Blaise Macdonald S3195901 MLA 2012 01_
flagstaff station
selected site
southern cross station
possible site
possible site
possible site
flinders st station
social interaction, relaxation, and activity, within corporate urban forecourts Blaise Macdonald S3195901 MLA 2012
contents
09_ research question
11_ research evolution 13_ precedent
16_ puddle studio 21_ abstract
22_ age diagram 24_ AMP square 27_ introduction
28_ modernist forecourts 38_ design iterations 42_ shadow study
44_ reveal & conceal
46_ bodily experience
48_ suspense & curiosity 51_ concluding design iteration 54_ sections
58_ acer palmatum sango kaku 60_ multiple section study
68_ one point perspective sections 72_ collage
74_ bibliography
07_
Research Question:
How can urban forecourts be designed to stimulate different ways of acting or being from normative adult behaviours? Could the introduction of other landscape typologies, trigger sensory
and perceptual relief from the adjacent, more ordered and formal interior and exterior spaces?
09_
Research Evolution
What is it in the world that we remember as a child and how do these nostalgic memories effect and change our perception of the world as we mature? How can we escape the mundane through landscape?
What kind of landscape will give life to the inner child? What is it in the landscape that evokes an emotive experience?
How can landscape escape from grown up sophistication to engage with the adventure of the everyday?
Can everyday landscapes escape from the mundane into escapism and adventure? How can urban hardscapes be redesigned to become immersive urban landscapes? How can the reimagination of urban hardscapes be used to escape the routine of the everyday?
How can urban hardscapes be redesigned to become immersive urban landscapes?
How can homogenous impermeable urban forecourts be redesigned with curiosity and vitality in mind to become immersive landscapes?
Garden of 10,000 Bridges - West8
The prairie topography has been
recreated
through
hills interspersed across the plaza and wound through by
snaking
suggestive
both
pathways, of
the
Museum’s curves and the soft and undulating prairie landscape. paving
The
stones
granite
hug
and
accentuate the gently rising mounds.
The
introduction
of an urban prairie to the environment
microclimate, biodiversity,
creates
a
increases
lessens
heat
island effect, and improves
air quality—in short, lures the public through an appeal
to the senses, without in any way hindering the stunning view that defines the site.
Gardens tell a story. They combine
Precedent
poetry and narrative. The Garden of 10,000 Bridges represents the human
life; the path of people’s lifetime, which is a route of uncertainty and burden, but
also of highlights and elation. The garden
design takes you on this walk of life as a meandering, winding trail continuous
and like a labyrinth. It lets you find your
way through nature and takes you over 10,000 bridges. - west 8
The Canadian Museum of Civilization - Claude Cormier
Teardrop Park NYC - Michael Van Valkenburgh
Teardrop Park is a 1.8-acre public park in lower Manhattan that transcends its small size, shady environment, and mid-block location through
bold topography, complex irregular space, and robust plantings. As children are considered
Teardrop’s most important users, the park is designed to address the urban child’s lack of natural
experience,
offering
adventure
and
sanctuary while also engaging mind and body.
Site topography, water features, natural stone, and lush plantings contribute to an exciting world
of natural textures, dramatic changes in scale, and intricately choreographed views.
13_
How can a seemingly arid and barren grassland in Victoria’s driest district engage a multitudinal response?
By uniting the vertical and horizontal view points a
landscape of discovery is
revealed where grasslands become forests and the
cathedral of the sky allows us to be immersed in the
world whilst being alone but not lonely
No space exist in a vacuum nor does any space have a singular purpose, through the intervening design
proposal a new reading and
engagement with the landscape would ensure habitat
for people and indigenous fauna simultaneously
Puddle
Semester One Third Year
previous studio
Puddle was a studio which ex-
plored similar landscape induced
emotive responses to Foreplay. It gave the user a place to escape
and make space. A place where they could disappear and day-
dream without being constrained by the surrounding context of
pre conceived ideals of suburban housing developments. Tak-
ing precedent from the dry mud cracked landscape, modules were
created to respond in height from the surrounding buildings and
housing, framing and blocking views as appropriate.
19_
Abstract
It could be argued that the forecourt is a
place of unwritten rules, and codes of behaviour that extends from the adjacent corporate environments that often administrate
the space. The landscape forms found in
modernist forecourts, reinforce these dogmas, disconnecting users with a generic corporate surface treatment.
What potential affects/effects on people’s interaction of space could occur if the ex-
pectations of the landscape were radically different and could it contribute to the
health, wellbeing and behaviour of those who work there?
If a swing were placed outside the AMP building would anyone use it? What would need to happen for people to feel licensed to use it?
The adult behavioural pattern is controlled
by social mores and unspoken codes, landscape either reinforce or contradict these.
Juxtaposing ‘playspace’ with ‘workspace’ could balance the technologically complex, highly institutionalised office spaces with ‘other’ spaces to provide alternative
meeting areas and opportunities for social
interaction, relaxation and quiet reflection on a day-to-day basis creating the means for physical and visual escape and allowing
for momentary relief from the pressures of work to invite and accommodate different types of experiences and encounters.
baby
0 - 1.5 years 1%
toddler
2 - 5 years 4%
child
6 - 12 years 7%
adolescent 13 - 18 years 6%
young adult 19 - 25 years 7%
adult
26 - 65 years 40%
senior
65 - 100 years 35%
The opposite diagram shows that through each stage of life there
are different spaces that are al-
located for appropriation. Inter-
estedly the time we spend as an adult, which is the majority of our
life, spaces are more about spe-
cific functions, such as work and less about appropriation or play.
Because the world is perceived to
be built by adults for adults I be-
lieve that these spaces are over designed and lose a sense of exploration.
23_
AMP Square Designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, Bates, Smart & McCutcheon Corner Williams Street and Bourke Street Built 1969 AMP Tower is 28 floors high St James Building is 9 floors high The building and its plaza are an example of stark corporate modernism with obvious influences of Eero Saarinen’s CBS building in New York City. Nevertheless, the AMP building, is one of Melbourne’s classic 1960s buildings.
Testing Site
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flagstaff station
possible site selected site
possible site
southern cross station
25_
Introduction as
a
provided by the church as privately
Melbourne in the early 1950’s.
A
daylight hours to the general public.
The
modernist
forecourt
landscape first came into being in time of economic prosperity and blatant
boosterism,
businesses
could be ostentatious in the ways they showed their power and wealth,
especially through the designs of the
forecourts of their impressive new towers.
Environmental
and
such
concerns
were not considered, by the majority, were
as
seemingly
natural
resources
endless
without
consequence, this was reflected by choices in materiality and the energy
hungry features of many of the forecourts and buildings. Conversely the memory of the depression and
the Second World War was fresh in peoples mind, so it was important
that these lavish forecourts were made available to all so as not to engender resentment towards the businesses from the public.
Though a deeply conservative time
by current standards, there were some radical departures in the way business operated, the concepts
of open plan offices, and buildings flooded with natural light were all symbolic of an openness business
wanted to portray to gain the publics trust. It was vital to restore the
nations ‘innocence’ after the horror of war and big business knew it was
within their interest to show that they were embracing a new open way of operating that had a social conscience.
owned space but available during
The church offered this space in a highly conditional fashion .The modernist forecourt appeared to change this by providing unfenced seemingly public space that was
privately owned, but it was essential that
people
still
certain
behavioural
cleverly
designed
conformed
to
patterns
in
these spaces and as such they were to
discourage
pausing. They were move through landscapes,
landscapes
to
be
viewed and pass through not pause and ponder, benches were a rare
feature in the original forecourts as were any large undercover areas.
From the 1950’s right up until the early 1970’s saw a time where regulated patterns for people were
the norm. As very few people lived in the city, there was no trading
from Saturday afternoon till Monday
morning, and as such the central business district was a ghost town at these times. The workforce was
still male dominated and as such the
majority of users of the forecourts were male, Thus it could be argued that the spaces were designed to
societies perception of masculinity, hard, angular, unforgiving, obviously these notions are antiquated and
do not apply to actual gender but
more a reductionist ideal of gender stereotyping.
Victorian (era) cities were a closed world
except
to
the
privileged
classes. The only open land space
that was available in Melbourne pre war for everyone was the land
around churches. This space was
27_
Before the advent of the
modernist forecourt there was a clear distinction between public and private space in the urban
context. The top figure ground
represents the pre-forecourt era depicting the public space as blue, the buildings as black and private outdoor space as yellow.
The bottom figure ground depicts
the current era with forecourts. The advance in technology led to buildings being able to take
up smaller building envelopes by maximising the vertical axis this
allowed ground space around
the building but for the first time private land had unfettered public access. This blurring of public
and private is represented by the green colour blocks private space public use
public space public use
private space private use
The AMP Square space is a
modernist example of a stark urban
forecourt.
The
path
traversed by people across the sites are from point A to point
B. There is no deviation from
destination as there is nothing
on the site to incite curiosity. All of the internal spaces of the buildings are private and
are only accessed by the office workers that use the site.
The intention of the proposed design intervention is to allow people to have multiple options
for how they traverse the site, allowing intrigue and curiosity to
carry
everyday.
them
through
the
current usage
desired usage
31_
These diagrams show the land
use of Melbourne’s forecourts
across the last 60 years. ICI ici house - 1958
house was the first high rise to be built in Melbourne, introducing
one of the first open forecourt typologies to the urban context. It
allowed for people to walk across the majority of the site except
for the lift tower at the rear. It gave public space for the general
public to spend time in while still being owned and managed by the
corporate business. Nauru House while still being accessible from all sides the building itself is only nauru house - 1977
accessible to the private use people. The ANZ building has a
small forecourt but is also linked by
a
multifunctional
courtyard
that
is
internal
open
and
available to the public at all times
also it is one of the few publicly accessible spaces in the city that is heated.
anz building - 1980
forecourt occupation
33_
The Shell Building is designed to
have multiple entrances on two levels, with a small urban forshell building - 1988
est in from of the Flinders Street entrance creates intrigue in the
outdoor space. Casseldon Place on Londsdale Street even though
its entrance is technically a fore-
court as it is open to the public
at all times it is enveloped by the building allowing for minimal nat-
ural light and no rain, and therefor no plants. Federation Square
a relatively new addition to the
urban context has given Melburnians a new generation of fore-
courts. This space incorporates multiple buildings and areas into casseldon place - 1992
federation square - 2002
a new public realm of indoor and outdoor spaces.
35_
Collins St., 5pm - John Brack
original vs desired flow iterations
Through the process of iteration
design ideas were tested and re-
drawn to incorporate and include further
precedent
typologies.
Searching for a way to possibly
encourage the users of the site to engage with opportunity of the design. Thinking about the cur-
rent flow usage to the desired flow usage new design propositions were created and then evaluated by their flow opportunities.
handmade iterations
bamboo forest - escape
lawned topography - bodily experience
topography and voids - suspense
39_
summer solstice
winter solstice
shadow study
With the open space of AMP Square being on the south and
west sides of the AMP Tower the
amount of sunlight is decreased by the vast shadow often cast across the site.
43_
Through precedent mirrors
were highlighted as a way of revealing and concealing
what is in front of us. Michel de Broin used mirrors to conceal huge boulders in
the middle of pine forests and
through
doing
so
revealed new perceptions of the surrounding context.
A tree house in sweden was it
mirrored
almost
making
completely
disappear from view. Also Arnaud Lapierre installed a checkered ring of mirrors
in Paris, the repetition of a cubic mirror to break the perception of the place. By facing mirrors in on themselves
the
external
world can forgotten and a new escape can be forged.
The Fun Theory presents a series of clever design
interventions aimed at influencing behaviour through making
things “fun to do�. Recycling bottles, using the litter bin and Fun Theory - Volkswagen
taking the stairs instead of the escalator should be normal behaviour, these interventions encourage this behaviour.
Aldo Van Eyck - Playscapes
45_
Melbourne’s rolling lawns
Children’s Garden - Royal Botanical Gardens
Creating topographic lawns that
have through many precedents been a favourite place to sit and
lie, as long as the weather is good, engages the user in bod-
ily experience. The Children’s Garden at the Royal Botanical Gardens
Melbourne,
captivate
children and adults alike with its
rolling lawns, bamboo forests and many other fantasy like spaces.
perspective section of design iteration
By enclosing space a suspense
is created, instilling the user with emotions which can vary from
person to person, such as curiosity, excitement or possibly fear.
Parc de Pedra Tosca - RCR Architects
Richard Serra sculptures
49_
The world of business has changed in
most aspects since the inception of the
forecourt, increased flexibility and diversity in the workforce, a need to appear
environmentally conscious and a more subtle way to communicate power. Be-
cause of the Internet and the information technology boom people have lost their
naïve trust (to an extent) of big business and no longer recognise the philanthropic
reet
st urke
gestures of providing open public space
bo
forecourts but see it merely as a part of
ams stre et
et
weekend and for the primary function of
stre
people. Programs could exist at night,
rch
es could function on many levels for many
chu
fore entering the workplace. These spac-
willi
the streetscape or a space to traverse be-
office workers. The implementation of non-controlling forms and the creation of
c
s ollin
et
stre
follies could evoke a child like excitement
little
of being childlike to bring a richness to
Project A design iteration
that could enliven the space. The notion adult life is not a new one, a critic once commented to Picasso “ a child could’ve
painted that” to which he responded it took me my whole life to learn how to paint like a child. Picasso’s comment taps into the adult desire to regain the lack of
self-consciousness and to able to live between the two worlds of reality and imagination simultaneously. Landscapes can
provide this ‘bridge to terabithia’ and an engagement with the creative inner self could help people function to a greater
level in other aspects of business. Transprogramming the forecourts could make
them richly layered spaces. On top of the usual way of engaging with these typologies, many more programs could be activated by the redesigning of these spaces.
A
Sectional diagram of the southern al-
leyway exploring the mirrored courtyard
of Acer palmatum Sango Kaku, creating
an infinite forest. Also the dome of tropical plants to show an obvious dramatic change in humidity, temperature and smell.
A
B
Sectional exploration of the western alleyway showing the tussock grass mirrored walls and how the entire site is dwarfed by the AMP building.
B
domes and the slated back of the
The Acer palmatum Sango Kaku, called the Coral
Bark Japanese Maple is a species of woody plant native to Japan, North Korea, South Korea, China, eastern Mongolia, and southeast Russia. Many different cultivars of this maple have been created and they are grown worldwide for their attractive leaf
shapes and colours. During autumn the leaves on the
Coral Bark tree turn a vibrant red before shedding
but the most unusual characteristic of this tree is that
during winter the bark of the tree turns bright red until it is in full leaf well into spring, giving this tree
vivid colour all year round and having very unique seasonal difference.
59_
_1. _1. _12.
Multiple sectional study of western side of square.
_12.
61_
_12. _1.
Multiple
sectional
study
southern side of square.
of
_12.
63_
hipDisk - Danielle Wilde
MineCraft - Mojang
Becoming attuned to the kinetic possibilities
of the human body is usually thought of as the
realm of actors, dancers, athletes and physical therapists. But how a body moves through space is also the concern of architects and land-
scape architects as they design and shape the built environment. Danielle Wilde’s hipDisk is
designed to inspire people to swing their hips and explore and extend the full range of move-
ment available to them through a simultaneous, interdependent exploration of sound. In creating
hipDisk, Danielle’s interest was to move beyond limb and digit triggered switches and explore full body movement. The resulting body instrument interconnects choreography and composition in
a fundamental way, and hopefully opens up new areas of exploration. To translate this into my de-
sign I took from precedent topography to create engagement with the ground plane in a way that
requires more body core participation to encourage kinetic possibilities.
A design technique I’ve engaged in to attempt to
activate the forecourts is researching landscape typologies from precedents and reinventing them in a way to encourage the users of the space to
engage or explore in a non linear fashion. Allow-
ing them to acquire the space as their own and make a place to be present.
Another technique is exploring how gaming could
be viewed as a design tool, without the physical
constraints of the material world amazing things
can be achieved. Over the summer I constructed a city in Minecraft this lack of constraint could
be seen as an incubator for new innovation that can then be tested and honed in the context of the real world and its parameters and limitations
whilst still retaining the excitement of the gaming world. There is even the possibility of a gaming
transplant, a direct physical outcome of a gaming aesthetic, a 3D print. A comparison could be
drawn to the movement of the picturesque where
designers strived to manipulate the environment to be composed or framed in the same way you would construct a landscape painting to be the most intriguing, beguiling and alluring.
65_
People have always had a fascination with the bizarre / unusual fear but usually only if framed in a benign way. The carnival / circus is a great
example of a safe way to explore the darker oddities and offer a device to enter an alternate reality as well as an opportunity to flirt with fear.
When we see our distorted reflections in the magic mirrors we are engaging
the part of the brain that is still in touch with the child like awe of everyday
events. The magic mirror is a metaphor for the devices I want to use to enliven the landscapes of forecourts.
The adult control, and brain dominated way of interacting with space is difficult to overcome, but a technique which allows cracks in the veneer is to de-privilege sight and start to engage the body. Just as most kids will instinctively make themselves dizzy to feel a different way of being
through the body, most adults still crave this alternate state, though alcohol is often the preferred method. Of course there are healthier ways to achieve this altered state and engage with abandonment, and it could be argued
that it is crucial for office workers who perform repetitive tasks in indoor environments in a sedentary fashion for long hours to use there bodies in healthy and engaging ways.
Multiple sectional one point perspective of western side of square.
67_
Multiple sectional one point perspective of southern side of square.
Medical studies have demonstrated the important effect of having living things around us, studies
have consistently shown that patients recovering in hospital with a view of a tree recover better than those with a view of a brick wall, this may seem like common sense but unless this starts to translate to a greening of our urban landscapes it seems to be falling on deaf ears.
In conclusion the opportunities for forecourts to become richly engaging spaces is immense, with
the implementation of variable topography, introducing the element of surprise, providing a multispace use that allows some to be relaxing whilst others play.
69_
1800
aboriginal land management to hoddle grid
1837 hoddle grid
1850
victorian gold boom architecture
1885 St James
1900
2000
birth of the sky scraper
rework of existing architecture
1969 AMP square
71_
overlaying historic, present & future site design
hoddle rectilinear
geometric paving
site specific surface iteration
smoker
out of wind out of walkway
mobile talker
out of wind open area for wandering
sitter
seated area view of other people
quite reflection
seated area 1 person secluded area
one on one
seated area 2 people somewhat secluded
meeting
seated area 3 - 10 people able to hear
horizontal placement
rectilinear pathways
diagonal opportunities
diagonal tessellation
random operation
s
diagonal occupation
vertical movement
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