Mood Board:
Design Precedents:
Thursday, 8 March 2007
Tuesday, 6 March 2007
Marie-Therese: Things to be done
The presentation has 3 parts:
- Examination
- Diagnosis
- Treatment
We talked about this last week with Tom which you may remember i.e. Urban doctors or some such term was used. If we look out the original ppt then we could say the examination is more or less done and needs tidying up. The diagnosis is also within those realms. The weak point is the treatment (NHS cuts I suppose…I digress). This really needs to be defined otherwise the whole thing falls apart. So this is what we will be concentrating on until Friday. Also I think we need not only to explain what we propose but also specifically why we are proposing it.
What do we need to do?
Task 1: Define and illustrate the routes through mood-board pics of places, planting types, materials, colours interms of hues etc, and location in site; also requ. Source and destination. Precedents of some projects which have similarities
We had originally 3 primary routes corresponding to the 3 primary colours. We got a bit carried away on Saturday and started defining purple routes and so on. I think this primary roots idea is a strong one and we should go with that otherwise we are in danger of diluting the concept. Don’t worry for those of you who have done mood boards for purple or orange routes we can use this this in the corrsponding zones so the work is not lost or wasted. The difference between a route and a zone (meeting or crossing place) is mainly academic.
NB Tom talked about using buildings to launch the routes. In some caes this is obvious The Tate for the blue route and the Nat.Theatre for the yellow root but I am open for suggestions
Task 2: Define and illustrate the places where the routes intersect. Here again we require mood boards (planting, materials, surface characteristics, curved or edgey) and locations within site. Precedents are also required here (See above). Additionally, we would need some sort of model for each of the nodal points. More specifically, for the green, purple, orange places. Maybe a photo montage would do for the moment; a sort of digital model.
Design Code
We decided on themes for each of the routes/places. Each theme is related to the production or consumption of art:
Red: 'SPECTACLE'
Blue: 'CONTEMPLATION'
Yellow: 'INTELLECT'
Purple: 'PRODUCTION'
Orange: 'DISCOURSE'
These themes are elaborated upon in the design code:
Red: 'SPECTACLE'
Blue: 'CONTEMPLATION'
Yellow: 'INTELLECT'
Purple: 'PRODUCTION'
Orange: 'DISCOURSE'
These themes are elaborated upon in the design code:
Following site meeting, I think we are doing Ok now.
I am setting to work on the red route and will have a quick crack at the orange if time permits.
I think the mood board describes the red route quite well - it does not need much more designing other than some plans/sections to show reduction in width and pedestrian priority improved. I will attach tehse later. Have a look at the map and see what you think - I basically drew up what we discussed on site so it should be pretty much there in terms of framework and finalisation of routes, you may want to tweak the routes though.
Saturday, 3 March 2007
Site visit
We had a very productive site visit/workshop today. Thanks for that group!
All photos from are available here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/remka78/
All photos from are available here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/remka78/
Wednesday, 14 February 2007
Summary of Wednesday, 14th February net-meeting
Today we had a very nice skype-session between Marie-Therese (MT) in Graz, Austria and Remi and Matt in London, UK.
We agreed:
1. Remi will update Matt's suggestion for storyboard and e-mail it to MT for review. MT will review it again and e-mail it back to London by Thursday evening. So, we could print it off for friday.
2. Remi will print off OS base from Digimap and meet Matt 9am Friday morning to have a quick brainstorming and sketch about the routes...
So in theory, for Friday we should have a more or less finalised storyboard and a draft of possible routes.
We also agreed that we try to do a site visit/workshop on Saturday, 3rd March. Spend a whole day there and go further with design code and according tables... But it all depends on MT and how she manages to organize her flights. Quite a unique and global situation we have here, huh?
Take care!
Remi
We agreed:
1. Remi will update Matt's suggestion for storyboard and e-mail it to MT for review. MT will review it again and e-mail it back to London by Thursday evening. So, we could print it off for friday.
2. Remi will print off OS base from Digimap and meet Matt 9am Friday morning to have a quick brainstorming and sketch about the routes...
So in theory, for Friday we should have a more or less finalised storyboard and a draft of possible routes.
We also agreed that we try to do a site visit/workshop on Saturday, 3rd March. Spend a whole day there and go further with design code and according tables... But it all depends on MT and how she manages to organize her flights. Quite a unique and global situation we have here, huh?
Take care!
Remi
Friday, 9 February 2007
Skype and to-do-list
Dear all,
I think we agreed to have a Skype conference call on Tuesday evening(s)? to go forward.
Cheers! The group is cool! The group is great! We can do a great project!
I think we agreed to have a Skype conference call on Tuesday evening(s)? to go forward.
You can download skype from www.skype.com. After installing the program, you need to create a user account and have a headset with microphone ready. And then you could add the other users as well. If you get stuck, just e-mail me. I use it regularly every day to be in contact with my family. Username: remulus
As for everything else today. I think the next thing to do is to work more closely on those routes we have suggested and come up with a design code (where and what?) for each of the routes. This to be finalised after the group sitevisit, which we have't done so far. After that we could do some bits more individually... I actually still think we should come up with a conceptual model in the end... 3d stuff is cool, but perhaps the actual model works in some cases better. But we could discuss that later.
The other thing to do is to have a critical view on storyboard individually and contribute if possible.
Correct me if I remembered something wrong or missing some important bits please!
As for everything else today. I think the next thing to do is to work more closely on those routes we have suggested and come up with a design code (where and what?) for each of the routes. This to be finalised after the group sitevisit, which we have't done so far. After that we could do some bits more individually... I actually still think we should come up with a conceptual model in the end... 3d stuff is cool, but perhaps the actual model works in some cases better. But we could discuss that later.
The other thing to do is to have a critical view on storyboard individually and contribute if possible.
Correct me if I remembered something wrong or missing some important bits please!
Cheers! The group is cool! The group is great! We can do a great project!
Saturday, 3 February 2007
Presentation Feb 2nd
Posting here a presentation we quickly made. Marie-Therese, how are you? Could we find a way to get your photos and thoughts? Perhaps you make a selection yourself and post it here according to the needs of presentation? Pete could you post here the crit and suggestions Tom made? When is the next time we could meet? Is it possible to organise a Skype conference call? My username is remulus.
Monday, 29 January 2007
Pete: Draft of the presentation
1st slide - slogan and concept?
2 - strong pedestrian promenade along south bank - established arts quarter on national (+international?) level, but...
[pics of south bank and tate looking nice]
3 - does not reach back beyond Southwark Road [diagram showing road as barrier to ped movement]
4 - elephant and castle is a dump [matts eyesoreit]...but
5 - elephant and castle regeneration to the south will create a destination for shopping etc - new s london hub [pic of e+c mplan] less car focused now
6 - need to create north-south ped links betweeen south bank and elephant [map with arrows pointing up+down]
7 - make the area permeable - percolating the culture down from s bank
8 - bad points of southwark - not legible
9 - bad points of southwark - car parks and industry blight
8 - good existing features of southwark triangle - the cut - vibrancy etc.
9 - good existing features of southwark triangle - borough park - historical character
10 - good existing features of southwark triangle - railway arches - good for conversion into studios/cafes/bars ec.
11 - link up these features to creaste north south routes - clusters and (forgotten other word)
12 -arts quarter - careful not to be contrived- should be enabled not forced - create conditions so artists want to move there and visitors will want to come too
13 - could use street markets to draw people down - more cafes + shops
14 - pedestrianisation of certain streets
15 - blackfriars road important spine to triangle (maybe this needs to come earlierr)
16
17.........................etc.
2 - strong pedestrian promenade along south bank - established arts quarter on national (+international?) level, but...
[pics of south bank and tate looking nice]
3 - does not reach back beyond Southwark Road [diagram showing road as barrier to ped movement]
4 - elephant and castle is a dump [matts eyesoreit]...but
5 - elephant and castle regeneration to the south will create a destination for shopping etc - new s london hub [pic of e+c mplan] less car focused now
6 - need to create north-south ped links betweeen south bank and elephant [map with arrows pointing up+down]
7 - make the area permeable - percolating the culture down from s bank
8 - bad points of southwark - not legible
9 - bad points of southwark - car parks and industry blight
8 - good existing features of southwark triangle - the cut - vibrancy etc.
9 - good existing features of southwark triangle - borough park - historical character
10 - good existing features of southwark triangle - railway arches - good for conversion into studios/cafes/bars ec.
11 - link up these features to creaste north south routes - clusters and (forgotten other word)
12 -arts quarter - careful not to be contrived- should be enabled not forced - create conditions so artists want to move there and visitors will want to come too
13 - could use street markets to draw people down - more cafes + shops
14 - pedestrianisation of certain streets
15 - blackfriars road important spine to triangle (maybe this needs to come earlierr)
16
17.........................etc.
Thursday, 25 January 2007
Eyesoreit 2
Its not very funny but I don't have many photos yet!
Good meeting last night and cheers Matt for posting it all up on the blog. I think the percolating concept is spot on, it just needs a little bit of refining grammar-wise so it doesnt sound too poncey. I also think the diagram you've done shows the jist, perhaps we just need to (again) refine and make it look bold and slick like a logo.
Good meeting last night and cheers Matt for posting it all up on the blog. I think the percolating concept is spot on, it just needs a little bit of refining grammar-wise so it doesnt sound too poncey. I also think the diagram you've done shows the jist, perhaps we just need to (again) refine and make it look bold and slick like a logo.
Matt: Rough Sketches for 'Concept Diagram'
I had a go at this before we sat down together, put I've only just got around to posting them. They're only rough sketches and I'm sure we can do much better, particularly as none of these work with 'The Arts Percolator' (if that's what we end up with). How about a picture of a Kenco coffee filter paper with the Mona Lisa sticking out of the top? I'm sure you'll agree that's a sure fire winner! 
Matt: Notes from our meeting on the evening of the 24th Jan
Here’s the notes from yesterday evening’s meeting (24/01). We looked at finalising the site boundaries (and, Pete, I think you’re going to post an image of that), the slogan and concept diagram, and the SWOT analysis.
Slogan/Concept
I think we agreed that we might not have arrived at a final idea (be good to hear what you think, Marie-Therese) but we left the pub having decided that ‘The Arts Percolator’ was the best we’d come up with! The idea behind this was that the site is an upside down triangle (a bit like a coffee filter) with the art (The South Bank) sitting on the top. Our concept was to change the site in such a way that the art (the coffee!) filters down through the site to the Elephant and Castle at the tip of the triangle.
Admittedly, this might need a bit of work, but I think ‘percolate’ is a great word to hold the concept together:
Percolate
Verb (used with object)
1.) To cause (a liquid) to pass through a porous body; filter.
2.) Of a liquid) to filter through; permeate.
3.) To brew (coffee) in a percolator.
Verb (used without object)
1.) To pass through a porous substance; filter; ooze; seep; trickle
2.) To become percolated: The coffee is starting to percolate.
3.) To become active, lively, or spirited.
Other words that came up were: strand, veins, capillaries, blood, heart, arteries, synergy, seeds, web, triangle, clusters, conduits, chemistry and nodes.
SWOT Analysis
Strengths
1.) River frontage
2.) Facilities on the South Bank: there’s already an arts quarter of sorts on part of the site
3.) Many areas have character: narrow streets around Waterloo, Borough has its Dickensian moments
4.) Rich variety of architecture
5.) Street hierarchy: many areas are ripe for pedestrianization
6.) Very good transport links
Weaknesses
1.) Huge amount of the space used for car-parking
2.) There’s a lot of light-industry/business parks in the area
3.) A number of unsympathetic modern developments have eroded some of the areas character
4.) The site is ‘sliced’ up by a number of major roads
5.) In much of the site (esp. Elephant and Castle) cars are given priority over pedestrians
6.) No North – South pedestrian routes
7.) The South Bank has ‘its back turned’ on the rest of the area
8.) The space is illegible: few landmarks
Opportunities
1.) To have the South Bank focus on both the river and back into Southwark
2.) Many areas look like they could be pedestrianised without too much inconvenience
3.) To create links between existing facilities (starting at the South Bank) and planned Elephant and Castle redevelopment that will cut through and invigorate the site.
Threats
1.) Commercial redevelopment (‘luxury flats’) monopolising the riverfront
2.) Is the idea of an arts quarter a contrivance: how to plan something that should be stimulated to grow organically?
Slogan/Concept
I think we agreed that we might not have arrived at a final idea (be good to hear what you think, Marie-Therese) but we left the pub having decided that ‘The Arts Percolator’ was the best we’d come up with! The idea behind this was that the site is an upside down triangle (a bit like a coffee filter) with the art (The South Bank) sitting on the top. Our concept was to change the site in such a way that the art (the coffee!) filters down through the site to the Elephant and Castle at the tip of the triangle.
Admittedly, this might need a bit of work, but I think ‘percolate’ is a great word to hold the concept together:
Percolate
Verb (used with object)
1.) To cause (a liquid) to pass through a porous body; filter.
2.) Of a liquid) to filter through; permeate.
3.) To brew (coffee) in a percolator.
Verb (used without object)
1.) To pass through a porous substance; filter; ooze; seep; trickle
2.) To become percolated: The coffee is starting to percolate.
3.) To become active, lively, or spirited.
Other words that came up were: strand, veins, capillaries, blood, heart, arteries, synergy, seeds, web, triangle, clusters, conduits, chemistry and nodes.
SWOT Analysis
Strengths
1.) River frontage
2.) Facilities on the South Bank: there’s already an arts quarter of sorts on part of the site
3.) Many areas have character: narrow streets around Waterloo, Borough has its Dickensian moments
4.) Rich variety of architecture
5.) Street hierarchy: many areas are ripe for pedestrianization
6.) Very good transport links
Weaknesses
1.) Huge amount of the space used for car-parking
2.) There’s a lot of light-industry/business parks in the area
3.) A number of unsympathetic modern developments have eroded some of the areas character
4.) The site is ‘sliced’ up by a number of major roads
5.) In much of the site (esp. Elephant and Castle) cars are given priority over pedestrians
6.) No North – South pedestrian routes
7.) The South Bank has ‘its back turned’ on the rest of the area
8.) The space is illegible: few landmarks
Opportunities
1.) To have the South Bank focus on both the river and back into Southwark
2.) Many areas look like they could be pedestrianised without too much inconvenience
3.) To create links between existing facilities (starting at the South Bank) and planned Elephant and Castle redevelopment that will cut through and invigorate the site.
Threats
1.) Commercial redevelopment (‘luxury flats’) monopolising the riverfront
2.) Is the idea of an arts quarter a contrivance: how to plan something that should be stimulated to grow organically?
We also discussed the idea of the space as a series of 'clusters' linked up together by a network of 'conduits'. The 'clusters' could be a market, a park, a gallery, a square. Places where people can congregate, where creative 'stuff' happens, where people can put on a performance or an exhibition.
The conduits would be the routes between them: for pedestrians, cyclists, trams? The routes would be readily identifiable as a 'conduit' and you could follow one expectantly, knowing that you're walking to somewhere interesting. Remi pointed out that this is already happening on the route between Southwark tube and the Tate Modern
Tuesday, 23 January 2007
Remi: Reflections of the sitevisit...
Printed off the OS base from digimap 1:2000 (A1), will take it with me tomorrow. Managed to take a walk on site tonight in the freezing cold. This time from elephant&castle to Southwark tube station. Unfortunately I've no photos to share... for eyesoreit. Was too dark today and didn't manage to take that bicycle ride on Sunday. Although it was a lovely weather then.
For me there are 4 charachter areas ( see below). Approaching from E&C:
1. London road ending with St Georges circus and an obelisk... apetizer for the arts quarter. There are already some bits of that feeling. Saw some red-green lightballs attached to the branches of trees.
2. Waterloo and Blackfriars roads as dense , noisy transit areas, high building front. The idea quite obvious... to provide quick access to other parts of the city.... but in between. Just take any of the smaller streets inside the block and it's like a different world. Low housing and quite irregular pattern of streets. I think perfect for pedestrianisation and arty stuff :)
3. The middle area: Southwark tube station and Waterloo East rail links crossing the area. Some higher new office buildings (London Dev. Agency for example), secondary traffic and small shops etc.
4. Area between Tate modern and railroad. Saw some garages and kind of leftover spaces which would be perfect for installations or artists workshops.
So, that's my initial responce to what I saw... Perhaps it's worth posting everything also to the blog or just use the blog?? So we'd have one place to have everything collected...
Question for Marie-Therese... How often and when do you think you'll be in London?
For me there are 4 charachter areas ( see below). Approaching from E&C:
1. London road ending with St Georges circus and an obelisk... apetizer for the arts quarter. There are already some bits of that feeling. Saw some red-green lightballs attached to the branches of trees.
2. Waterloo and Blackfriars roads as dense , noisy transit areas, high building front. The idea quite obvious... to provide quick access to other parts of the city.... but in between. Just take any of the smaller streets inside the block and it's like a different world. Low housing and quite irregular pattern of streets. I think perfect for pedestrianisation and arty stuff :)
3. The middle area: Southwark tube station and Waterloo East rail links crossing the area. Some higher new office buildings (London Dev. Agency for example), secondary traffic and small shops etc.
4. Area between Tate modern and railroad. Saw some garages and kind of leftover spaces which would be perfect for installations or artists workshops.
So, that's my initial responce to what I saw... Perhaps it's worth posting everything also to the blog or just use the blog?? So we'd have one place to have everything collected...
Question for Marie-Therese... How often and when do you think you'll be in London?
Saturday, 20 January 2007
Artsquarter area, meeting, things to do?
Walked from Southwark tube to Tate modern and here's my proposal for the site boundaries.
Next phase? As I can't attend next week, perhaps we could have a group meeting in one of the evenings next week (Monday-Wendesday) after 6pm? I know Marie-Therese probably can't attend, but whereabout are you Pete and Matt living? I understood Pete is working just across the road from my office, so perhaps we could meet either mine or Petes' work place (Farringdon tube)?
The next things to do for the 2nd of February as I understand from the brief are:
Next phase? As I can't attend next week, perhaps we could have a group meeting in one of the evenings next week (Monday-Wendesday) after 6pm? I know Marie-Therese probably can't attend, but whereabout are you Pete and Matt living? I understood Pete is working just across the road from my office, so perhaps we could meet either mine or Petes' work place (Farringdon tube)?
The next things to do for the 2nd of February as I understand from the brief are:
- Draft SWOT analysis
- Eyesoreit
- Brainstorming
- Cost plan
- Slogan
- Concept
- Sketch/Model
Thursday, 18 January 2007
There are a couple of pics taken on tuesday evening below. First impressions of the site are:
a) its massive and would take a day to cover the whole area. I managed to get around the bit between London Bridge, Union Street and Blackfriars Road.
b) the area has a very wide variety of different land uses and types of building fabric ranging from large office blocks to tight knit historical terrace streets to 1920s style local authority flats.
c) some streets would be quite easily pedestrianised as its already very lightly trafficked in part, but some kind of audit is probably needed to assess a kind of pedestrianised street network, with different levels of vehicular access (obviously some roads will need to remain primarily vehicle dominated if the scheme is to be realistic)
d) there is already quite a lot of 'arts quarter' uses from small design workshops and architects practices to larger arts institutions. It is quite easy to imagine how this area might be in some ways as there are existing examples on more micro scale that exhibit the kind of characteristics we might be looking for. Examples are, converted arches on the alleys alongside the railway viaducts, lighting projects under the bridges (with a unified theme creating a type of character area)
e)problems are dark and unwelcoming streets (security issues), problems of restricting car access (from traffic pov), large ex-industrial lots used as car parks or garages and providing no frontage or life on the street. Lack of a good mix of uses to ensure livliness at different times - there is resi, commercial and retail but it is segregated block by block -suggest live/work type accomodation, ground floor retail/studios/commercial (small scale) resi /office upstairs?
Saturday, 13 January 2007
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