A RECORDING OF COLLABORATION BETWEEN DELFT UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT OF ARCHITECTURE AND VIRGINIA TECH SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE + DESIGN’S CHICAGO STUDIO.
IDENTITIES
IDENTITIES CHICAGO STUDIO. SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE + DESIGN’S ARCHITECTURE AND VIRGINIA TECH TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT OF BETWEEN DELFT UNIVERSITY OF A RECORDING OF COLLABORATION
Team: Bryce Beckwith Alec Yuzhbabenko Kelsey Dressing Khalid El Meziani Anna Grossi
CHICAGO STUDIO
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Designing a masterplan or making an urban development strategy involves many actors, data, opinions, policies, programs and restrictions. An urbanist project is a complex project by definition. Developing a good strategy means a continuous weighting, balancing and shifting between all these specific interests, to be combined in one integrated approach. In practice, many different stakeholders will monitor and fight for their, often conflicting interests, as plans come along. The less compromised these interests will be during the design process, the more successful the result. Apart from the complexity of these different layers of ‘input’, a planning process can take up to several decades. If architecture is a slow profession by the nature of the material and organizational reality, urbanism seems inert. Set aside the modern Asian building speed, developing a coherent and productive city fabric takes time. Over time policies change, technology develops, markets collapse and people change their minds. Being a victim to these complicated and constantly changing forces over such considerable time spans, realizing urban plans seems mission impossible. How can urban planners and architects keep charge of these projects? How to manage and integrate all data involved in the design process? How to streamline interests of cities, investors, developers, people and businesses over time? In short; how to tackle the problem of longterm complexity in the design process? Clear and strong visions are needed to cope with complexity and multiplicity of contemporary large assignments. In order to realize this we need to understand the given assignment beyond the simple programme by involving the knowledge of the multilayered dimension of contemporary cities. Most often a paradoxical issue or a key argument emerge when facing contrasting ambitions at stance. For example; How to create a substantial and sustainable density in delicate landscapes? Or how to create urban quality in devaluating environments? How to plan a more productive development whilst being more energy efficient? The architect, the designer should realize the translation of these conditions in spatial languages and visions, which could be shared or understood by many actors. First step is to visualize them in powerful images, that are at the same time intriguing and explanatory. Research by design: Having a very limited amount of time, resources and development input, creates excellent circumstances to test radical interventions and scenarios. This is a short term, pressurecooker exercise to test if strong concepts could battle long term complexity. Lets develop bold concepts, scenarios and visualizations for Chicago that later can be regenerated in more manicured and evaluated forms. Big plans are good, so are small plans; as long as their effect is substantial. Build program is flexible and depends on strategy chosen.
C HICAGO STUDIO
The following is a recording of initial perceptions of an area along the Cermak axis at the intersection of river, rails, and roads.
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PERCEPTIONS
The following is a recording of what could become of dormant structure systems and typologies found throughout many neighborhoods in Chicago and how they could be revitalized as beacons of identity for existing communities. Existing water towers could become landmarks, links, and programmed spaces within the communities in which they belong.
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CHURCHES
Historically an identity and magnet of communities within Chicago, churches became distinguishing organizers and points of reference of neighborhoods and cultures that surrounded them.
WAT E R TOW E R S As a latent piece of infrastructure that stands upon the tops of buildings, water towers have potential to become steeples of our time- not necessarily reorganizing communitybut representing preexisting communities. These beacons of identity stand as landmarks in the urban fabric telling a story of history and could create a narrative from community to community.
GAS S TATIONS
As communities advance and technology progresses, our urban environments are continuously left with dilapidated pieces of built structures and objects that have historically served communities in new ways, becoming relics and defining the identity of neighborhoods. Could the gas station become the next of these typologies?
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BEACONS OF IDENTITIES
image: Ork Posters!
Virginia Tech School of Architecture + Design & Delft University of Technology Department of Architecture
CHICAGO STUDIO
IDENTITIES CHICAGO STUDIO. SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE + DESIGN’S ARCHITECTURE AND VIRGINIA TECH TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT OF BETWEEN DELFT UNIVERSITY OF A RECORDING OF COLLABORATION
Publication designed and composed by Bryce Beckwith. http://cargocollective.com/babeckwith Regards Delft University of Technology, Netherlands Department of Architecture MSc3 Graduation Studio, Spring 2014 http://www.tudelft-architecture.nl/chairs/complex-projects Faculty: Olindo Caso Mick Van Gemert Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia College of Architecture and Urban Studies School of Architecture + Design CHICAGO STUDIO http://archdesign.vt.edu/programs/chicago-studio Professor: Andrew Balster
C HICAGO STUDIO