Leeds Beckett University BA(Hons) Architecture
2017–2018
TIMETABLE Briefing: Tuesday, January 30, 10:00am Market visit: Tuesday, January 30, 2:00pm Section workshop: Friday, February 02, 10:00am Diagram workshop: Tuesday, February 06,10:00am Reading: Tuesday, February 06, 2:00pm Drawing workshop: Tuesday, February 13,10:00am Model workshop: Tuesday, February 20,10:00am
AD1.2 Temporary Narratives
P3 At the Threshold
TUTORS Mohamad Hafeda Anna Pepe Petros Tsitnidis
Crit: Friday, February 27, 10am Final Crit: Friday, March 9, 10am
Malcolm Michaels, Butcher @ Leeds Kirkgate. Photograph by Rick Harrison
PROJECT AIMS
LEARNING OUTCOME
This project will build upon and develop your knowledge and application of key processes that are essential to the practice of architecture – research, site, programme, users, form and presentation.
– Develop research skills – Understand the importance of a number of components in developing a brief – Understand and respond to a site’s physical, social and historical context – Explore the relationship between space, spatial practices, materials and form – Develop some of the representational techniques used in previous projects
BRIEF “A threshold is a piece of wood or stone place beneath a door or an entrance. Whether a simple step or a grand and highly articulated space or series of spaces, the threshold is an architectural element with deep social and emotional significance. It is a transition zone that marks the passage between outside and inside, the beginning of ‘dwelling’, in the terms of Martin Heidegger.” (Porter, 2004) The Leeds Kirkgate Market is the site of AD1.2 two projects. We will explore the market exchange processes between trade, inhabitation and form through studying different forms and scales of the threshold condition existing between these different components. We will look at the architecture of the threshold as a physical condition shaped by economic and social conditions. Examples of the threshold condition in the market are the transitional and in between spaces, back and front, exposed and hidden, private and public, boundaries and light and dark, in addition to types of spaces (architectural elements) such as stairs, passages, entrances, door ways, shop windows and platforms. The market has been prominent in Leeds as a place of trade since the early 19th century. It has a variety of nationalities working within the market, bringing goods, skills and cultures from all around the world. The 1904 Hall is iconic in its architecture but the market has expanded since it was built in 1857 to include several additional halls. The various halls mark the different architectural and economic periods of the time. The market has an enclosed permanent space and a temporary outdoor market; each provides a unique opportunity to investigate different forms of trade, modes of inhabitation of space, the social relationships amongst traders, and the tie between traders and space. The market and the whole area around it are currently witnessing vast changes with new developments and shopping centres under construction as well as refurbishing plans for the market itself in an attempt to keep up to date with current economic trends. Those changes will impact traders directly as well as the future economy of the city. Does this affect the threshold relationship and exchange between the market and its changing surroundings? You are asked to produce a series of design research components that vary from the observational and analytical to the speculative, to explore threshold in practical and critical means. You will explore the micro and macro practices of the market and its importance within Leeds city centre; thinking of site and context, programme and users, spatial conditions, material and form that are all important components in architectural projects. STAGES Stage 1: Threshold, macro scale study – 1 Week Explore three examples, definitions and scales of thresholds; one should be related to a stall/trader that you would like to study in this project, and the other two should be in the outdoor and indoor market communal spaces respectively. Draw the three threshold conditions in plans and sections and in relation to one another at scale 1:50. Use pencil with other drawing techniques (layering) to highlight and annotate the thresholds spatial qualities and differences such as light, dimensions, weather, textures and so on.
Mark their location on the market floor plan part of the same drawing. Stage 2: Inhabitation, micro scale study – 2 Week A Observe the trader at work for at least one full day and engage with them through activities and conversations to understand their mode of inhabitation. Create a trader profile that includes their profession, how long been in the market, where they come from, skills, interests, languages spoken, favourite space and friendships in the market, etc. The profile should present the different information using drawings and simple annotation. B Investigate the modes of inhabitation (use/spatial practices) related to the stall you chose by first sketching and surveying the stall then transferring your observations into an axonometric drawing at scale 1:50. Use the drawing, or a series of axonometric, to explore diagrammatically the work, personal and social practices/spaces. Your drawing needs to explore the body occupation of space by the traders and customers. In addition you need to highlight/draw the threshold(s) and other important spatial conditions at the stall. C Discover the unexpected exchange of your trader. This could be a skill related to their mode of trade and/or occupying the market space such as chopping, shouting, arranging and overflowing in space, or a personal hobby such as photography, story telling, collecting, boxing, cycling, gardening, etc. The unexpected exchange could be part of the stall axonometric drawings and profile or separate. Stage 3: Building threshold – 1 Week Model the three thresholds you studied using white card and/or casting. Build a fragment of the stall that includes the architectural elements related to the threshold you are studying. There is an element of abstraction and transformation in this stage. A model does not need to include all the information of the real object: colours, signs, detailed ornament, and materials do not need to be replicated. Yet, precision, correct thickness, transparency and all the elements that construct the space you are representing is of major importance. The result is a series of abstract and analytical models that explore the threshold conditions at the market spaces. Stage 4: Speculative threshold – 1.5 Week A Collate the three (or part of the) models to construct a spatial configuration out of the threshold conditions in the stall space. The new space should be modified to cater for a new activity/programme of the trader’s unexpected exchange that you discovered. Make the right alterations to explore scale, form, spatial conditions and programme. You need to have a design strategy in dealing with the model such as playing with scale, exaggerating with an architectural element, repetition and extraction of an element to occupy the threshold condition. Document the different arrangements/alterations you construct throughout the design process. B Produce a sequence of photographic images that explore the exchange between the new model and programme – namely the threshold and the unexpected.
Note: We will draw collectively a series of the market sections on the studio walls to understand the market and to mark your stalls and thresholds where possible. We will build a site model of the market. You need to use and document these components and use part of your design process and portfolio. All P3 drawings should be hand drawn. You can only use digital programmes such as Photoshop to manipulate images and use as part of your drawings. SUBMISSION Minimum output -Thresholds plans and sections drawings, scale 1:50 - Trader profile in the form of a pamphlet, poster or an ID card - Stall Axonometric Diagram, scale1:50
READINGS Certeau, Michel de. The Practice of Everyday Life. Translated by Steven Rendell. Berkeley, Calif. ; London: University of California Press, 1988. Particularly the ‘Introduction’ and ‘Chapter III: Making Do’. Porter, Tom. Archispaek. 2004 WEBSITES Leodis – a photographic archive of Leeds. www.leodis.net www.leodis.net/discovery/discovery.asp?page=200335_414959133 Kirkgate Market www.leeds.gov.uk/leedsmarkets/markets/kirkgate-market
- Unexpected Exchange research - Threshold three models, scale 1:50 - Unexpected Threshold model, scale 1:50 - Sequence of photographic images - Design process
Kirkgate market location plan- Proposed development boundary- by Taylor Young