. Lynch also wrote What Time is this Place? (1972) which discussed how the environment can be modeled to provide a better sense of time and place through the understanding of the continuum of the mind.Lynch studied at Yale under the instruction of Frank Lloyd Wright and was a professor at MIT which highlights his level in society. He is known for proving empirical research on city planning, how individuals perceive and navigate the urban landscape as well as his interest in environmental psychology. His books explore more upon time and history of the urban environment and how to better understand individual’s perception of the physical environment as a way to design better[i].

Google Images-Architecture of the City

As a designer, Lynch valued the breakdown of urban thought into elements of understanding. Through the comparison of urban areas, Lynch looked at how people orient themselves and made sense of the city scape. He theorized that we create mental maps as a form of way-finding to become involve in the urban fabric. The way we interpret that information leads us to take action within the urban environment and leads us to experiences of place. As mentioned about, Lynch has laid out five urban elements on urban character and legibility which is what mental mapping consists of, being nodes, edges, paths, districts, and landmarks. These elements help to model urban form based on what he values as a designer. Lynch argues that urban designers have the ability to make places more legible and psychologically satisfying[ii]. Lynch was about creating the perfect city through his understanding of normative theories and the value of city to its spatial characteristics. His theories have received some criticisms though such as how he only talks about elements of the city that are publicly visible to all people and another critics believe his five elements are only addressed through movement. Overall though Lynch helped pioneer the way for urban design, and enlightened us about the capacity for orientation and way-finding. [iii]

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[i] Canniffe, Eamonn. “Kevin Lynch: The Image of the City (1960)” Architecture + Urbanism. Blogspot Manchester School of Architecture postgrade course. 2010 Website

[ii] Lynch, Kevin. ""The Image of the Environment" and "The City Image and Its Elements"" Bblearn. The Image of the City (1960), n.d. Web.

[iii] Lange, Michiel. “review: KevinLynch – The Image of the City” Thethermalcity.nl. Mobile Media and Urban Design. 8 May 2009, Website.

Module 2 Contemporary Urban Design Theories

We are a normative society based on a system of social formalities and theories implemented in practice. Social norms and cues tell us how to act, feel and design. But there are theories and philosophies out there to challenge the “normal” and make us think about expression of society and physical culture in a different way. We attempt to express accepted urban design meaning by looking at cultural sign systems and “unwritten” rules and social cues. We have an inherent need to analyze and understand these systems of culture. The Social, Formal, and Environmental theories of urban design focus on livability and quality of life help designers to narrow down critical thought and make more meaningful spaces. The Social theory, as pioneered by Le Corbusier, helps us to understand city as a system of functions; and how change in society occurs due to change in space, and vice versa. So, basically this theory says that society is a powerful cultural tool that has the ability to change physical forms. This of course would occur over a large period of time, it is not as if urban spaces change overnight. Aldo Rossi, theorist of the formal theory in urban design, saw city as a human made objet with values and functions that may change over time, while the form of space remains relatively the same. I find this understandable as populations grow throughout time, we continue to build and repurpose pre-existing spaces for more appropriate functions.  A designer can never truly predict how their space will be used, but rather social formalities take over and form use.

 Similarly, to the Social theory of urban design, is the Marxian Political Economy philosophy which views urban design as an outcome of the social production of urban form. Such as when people come together to produce the urban fabric (such as construction) that process in turn is social. And this philosophy looks at how these formed spaces represent social and cultural existence. Production and labor form social and property relations that help us to produce physical urban aspects such as roads, airports, utility systems and so on. These capitalistic, government mandated forms help us create functioning cities. State policies, spatial requirements, codes and so on form the basis of which designers can work on. But these come from normative theories and how did this “normal” practice come about and be known to be the best? Design is about challenging and questioning what is known.

Everyone interprets place differently, and we need to take that account when designing through the study of things that happen in question which cause a need for explanation. Phenomenology has impacted the study of perception as a function of lived experience in the built environment. This philosophy can be applied as an interpretation of history and theory, as a form of placemaking and authenticity, and in order to design a physical space; which helps with creating “place”/identity. In philosophy there are many ambiguities especially when it comes to making conceptual vs factual observations and analyses. Edward Relph offers a conceptual clarity of own phenomenology explorations to explain the sense of place and insideness. He recognized that our individual insights have parallels with other helping us to take unique viewpoint and perspectives into account. Even though our senses, feeling, perceptions, understandings, and interpretations vary person to person, we can design with the knowledge that everyone will experience space in their own way.