Urban Escapism @imacovei-researchandev - Tumblr Blog

Final Reflection

My initial research question was along the lines of “How can I as a designer help to facilitate acts or moments of restoration in the cityscape”. This was in direct response to my previous research which looked into urban planning and how our current urban condition neglects its role as a place for well being, as a site where people can recharge and renew. This was very broad as well being as we know covers a huge range of areas. Another avenue of inquiry that came up because of an insight I made in semester 1′s research, was exploring the concept of ‘naturalness’ and the development of large scale ‘fabricated’ wildernesses in the forms of parks and gardens in city areas. My research challenged this and proposed that instead of copying the ‘natural’ environment we should celebrate what already exists, the restorative opportunities that the city already offers. The trill of music from the cafe across the street, the pleasures of people watching, being in the midst of the hum and bustle of the city.

This then lead to in Semester 2, to the concept of escapism. These moments that I was researching in semester one were essentially moments of escape. This concept is what carried me through to my final design which has changed somewhat from my initial proposed research question. While I have still held on to the notion of restoration, what I have developed and designed are a set of structures that are very site oriented. They depend on the city environment around them to enhance and celebrate the escapist opportunities offered at those sites. I have the observation pod in the middle of Lambton Quay, which enhances the city watching experience from a hidden pocket in the centre of the city. The sound pocket which is hidden under an existing set of stairs by the Michael Fowler Centre, which uses this hidden pocket to its advantage to create a sound installation that celebrates the city noises captured around the structure. And finally there is the alleyway periscope which utilises the city's propensity for skylines, to create an experience that captures viewing from a vantage point but at street level. These 3 moments which emerged out of explorations of Wellington CBD, are things that a city already has, the city has rhythm it has noise, it has views. My aim was to capture and enhance these 3 experiences, to ultimately challenge the notion that a city is not a space for rest and escape. That it can only ever be noisy, stressful and overcrowded.

I am proud of the process I took to get to this point, it was not easy as I had some major pitfalls in the process, where my critical thinking and designs were challenged. But without those moments my design could not have hoped to reach the stage it has and I am proud of the effort I have put in to try and come full circle, and I am proud of the thinking and the designs that have come out of this process. As it is something very close to my heart, designing for urban spaces and interrogating how spatial environments can be better designed for psychological well being.

Exhibition Tea Gardens - Exhibition documentation for the tea gardens.

Final Sound Pocket Soundscape - my final edited soundscape for the exhibition, including a video for the ipad screen.

Final Booklet #2

Final Booklet design - page spreads. In my final booklet I added some extra construction and materiality details.

Final 3 posters - these were my final 3 edited poster for the tea garden exhibition. I decided to use hero images for the posters as well as adding more noise to the images to make them feel a bit more textured and atmospheric. The middle strip is a view of what can be seen inside each structure.

Notes after week 11

After week 11 I spent most of the week redesigning my poster layout and adding more detail to my booklet. I also managed to fix my sound up a little bit and add a moving video to the sound clip for the exhibition display.

Join diagrams - developing join diagrams for my three different structures to go into the booklet.

Week 11 feedback

My feedback sheet for week 11 was concerning the detail on my poster, adding street signs to the maps so you can orient yourself better, considering materiality more (in particular the joins between materials), showing the entrance and exits as well as the transformational experience users have before and after using the pods. With my oral feedback there was mainly critique around the colour choice, some found the blue to be more of a night time colour, mismatched with my design intent (busy hours of the day are when the pods are mostly utilised). As well as the consideration of adding detail, such as construction and material details to the booklet rather than the poster, and the poster being my hero images to draw people in. I didnt get much feedback on the sound I developed other than previous tests I had done on my peers who commented that it was surprisingly relaxing considering it was made up of city sounds, which I view as a success because the whole aim was to take the unpleasant noises and turn them into something that could offer a relaxing experience.

Booklet for week 11 formative - The booklet I created went into detail about the chosen sites for the pocket structures as well as the purpose and functionality of the structures themselves.

Poster week 11 formative - close up of diagrams and details included on the poster.

Visit Original Link

This was the initial sound recording taken from the Michael Fowler Centre steps, which I then edited to make the sound scape.

Visit Original Link

Sound Pocket soundscape - For week 12 I also developed a soundscape for the sound pocket design. To show what the sound installation would sound like to users inside. The sound was developed from clips I had taken around the Michael Fowler centre as well as the wider city, which were then combined and distorted to create the soundscape. Certain sounds were enhanced, such as footsteps and car noises, as well as adding a muffling to the overall soundscape to highlight that you are inside a pod.

Week 11 critique

11min notes:

I’ll start off by reading my draft blurb:

Urban escapism is an exploration into pocket structures located in Wellington CBD that serve to create brief moments of respite. These structures enhance the already existing restorative opportunities at these sites and seek to challenge the perception that ‘escapism’ cannot be achieved

in the city, with our cities being shrouded in a veil of stress, noise and overcrowding. They exist in a small ‘pocket', more suited to the ever-densifying urban footprint. In each pocket structure the users perception of space and presence is amplified, enabling them to both be immersed in the city, whilst creating an element of separation and distance from it.

"To escape is to be both present and distant, to be so immersed and captivated by an experience that for the briefest moment you forget where you are"

This all arises out the fact that I think we should celebrate our cities potential to fascinate and provide restorative moments and the medium I have chosen to do this through is by providing pocket spaces that enhance certain city experiences. A pocket is defined as something that exists within something else, it has a hidden quality to it. So in designing these 3 spaces I have worked with this idea of creating a hidden pocket.

In my 1st design I drew this quality out by designing under an already existing bridge in civic square.

The idea is that this structure is a sound pocket, where people can go inside to sit and listen to the sound coming from the inbuilt speakers in the arches. This sound is taken from microphones outside the structure and then relayed inside, distorting and amplifying certain sounds. This works to draw attention to city sounds, to amplify them and this in turn gives the people inside an amplified perception of the site and the sound qualities of that site.

The structure is also constructed out of a fogged acrylic which works to create some privacy for the user inside, so they can see the blurred shapes and shadows of people walking around the structure and vice versa.

My 2nd design is the observation pod, which is essentially a city viewing space. The design blends in with the existing site, Lambton Quay and is enclosed in 1 way glass to create privacy for the user inside. The one-way glass inside also provides a very clear view of the city around the pod, so the user can city watch as they sit and take a short break.

My 3rd design is the alleyway periscope located in Opera House Lane. The nature of the site adds to the hidden quality as it is tucked away in the alleyway. It provides people with a view of the city from above, more specifically overlooking the James Cook Carpark building towards the waterfront.

Offering an expansive view as well as giving people access to something they don’t otherwise have the opportunity to see, as many high-rise buildings, in Wellington especially are privatised and not accessible to the public.

All 3 of my designs seek to enhance moments in the city, through sound and visual stimuli offering people a different perspective and through this a form of escapism.

Escapism: the tendency to seek distraction and relief from unpleasant realities, especially by seeking entertainment or engaging in fantasy.

Restoration: The act of restoration is described as, “The process of renewing, recovering, or reestablishing physical, psychological, and social resources or capabilities diminished in ongoing efforts to meet adaptive demands.” – (Terry Hartig, 2004, p. 273)

The unpleasant reality we speak of are the stressors of urban living : as social isolation, living in cramped environments in close proximity to other people, inability to control the unpredictable city environment.

However instead of prescribing the solution as escaping away from the city altogether my design offers the opportunity to escape in the centre of the city, by enhancing and celebrating the restorative moments it already has (the noise and rhythm, the heights and vantage points etc).

Draft Blurb

Urban Escapism

“Maybe what is truly indicative of restoration is not a fake replica of an environment that already achieves this but an environment that already exists and is informed by the cities ebbs and flows” - Rest-Story Research

Urban escapism is an exploration into pocket structures located in Wellington CBD that serve to create brief moments of respite for passers by. These structures enhance the already existing restorative opportunities at these sites and seek to challenge the perception that ‘escapism’ cannot be achieved in a central city space, with our cities being shrouded in a veil of stress, noise and overcrowding. They offer a counter to the large scale urban planning of parks and squares and exist in a small ‘pocket', more suited to the ever densifying city footprint. In each pocket structure the users perception of space and presence is amplified, enabling the passer by to both be immersed in the city, whilst creating an element of separation and distance from it. So true moments of escapism can be achieved.

"To escape is to be both present and distant, to be so immersed and captivated by an experience that for a brief moment you forget where you are"

Rough Poster Draft for week 11

Rough beginnings of a poster draft for my first pod

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