A network of nature and history

A network of nature and history The San Francisco Northern Waterfront Bharath Haridas California College of the Arts 2015

b h a r a t h haridas cca

2015

The San Francisco Northern Waterfront

b h a r a t h haridas cca

2015

The parks that make up San Francisco’s Northern Waterfront is a collection of different entities that seems fragmented.

b h a r a t h haridas cca

2015

Could these disparate elements be a result of the unique history of changes and usage that this area has gone through ?

From Post to Park, October 1, 1994. National Park Service, GGNRA

b h a r a t h haridas cca

2015

Crissy fields and cityscape, Presidio Park 2015, Bharath Haridas

One can see that these various elements in the site sit side by side producing intriguing juxtapositions of seemingly disparate entities.

Centennial of PPIE, 2015, Palace of fine arts, Bharath Haridas

It also points to the close relationship that this area has had with the city of San Francisco.

b h a r a t h haridas cca

2015

How might we bring about a more cohesive representation, comprehension and experience to the place ?

Could an effort to bring more cohesion facilitate new relationships between the visitor and the place ?

b h a r a t h haridas cca

2015

a process Mapping and acknowledging juxtapositions Creating frameworks that can integrate them Comparing how it aligns with the larger goals and visions

The parks that make up San Francisco’s Northern Waterfront is a collection of different entities, that could be broadly labelled as ecologies, histories, activities and economies.

These elements can be conceptually rearranged and relinked to suggest new forms of cohesiveness and generate frameworks that create more meaningful relationships and interactions between the visitors and the space.

This conceptual re-arrangement translates to new ways of representing, understanding, navigating and interacting with the park.

b h a r a t h haridas cca

2015

LAND’ S END, PRESIDIO,

SIT HISTORY EXPOSITION

MILITARY

PROG PRE - MILITARY

TRAILS

AR

, MARINA, FORT

MASON

TE

GRAM

RT

ECOLOGY EVENTS

CONSERVATION

EDUCATION

EXPERIMENTATION

b h a r a t h haridas cca

2015

If we map the different entities that make up this place, we also have to consider the psychological landscape of the visitors in order to create new bridges between them.

b h a r a t h haridas cca

2015

LAND’ S END, PRESIDIO,

SIT HISTORY EXPOSITION

MILITARY

PROG PRE - MILITARY

ART

MUSIC FILMS

HISTORY

TRAILS

PERFORMANCE

AR

MAKE

ENVIRONMENTALISM

CULT

SAN FRA

SITE

HYPER OBJECTS INFLU

, MARINA, FORT

MASON

TE

GRAM

RT

ECOLOGY EVENTS

ER FAIR

CONSERVATION

TECHNOLOGY

GAMING

TURE

ANCISCO

E

UENCING THE VISITORS

EDUCATION

EXPERIMENTATION

DATA VIZ

INTERNET

TECHNOLOGY

b h a r a t h haridas cca

2015

The components and the details of this conceptual map can be further developed and refined through participatory methods involving the different teams and experts that have been managing the park as well as visitors.

To demonstrate the possibilities that can be generated by this framework, as a design author I am proposing one of the ideas that were generated, which seemed to align with the some of the goals and concerns that were identified.

b h a r a t h haridas cca

2015

How could a visitor see and understand the behaviour of the place as one interconnected system ?

Among the visitors how might we facilitate discovery, appreciation and an agency to figure out their own activities in such a vast space?

How might we create more meaningful relationships between the visitor and the park ?

The real and virtual landscapes

program history natural ecology site terrain

b h a r a t h haridas cca

2015

Contour Model + Projection Mapping + Interaction

Terrain + Ecological/Historical Database

b h a r a t h haridas cca

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A terrain model with interactive projections of visualisations of ecological and historical stories and data

A blank scale terrain model becomes the canvas on which different types of maps and visual overlays get projected.

A visitor or a docent/park ranger/teacher can interact with the model. It can be used to visualise sensor data as well as historical anecdotes.

It could either be housed in a visitor centre or within historical structures, or be made available as an app.

b h a r a t h haridas cca

2015

Activities A park ranger can use it to explain the area in different ways.

It could be used to show the different weather and sunlight conditions for the next few hours in the different spaces locations of restored/sensitive ecologies and the factors affecting it

time lapse sequence of weather patterns, growth patterns of flora time lapse of soil quality changes the uniqueness of different routes and trails areas where historical and ecological sites intersect

b h a r a t h haridas cca

2015

A Visitor can use the model to plan the trip according to the weather/time choose points of interests / trails book mark spaces/stories of interest and import into a mobile app create custom audio tours A group or event can use the map and centre to to create real time mapping and tagging from participants for a bio-blitz event create a ‘headquarters’ ‘briefing’ room scenario, this facility could become a special room that can be unlocked by collecting a few ‘virtual’ artefacts from the area ( scavenger hunt ) this facility could become a briefing/orientation room or the final destination rendezvous point for visitors who come in through different points of entry The management could use it to facilitate discussions , planning and simulations of the park.

b h a r a t h haridas cca

2015

a controller can split or mark areas using gestures and drag in lenses and filters onto the map

b h a r a t h haridas cca

2015

An area can be selcted, and different lenses can be dragged into this space. In this example we see soil quality, tree hieght and density as well wind patterns.

When these filters are enabled relevant historic anecdotes pop up from the area. We see that this area had the medicinal plant gardens that Juana Briones had started. One could see how this might be related to the soil quality, the slope of the terrain or the tree cover.

This map system allows for conversations and discussions about how various phenomena, systems, artefacts and sites interact with each other in the area.

It also creates new ways of perceiving and navigating through the place as a collective or individual experience.

It could augment the expertise of a park ranger to engage audiences and invite people to select lenses that they are intrested in and also add to it.

This could facilitate new modes of understanding and wonder among visitors according to their own interests.

b h a r a t h haridas cca

2015