Art In Transit 2.0 Documentation Book
Swati Agarwal PDP 401
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Project Overview
Why I chose this project?
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The Art in Transit project looks at the nature of the city through the Metro Rail Transit System and inquires how experience, memory and fantasy invent this city, that like many others is in a state of transition. The metro within this metropolis is a semi public space that offers opportunities for congregation and social networks where a diversity of people come together with a common purpose of getting from one point to another. The project explores the possibility of the metro having the potential to become the connective tissue between a past nostalgia, our present experience and the fantastical future. It provides a platform to explore human journey in all its facets and to rethink the characteristics and dynamics of networks using a transit space as a laboratory.
As a public space designer, the project brief interested me as it gave an opportunity to understand the complexity of designing a public space that caters to diverse users and has multiple stakeholders. The three frames - ‘Experience of Transit’, ‘The city - Past, Present and Future’ and ‘Transit as a social network’ - proposed to guide the research and practice of the project opened vast range of lenses and perspectives to take the project ahead. The process of listening, engaging, reflecting and responding to the dynamics of public space and proposing a suitable intervention would enhance my design sensibilities and process.
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Site Analysis Understanding the Context
Minsk Square HAL
Vidhan Soudha
Chinnaswamy Stadium
Vidhan Soudha metro station
Cubbon Park metro station The Vidhan Soudha metro station is located in the administrative hub of the city. The road is lined by government offices and organisations. Lawyers and government officers can be seen pacing up and down the street. The regular office goers would constitute the majoirty of the potential metro riders.
High Court
Vidhan Soudha station exits
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Cubbon Park
The Cubbon Park metro station is located closer to places such as the Cubbon Park, Chinnaswamy stadium, Museums and Bal Bhavan. It is also close to office spaces such as the Bsnl office and HAL. The potential users could be the morning joggers at Cubbon Park, office goers, weekend visitors and tourists
Cubbon Park station exits
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The Site - Cubbon Park Metro Station
Chinnaswamy Exit
Concourse - Underground Level1
Cubbon Park Exit Ticket Counter
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2
3
HAL Exit
Canara Bank Exit Towards MG Road
Towards MG Road
Towards Vidhan Soudha
Towards Vidhan Soudha
Platform- Underground Level2 6
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The Site - Vidhan Soudha Metro Station
Concourse - Underground Level1
Vikas Soudha Exit
High Court Exit 2 Towards KR Circle
Ticket Counter
Ticket Counter
Vidhan Soudha Exit
High Court Exit 1 Towards GPO Towards KR Circle
Towards GPO
UP
UP
Platform - Underground Level2 8
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Opening Lens Line of Inquiry - How and why did Bangalore become a hub for startups, what role is the city playing in this development and how is it changing in the process?
Interviews
Frames to guide the research The City - Past, Present and Future This frames offers the opportunity to explore the various layers of Bangalore’s transient identity, be it the past collective memories of the city, one’s present varied experiences of the city and the diverse and competing actions of the city
Experience of Transit This frame provides a platform to explore human journey in all its facets - explloring and explicating memories and narratives, politics of migration, replacement an displacement, public space as an artifact, journey as an experience of the self and technology as a form of mediation and connection across space and time
Methods of Research
Sudhira H.S. - Runs the Science Media Center at IISC, Bangalore Anshul Rai - Startup founder, Happay Jayaram Kasi - Startup founder, Pikkol Edul Patel - Employee at Helpchat Ravinder M.K - Cofounder, Bhive Coworking Space
Artefacts articles and blogs online
Embodiment
Observed startup work culture at coworking spaces and cafes
Transit as a Social Network The frame provides an opportunity to think about transit as a social network that moves beyond the tangibility of public space. It encourages to rethink the characteristics and dynamics of networks - using transit space as a laboratory - to experiment the technologies, ideas of connectivity, to uncover the dynamic cultral relationships between various agents and actors across time and sapce to decipher patterns, latent meanings, relationships and insights into our complex world 10
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Research Timeline of events that have shaped up the ‘Startup Ecosystem’ in Bangalore
Tipu Sultan used technologically superior artillery, mainly rockets. This shows that even the earlier rules in Bangalore were passionate about technology and science1
Visveswarya, Diwan of Mysore built some of the finest engineering projects. He also founded the government engineering college at Bangalore in 19173
Narayan Murthy moved Infosys from Pune to Bangalore
18th Century
Early 1900s
1983
Azim Premji decided to setup a software subsidiary in the city5
1980s
Major meltdown in Silicon Valley after the dotcom crash; A returning pool of unemployed engineers seeded a round of new startups - who started exploring things further beyond outsourcing.9
2001
1893 - 1909
Mid 1900s
1984
Jamsetji Tata proposed the idea of setting up a Research Institute of Science for India.
Late 1990s
2007
The existing high level of education investment, availability of electricity though hydropower projects and suitable climate attracted the government to put all its research investments in the city. Bangalore became the headquarters for HAL, Bharat Electronics, ISRO, Hindustan Machine Tools, Indian Telephone Industries and National Aerospace Labs.
Texas Instruments setup an office in Bangalore to tap the cheap research pool . This gave further credibility to the location
The Year 2000 problem dramatically increased the demand for Bangalore engineers8
Flipkart and Inmobi were founded by returning expats who got tired of working for big corporates like Amazon and Mckinsey
Sir William Ramsay found Bangalore suitable due to its moedrate climate. The region was ruled by Krishna Raja Wadiyar IV who was passionate about education. Wadiyar and Iyer gave 372 acres of prime land in the center of the city free of cost to setup the new research institution 1906: Bangalore became the 1st city in Asia to have electricity with the setting up of hydroelectric power plant at Shivasamudram falls2
TI first tried setting up its office in Mumbai or Chennai, but received bureaucratic hurdles at both places6
They unleashed a pool of ambitious, well trained entrepreneurs from their alumni who went on to found various other startups.10
Sustained public investment created a large tech workforce and a knowledge network that was tapped by tech companies4
1 “What Contributed to Bangalore Becoming the Silicon Valley of India?,” Quora, accessed January 20, 2016, https://www.quora.com/What-contributed-to-Bangalore-becomingthe-Silicon-Valley-of-India. 2 Sudhira H.S., interviewed by Swati Agarwal, Bangalore, India, January 23, 2016. 3 Ibid 4 “Why Startups Get Bangalored!,” Bangalore Mirror, accessed January 20, 2016, https://http://www.bangaloremirror.com/bangalore/others/Why-start-ups-get-Bangalored/articleshow/46855265.cms 5 “What Contributed to Bangalore Becoming the Silicon Valley of India?,” Quora, accessed January 20, 2016, https://www.quora.com/What-contributed-to-Bangalore-becomingthe-Silicon-Valley-of-India.
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Bangalore Institute of Technology was the first private institute in Karnataka and maybe even in India to offer Computer Science as an egineering branch. Before this it was only IITs and NITs7
6 “What Contributed to Bangalore Becoming the Silicon Valley of India?,” Quora, accessed January 20, 2016, https://www.quora.com/What-contributed-to-Bangalore-becomingthe-Silicon-Valley-of-India. 7 Ibid 8 Ibid 9 Ibid 10 Ibid
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Research Understanding the Startup Ecosystem Why is Bangalore attracting people to launch startups? Legacy As per the Global Startup Ecosystem Ranking Report 2015,“Bangalore is home to approximately 3,100 to 4,900 active tech startups and has achieved the second highest growth rate for exit volume and VC investment among the top 20. As a result, Bangalore moved up four positions to #15 in 2015, advancing from #19 in the 2012 ranking.11
TI establishing its first office in Bangalore created a legacy Networking Opportunities Events organised for startup founders to get together or talks by industry experts create a conducing environment for networking and knowledge sharing13
Bengaluru is the only Indian city to be ranked within the best twenty startup eco systems across the world
Top level management in companies like Infosys and Wipro explore opportunities to mentor or invest in startups Why are people shifting from taking up jobs in MNCs to launching their startups? Risk of starting up has gone down; number of options available to exit if the idea doesn’t work12 People want to explore alternative opportunities Sense of freedom, ownership and acheivement Funding is readily available A number of entrepreneurs have started and sold their businesses to invest in startups
Suitable Market Cosmopolitan environment Tech savvy people Ready to pay for convenience 14 Reputation The existing large number of startups is attracting more and more of them Tech Workforce The history of a number of egineering institutes and PSUs in research and technolgy sector created a talented tech workforce Government Initiatives incubation centers, seed funding
11 Karnataka Startup Policy 2015-20, 1. 12 Anshul Rai, phone conversation with Swati Agarwal, Bangalore, India, January 20, 2016.
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13 Edul Patel, phone conversation with Swati Agarwal, Bangalore, India, January 20, 2016. 14 Jayaram Kasi, phone conversation with Swati Agarwal, Bangalore, India, January 20, 2016.
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Research
Research
Impact on Urban Landscape Bangalore is undergoing rapid change subject to urbanization, changes in economic activity and technological advancement. The development of the IT sector in the 1990s has played a major role in changing the landscape of the city. It led to rapid demographic changes with young professionals migrating to the city. In the last decade, the city has become a hub for start-ups. The well developed networking opportunities and a talented tech pool are attracting young entrepreneurs to setup their businesses here. Apart from economic and social, these developments have also contributed to spatial changes in the city in the form of its increasing size, change in land-use, and in the built form. Large numbers of open public spaces have diminished over the years due to rapid change in land use. Most of it is getting converted to commercial use due to increase in land value.
Role of Public Spaces in Cities Public spaces are an important ingredient to build an attractive city. A public space offers the opportunity for people from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds, age groups and abilities to congregate, interact, and engage in common activities. Such an interaction allows people to become aware of and familiar with the communities they live in, making the city more enjoyable and safe. In this process of exposure and interaction with diverse people the community also becomes more tolerant to diversity which is important for the overall stability of society. Robert Putnam and other sociologists have supplied convincing evidence that strong social connections are also necessary prerequisites for economic success.
In addition to decline in number of public spaces, participation of people in such spaces is also declining due to advent of technology and ownership of cars. Streets, which once used to be a place for people to meet and have a conversation have become domains of cars.
Dr. Shobha M.N, Dr. Krishne Gowda, and Prof. Sridhara M.V, “Cities in Transition: Impact of Information Technology Industries On Bangalore,” International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications 3, no. 6
(June 2013): 1 16
Tom Borrup, “5 Ways Arts Projects Can Improve Struggling Communities,” Project for Public Spaces, accessed February 6, 2016, http://www. pps.org/reference/artsprojects/
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Research
Successful Public Spaces
Project for Public Spaces (PPS), has found that to be successful, public spaces generally share the following four qualities: they are accessible; people are engaged in activities there; the space is comfortable and has a good image; and finally, it is a sociable place: one where people meet each other and take people when they come to visit. In the diagram, a place can be evaluated according to the four criteria in the orange ring. In the ring outside these main criteria are a number of intuitive or qualitative aspects by which to judge a place; the next outer ring shows the quantitative aspects that can be measured by statistics or research.
Their approach is based on the concept of Placemaking, developed in the 1960s when PPS mentors like Jane Jacobs and William H. Whyte introduced groundbreaking ideas about designing cities for people, not just cars and shopping centers. They help citizens transform their public spaces into vital places that highlight local assets, spur rejuvenation and serve common needs. Placemaking inspires people to collectively reimagine and reinvent public spaces as the heart of every community. It facilitates people of all ages, abilities, and socio-economic backgrounds to not only access and enjoy a place, but also play a key role in its identity, creation, and maintenance.
Project for Public Spaces, “What Is Placemaking,� Project for Public Spaces, accessed February 3, 2016, http://www.pps.org/reference/what_ is_placemaking/.
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Proposal Having understood the important role of public spaces in a city in facilitating interaction among people, as a public space designer I would like to evaluate the sociability of the public transit space and create an environment or place that encourages interaction among people and activates the space.
Questions emerging from research Can the metro station become a public space that fosters interaction among strangers? The strong networking opportunities in Bangalore have attracted a number of young entrepreneurs to setup their businesses in the city. How can an environment be created at the metro station that attracts people to use the space and hence activates it? Can the use of technology, perhaps a combination of the virtual and the real world stimulate interaction among the transit users?
Case Study 1 - The Uni Project | By Leslie and Sam Davol People interacting with the portable reading room in Corona, Queens, NYC in July 2012
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Case Study 2 - Aarhus by Light | Aarhus City Concert Hall, DenmarkDavol
Case Study 3 - Flink! | Project by Yasemin Arslan, Eindhoven University of Technology, Netherlands
Explores how digital technologies can affect and transform public behaviour and social interactions
Motivates workers to have more social interaction Located near the coffee machine to utilise time while waiting
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Routes to nearest bus stops from Cubbon park
The project aims at activating public spaces by encouraging the use of public transit system. It focuses on enhancing the experience of transit by improving access to last mile connectivity, offering wayfinding information for pedestrians and metro commuters to nearby bus stops.
Problem Identified
Concept 1
Lack of information about bus stop locations near the metro station Lack of information about bus routes People ask fellow pedestrians or traffic police for bus stop locations Bus conductors are the only reliable source of information for bus routes
Information about closest bus stops and bus routes
Approach Part1: bus route data collection, organisation, and information design Part2: designing the display unit and way finding objects Breadcrumbs to lead to the step
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Data Collection Buses passing through Chinnaswamy Stadium. Souce: bmtc office Individual routes of each bus to get en exhaustive list of destinations. Source: bmtc website TImings of each bus route. Source: bmtc website Observation and Analysis
Information Design Process
35 unique end points can be reached from the Chinnaswamy bus stop An additional 40 unique interim destinations are served by the buses together 45 unique bus routes operate through the bus stop Series of bus routes operate from point A to dierent end points, 75% of the stops are same Categorising Data Bus routes belonging to the same series are mapped together to avoid clutter Only major destinations are shown on the map; stops within the same locality at a distance less than 1 km are not shown Mapping data in a comprehendable format
Case Study 1
Map of Road Public Transport, Delhi Cartographer Sudipto Ghosh and designer Shimonti Sinha Offers choices: Shows all possible routes between 2 points Making it comprehendable: Cognitive Bus map - shows roads at 90 degree and 45 degree angles than actual roads Filtered out relevant information: Plots 100 of 550 DTC bus routes - excludes routes with frequency less than 15 Uses popular landmarks to help people identify their location
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Step 1: Find your destination on the list
BK
S Kadirenhalli Cross, Banashankari 2nd stage Kumarswamy layout KH Road
Banashankari Bus station Banashankari 1st stage Banashankari 3rd stage Basvangudi BTM Layout
Shanthinagar Siddapura
T
L
Thyagrajnagar
Lalbagh Main gate
H Hanumantha nagar
W
P
Wilson Garden
Padmanabha nagar
J Jayanagar
R
JP Nagar 1st,2nd and 6th phase JP Nagar 3rd phase
Richmond Circle Chinnaswamy Stadium
Step 2: Follow the corresponding colour to your destination
Richmond Circle 13, 13A,B,C,D,E,G,F,J,K,H,S, 27, 27A,E,N, 29, 29E 32E, 34A, 34B, 34C, 34F, 34S, 37, 37A, 37B, 37D, 37E, 37F KH Road
Lalbagh Main gate
Case Study 2
Pune Bus Route Map Shweta Kamble, Student, IDC, IIT Bombay
Hannumantha Nagar
Basvanagudi
Making it comprehendable: Cognitive Bus map - shows roads at 90 degree and 45 degree angles than actual roads
Banashankari 1st stage
BTM Layout JP Nagar 27, 27N 6th phase 29, 29E 34A,C,S,F, 37A, 37B
Wilson Garden
27A,E
Thyagrajnagara
Siddapura
Jayanagar 13A,B,C,D,E,G,F,H,K,,SJ
32E
Banashankari Bus station 13A,B,C,D,E,G,F,J,K,H,S 13E, 13F, 13H, 13J
Banashankari 3rd stage 34F
13B
Krishnappa Layout, Padmanabha Hosakerehalli Nagar
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13, 13A,B,C,D,E,G,F,J,K,H,S, 27, 27A,E,N, 29, 29E
JP Nagar 3rd phase
34A, B,C,F,S, 37,37A, 37B, 37E
Uses grids for ease of navigating through the map
Shanthinagar
32E, 34A, 34B, 34C, 34F, 34S, 37, 37A, 37B, 37D, 37E, 37F
Kadirenhalli Cross, Banashankari 2nd stage 13A,C Kumaraswamy Layout
ITERATION 1 27
ITERATION 2
ITERATION 3 Chinnaswamy Stadium
Step 1: Find your destination on the map
How to read the map?
Richmond Circle
Destination
Route 1
#1
Grid #
Route 6
Chinnaswamy Stadium Bus Stop
Route 9
Chinnaswamy Stadium
355m ahead 5min walk
Richmond Circle
KH Road
Shanthinagar
B
KH Road Lalbagh Main gate
Hannumantha Nagar Thyagrajnagara Banashankari 1st stage
Banashankari 3rd stage Krishnappa Layout, Hosakerehalli
Basvanagudi
Destination
Wilson Garden
Siddapura
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BTM Layout
JP Nagar 3rd phase
#3
Kumarswamy layout
Padmanabha Nagara
JP Nagar 1st,2nd and 6th phase
Banashankari 1st stage
Banashankari 3rd stage
Refer to the route details below
Destination
Grid #
J
Banashankari Bus station Banashankari 1st stage Banashankari 3rd stage Basvangudi BTM Layout
#2 #3 #3 #2 #3
Destination
Grid #
Lalbagh Main gate
K
Padmanabha nagar
Route 1
#3 #3 #1
Destination
Grid #
S
L
#2 Jayanagar JP Nagar 1st,2nd and 6th phase #3 #3 JP Nagar 3rd phase
Kadirenhalli Cross, Banashankari 2nd stage Kumarswamy layout KH Road
#2
#2
T
#3
Thyagrajnagar
R Richmond Circle
#2
W
#1
Route 6
#1 #2
Shanthinagar Siddapura
P
#2
Wilson Garden
Route 9
Richmond Circle
Grid #1
KH Road
JP Nagar 3rd phase
Shanthinagar Wilson Garden
Kadirenhalli Cross, Banashankari 2nd stage
Lalbagh Main gate Basvangudi
Siddapura
Route 7 Route 8
Jayanagar
Kumaraswamy Layout
Banashankari Bus station
32E, 34A, 34B, 34C, 34F, 34S, 37, 37A, 37B, 37D, 37E, 37F
Thyagrajnagar
Route 11 Hanumantha nagar
Route 12 JP Nagar Layout 3rd phase
Kadirenhalli Cross, Banashankari 2nd stage
Grid #3
Route 10
Route 2
Route 3 Route 4 Route 5 BTM
13, 13A,B,C,D,E,G,F,J,K,H,S 27, 27A,E,N, 29, 29E
29, 29E
Hanumantha nagar
Route 12 Route 4 Route 5
Kadirenhalli Cross, Banashankari 2nd stage
Chinnaswamy Stadium
13A, 13C
27A,E
Thyagrajnagar
Route 3
Grid #
Hanumantha nagar
13, 13A,B,C,D,E,G,F,J,K,H,S 27, 27A,E,N, 29, 29E 32E, 34A, 34B, 34C, 34F, 34S, 37, 37A, 37B, 37D, 37E, 37F
27, 27N
Route 7 Route 8 Jayanagar
B
H
Step 2: Find the corresponding route colour to get bus route numbers
13A,B,C,D,E,G,F,J,K,H,S
Route 11
Route 10
Route 2
Grid #2 Padmanabha Nagar
Basvangudi
Banashankari Bus station
Find your destination on the list
BTM Layout
JP Nagar 6th phase
Lalbagh Main gate
Siddapura
Shanthinagar
Jayanagar
Banashankari Bus station
#2
#2 #3 #3 #2 #3
Banashankari Bus station Banashankari 1st stage Banashankari 3rd stage Basvangudi BTM Layout
Wilson Garden
JP Nagar 1st,2nd and 6th phase
Banashankari 1st stage
Kumarswamy Padmanabha Banashankari Nagara 3rd stage layout
13B 13E, 13F, 13H, 13J
32E 34A, B,C,F,S, 37,37A, 37B, 37E 34A,C,S,F, 37A, 37B 34F
Route #
Bus route #
Frequency
Route #
Bus route #
Frequency
Route 1
13, 13A,13B,13C,13D,13E,13G,13F,13H,13J,13K,13S
15 minutes
Route 9
32E, 34A, 34B, 34C, 34F, 34S, 37, 37A, 37B, 37D, 37E, 37F
15 minutes
Route 2
13A,13B,13C,13D,13E,13G,13F,13H,13J,13K,13S
15 minutes
Route 10 32E
1hr 40 min
Route 3
13A,13C
30 minutes
Route 11 34A, 34B,34C,34F,34S, 37,37A, 37B, 37E
25 minutes
Route 4
13B
30 minutes
Route 12 34A,34C,34F,34S, 37A, 37B
25 minutes
Route 5
13E, 13F, 13H, 13J
30 minutes
Route 6
27, 27A,27E, 29, 29E
45 minutes
Route 7
27A,27E
45 minutes
Route 8
29,29E
60 minutes
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Signage Form Iterations
Signage Form Iterations
Display surface tilted forward for better readability and is lit from the top for accessibility in dark
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Curved surface for people to be able to lean during their waiting time with a rod at the botton to rest their foot
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Signage Form Iterations
Site Selection at Cubbon Park Metro Station Towards Indian Express
Towards GPO To wa rds C
Metro Station
hin
na sw
am yS tad
ium
Location of signage
The signage location was chosen right outside the metro station at the point where a commuter has to choose between three roads leading in different directions.
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13’
6’
1
Metro Station
20’
3
Form experimentation to provide seating outside the metro station 32
Pavement Signage boards
Footpath Circulation
Layout 1 utlizes maximum space and provides space for circulation
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Visualisation on Site
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Curatorial Themes Cubbon Park Exterior
R ns oa
Chinnaswamy Entrance
ee d
The intervention is rooted in a particular aspect of the Bangalore city. The relationship between the intervention and the city is pronounced both in form and concept.
Qu
Aesthetic & Aspirations
Jet model
Curatorial Themes
Traveller The projects focus on creating an experience for the commuter through the space in the station Participatory Networks
Raj Bhavan Road
HAL Entrance Canara Bank Entrance
Minsk Square (Coolant)
sR een oad
The projects require and facilitate participation and interaction with it’s users. It is here that the interface becomes the intervention. These users are not limited to commuters but include pedestrians, joggers, hawkers, vendor, workers and people passing through site.
Cubbon Road
Qu
The individual projects under Art in Transit are tied together through four curatorial themes - Aesthetics & aspirations, The traveller, Participatory networks and The otherland. The projects are organised spatially across the exteriors and interiors of the two metro stations, keeping in mind how each project is relates to every other project withiin the same curatorial theme and across different themes
Cubbon Park Entrance
The Otherland Activated by the idea of another world ‘underground’, the projects aim at creating a whimsical and fantastical world.
Participatory Networks Aesthetics and Aspirations The Traveller The Otherland 36
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Curatorial Themes Cubbon Park Concourse Level
Curatorial Themes Cubbon Park Station Platform
Chinnaswamy Exit
Towards Vidhan Soudha
Cubbon Park Exit
1
2
3
Ticket Counter
1
2
3
Towards MG Road HAL Exit
Canara Bank Exit Participatory Networks Aesthetics and Aspirations The Traveller The Otherland 38
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To Vikas Soudha
Curatorial Themes Vidhan Soudha Exterior
Vikas Soudha Exit
Vidhan Soudha Exit
Ticket Counter
Ticket Counter
BR Ambedkar Road
road
To Cubbon Park
Post offic e
Vidhan Soudha
Curatorial Themes Vidhan Soudha Concourse
High Court
High Court Exit 2 Towards KR Circle
High Court Exit 1 Towards GPO
Participatory Networks Aesthetics and Aspirations The Traveller The Otherland
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Curatorial Themes Vidhan Soudha Platform
Towards KR Circle
Towards GPO
PU
PU
Participatory Networks Aesthetics and Aspirations The Traveller The Otherland 42
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44
45
46
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Quora. “What Contributed to Bangalore Becoming the Silicon Valley of India?.� Accessed January 20, 2016. https://www.quora.com/ What-contributed-to-Bangalore-becomingthe-Silicon-Valley-of-India.
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