Extended Study Process Book Yichao Zhang
27.09. 2018
Why Summar School?
“Everyone designs who devises courses of action aimed at changing existing situations into preferred ones” (Herbert Simon)
3-week interdisciplinary practice.
Background In the past two terms, I learned a lot of theoretical knowledge on a wide range of topics. But I think this is far from enough and that I still have a lot to learn. So I hope in the new term, I can further explore the topics I am interested in, conduct more extensive research and implement better targeted practices. I think I have found the orientation of my research in the past few months. I prefer speculative design, I think design is a medium or tool for communication and that the responsibility of a designer lies in incorporating his design with politics, economics, the environment and society. My aim is to provide a new perspective for the public and trigger their thinking on the “framework”, which will eventually lead to the building of a better society.
Contents Context
lectures
Case study
Design project
“collective challenges [to elites, authorities, other groups or cultural codes] by people with common purposes and solidarity in sustained interactions with elites, opponents and authorities.” (Design activism) Purposes I think social practice is very important. So I plan to further engage myself in community practice. For example, in summer school I will talking with the residents of Amsterdam about the problems they are faced with, in order to find a better solution to the city’s future development. In the previous projects, I tried to see through the problems that had been found existing in the community and identify the social factors leading to them. What’s more, I made up my mind to work out a solution to these social problems by means of design. Therefore, I am eager to put what I have learned into practice in the new term and see my design applied in the city of Amsterdam. At present, I don’t have much working experience as a student. So I hope I can make full use of this opportunity for practice to improve my skills and broaden my vision of design. It is also a great challenge for me. It will not only help me build up confidence in my future career and find out where my disadvantages lie, but also provide reference for me when I am making future plans and deciding on my research object on the road to becoming a professional designer.
Reflexive
Conclusion
Diversity and Social Cohesion Nobody is an island Neighborhoods=opportunity for contact but compared to organizations without institutional rules ,social integration depends on weaker ties Erosion of social cohesion might become visible in these weaker ties at first.
A
The Spectrum of Public Space: Public, Semi-public and Private. Semi-public space is not as public/ accessible all the time like the square, park, etc but are like terrace/ library that will be closed at night/ parks managed private, etc. For instance, demonstration is allowed in public space but prohibited in semi-public space. Parochial: physically, you can access the space and you are allowed to but you might feel unsafe/ unwelcomed because some groups have claimed the land, e.g. triad members.
Social cohesion > solidarity society is built on the assumption of cohesion: tax system, pension system, social welfare etc. Thomas Hobbes: State of nature, social cohesion only exists when there are external forces e.g. the formation of state. Emile Durkheim: cohesion depends on shared norms and culture and astructure of intermediate groups (structural functionalism) Elements: embeddedness integration, participation, sharing of norms & culture Forced to internalize norms e.g. through immigration test might cause backlash Maybe the solution is to know the norms at least High cohesion could be a pressure; it does not equal to social equality as well. How small in our world? Networks and social cohesion , the small world problem. Any two individuals in the network are likely to be connected through a short sequence of intermediate acquaintances. This has long been the subject of anecdotal observation and folklore; often we meet a stranger and discover that we have an acquaintance in common. It has since grown into a significant area of study in the social sciences, in large part through a series of striking experiments conducted by Stanley Milgram and his coworkers in the 1960’s. Recent work has suggested that the phenomenon is pervasive in networks arising in nature and technology, and a fundamental ingredient in the structural evolution of the World Wide Web. Milgram’s basic small-world experiment remains one of the most compelling ways to think about the problem. The goal of the experiment was to find short chains of acquaintances linking pairs of people in the United States who did not know one another. In a typical instance of the experiment, a source person in Nebraska would be given a letter to deliver to a target person in Massachusetts. The source would initially be told basic information about the target, including his address and occupation; the source would then be instructed to send the letter to someone she knew on a first-name basis in an effort to transmit the letter to the target as efficaciously as possible. Anyone subsequently receiving the letter would be given the same instructions, and the chain of communication would continue until the target was reached. Over many trials, the average number of intermediate steps in a successful chain was found to lie between five and six, a quantity that has since entered popular culture as the “six degrees of separation” principle.
The Sociology of Public Space The linkage of placemaking and urban sociology: the research, expertise as well as information collection could be useful to those in practice or make the decision.
Functions of Public Space Democratic e.g. Occupy Wall Street/ Gay Pride Both the active exercise of democratic movement and the passive understanding of others by being in the public space (Leisure, Communication, Learning, Economic, Social) arrangements/ social conflicts.Conflicts arise when different people (e.g. insides or outsides) are not aware of the rules and common practices(Mark Granovetter: bridging or bonding, Ash Amin: Micro publics) The Demise of Public Space Privatization: self-segregation (gate community where people have their own common space behind the gate with their small community)/ privatization of public area e.g. water front,Online ‘public realm’ (e-democracy),Segregation. Helps the public space create the sense that they are too fancy or different that can hardly be a place accessible to public. The Use of Public Spac The trend of having hostile architecture and defensive architecture. The Social Life of Small Public Space: explores public plazas and their uses. The idea is that people create ownership for their space by moving chairs.
B
Levels of Interaction Civil inattention: unwritten rules for movement in/ appropriation of space sidewalk ballet, People watching,Fleeting interactions: more engaged interaction e.g. asking for the direction,Design for fleeting interactions: triangulation-an external stimulus for social interaction among strangers/ conversation starter/ unpredictability/ when system fails, Repeated interactions: “public familiarity” – seeing the same faces on a regular basis. Turing an anonymous urban environment into a neighborhood; Design for such interactions: regular activities, local economy (school, work, supermarkets), central and transparent (semi) public spaces, Enduring interaction: prolonged engagement in conversation/ joint activity.
The Psychology of Public Space Environmental Psychology Communication problem during the design process. Usually the client and the designer know each other well, but the problem usually arise from the designer and the end user.For behavioral scientists, they are usually in the academia, so their opinions might not reach the designers and clients Attribution Theory A theory which supposes that people attempt to understand the behavior of others by attributing feelings, beliefs, and intentions to them, e.g. inferring what’s happening/ one’s background by a picture of their front yard.Similarly, when you are in the woods/ rural area, it is easier to walk to your destination, but it is more difficult to do so when you are in the Time Square of New York. General Adaptation Syndrome. three predictable stages the body uses to respond to stressors Types of Control 1. Control over situation 2. Knowledge of situation 3. Freedom of choice Attention restoration theory being in the nature, it reduces your stress and even help you manage your stress better,Five conditions for a better experience (e.g. take the nature as an example) 1. Usability 2. Maintained 3. Sensory quality (Can you smell the flower, is the scenery good, can you touch the plants and grass, etc) 4. Scenic quality 5. Natural quality (e.g. Biodiversity) The experiment of crowded space The inability to have your own private space contributes to the result? Having access to space is important and this prevents human beings from becoming this. The social bonds between humans are greater as well. Altman’s theory on privacy: You feel stressed if the level of privacy you get in real life does not equate to your expectation Are there enough signs? Landmarks? (distinctiveness and accessibility) Can people reach me? Can I enter the space? (Attractiveness9) Is the place well-maintained? e.g. are the windows broken?
Democracy and the city
Democracy in Practice
Rules of becoming a democratic city? (The legitimate expectation of others) Govert A. den Hartogh: tries to rethink social contract – why are you bounded by social rules e.g. paying taxes.The justification is that in the end you should benefit from the package because you would expect others to do the same more then the world gets safer, etc (norm of reciprocity)
Cooperative Housing Background: The Netherlands is also facing housing problems where young people are unable to afford one themselves.The project: Sustainable housing + cooperative element. Shared kitchen, shared playground or even washing machines. Even tools are shared (New way of living together).steps required: Research into co-living space, the technology needed, the organization of the workshop.''De Stem Van…'' (''The Voice of…''Online tool for citizen initiative); Platform for people to put on their ideas and compete for likes + campaign for their own ideas (A similar platform to We the People? But with a different purpose?) After talking to the Commission, your idea might be put on the political agenda. Trying to work with the different bureau and aiming at getting all the seven of them to each have a platform like this
Imaginary city Why does the government have the authority to enforce rules and make plans? The explanation I: the government is elected in a sound and just process so they have the rights, more inclined to the intrinsic explanation. Explanation: the action could benefit the public and it is for social good, more inclined to the outcome explanation. Process paralysis: It is criticized that people nowadays focus too much on getting things right and catering everyone’s wants which lead to the impossibility of having creative work and innovation. Game-theoretic reasoning: everyone is better off because of the benefits it receives from government actions. Even though the millionaire might not need public welfare as much as the underprivileged does, there are certain things that even being rich cannot afford e.g. social safety, police force, national security City citizenship Participation rights for non-citizens: you should take one’s opinions into account regardless of their identities, whether they have a legal status in the city or not. Participation rights for minors: For the affairs concerning the neighbourhood, perhaps you do not have to be an adult to be able to decide.
W Discussion Always want to engage with local stakeholders, The purpose of living in the metropolitan? Although studies show that people living in the city are lonely, the result is measured by whether they build the relationship with neighbours and some people move to the city because they want to be left alone. Why is this kind of behaviours/ attitude never be labelled positively? Where’s the standard of a good life? Maybe different people just have different right?
The Luchtsingel is a 390-meter pedestrian overpass that re- connects the Hofplein area with the northern part of Rotterdam in the Netherlands. It enables pedestrians to walk over to the other side of the neighbourhood and to reach commercial and cultural districts without driving a car. The Luchtsingel was the world’s first public infrastructure projects to be financially supported from crowdfunding. This footbridge has been implemented along with other public space projects as parts of a socalled ‘three-dimensional cityscape – the Schieblock, offices for young entrepreneurs; the Dakakker, urban rooftop farms; the Pompenburg Park, a vegetable garden and a playground; and other projects likely contributed to green and liveable Rotterdam.
The Luchtsingel
In Rotterdam that is being realized by crowdfunding, an exciting new means of funding in which the public donates money via an online platform (essentially investing in an unrealized idea) in order to make a project reality. The Luchtsingel, which uses the slogan "the more you donate, the longer the bridge", has resonated with the public imagination and surpassed its initial funding goals, becoming an important part of Rotterdam's urban rejuvenation. The Hofbogen roof terrace is special for this forgotten part of Rotterdam. It’s where the neighbourhood gathers, people party, children play, climb and cycle. A greengrocer grows fruits and vegetables, and the new restaurant opens up a terrace on the roof. Even an annual film festival sets up on the roof every summer. the Hofbogen can become the connector to all layers and levels of the city. The other scale is that of the street. The plinth of the Hofbogen can ‘store’ a flexible program, adjusting the speed of the city to its demands. It can become more connected to the current time: flexible, adaptable and in any scale possible. The building has a great transformative capacity. And the triple-sided character (front, back and roof) creates an ideal billboard for urban program and changing demands. First, it demonstrates that public spaces and facilities can be created, not only by governments, but also by citizens. Traditionally, urban development and infrastructure projects have been led by governments with an aim of amplifying economic impacts. Such planning might prevent governments from focusing their attention on relatively small urban issues while the Luchtsingel case proved the community’s capacity to directly intervene in its own issue and to build a public facility to resolve the problem. Second, the Luchtsingel footbridge project prints donor’s names or their messages on the bridge and it becomes a visible emblem of the community cooperation for the chronic pedestrian mobility issue. It also plays an important role in dealing with invisible issues in social integration and mutual community values in northern Rotterdam which is home to various ethnic groups. Third, the success of the Luchtsingel in Rotterdam suggests a crowdfunding campaign as a new way for citizens to participate and to encourage social and policy changes. Upon the completion of crowdfunding for the Luchtsingel, ZUS embarked on the construction.
Bijlmer
The original design of the Bijlmer was characterized by large high-rise housing blocks with spacious, bright apart- ments. Motorised traffic was elevated above the living area, parking space was minimised by multistory garages, and there were different roads for bikes and pedestrians. In this way, buildings were separated only by large green spaces; free from noise pollution, distraction and the dangers posed by motorised traffic, the green could at any moment become a playground or a space for leisure or recreation. Overall, living in Bijlmer would be far more comfortable than Amsterdam’s city centre. With ten-story flats, traffic on elevated roads, nightingales in the trees and children playing in the green, the Bijlmer epitomized the futuristic lifestyle for the Dutch middleclass family, at least in the early 1960s. According to Le Corbusier's theory, "the house is the machine of residence" - not only to adapt to the living requirements as the machine adapts to production, but also to mass production and easy maintenance, pure geometry is the best building form. The neighbour- hood unit of the Bijlmermeer settle- ment was designed as a series of similar high-rise buildings. To empha- size fairness, the differences between houses are almost non-existent – all residential buildings are 10 stories, each building has a length of 200 ~300m. Le Corbusier traveled the world talking about these utopian ideas for city building, and governments liked what they heard — not so much for the utopian ideals, but rather for the price, because what Corbusier proposed was, in fact, very cheap. Concrete, the Modernist building material of choice, was inexpensive, and building apart- ments in high-rises required less land than building stand-alone homes. But there were also some immediate prob- lems at the Bijlmer. A metro line was supposed to connect the new area with Amsterdam, but construction was delayed. For a while, there was only one dirt road leading out to the area. The designers had planned for a shop- ping area, but the shops didn’t come right away either, which meant there was nowhere to buy groceries. Although the Bijlmermeer settlement adopted the most advanced design concept at the time, it has been a problem since its inception. First of all, due to the limited economic strength after the war and the shortage of funds, most of the supporting infra- structure originally planned in the region may not be completed on time, or simplified in the actual construction process, seriously affecting the quality of life of residents. For example, during the delayed construction of public transport facilities, the Bijlmer- meer settlement became a dysfunc- tional and isolated satellite city due to weak links with the city centre of Am- sterdam. In addition to all the buildings there were also 13,000 storage spaces on the ground level, 31 parking garages, hundreds of elevators and staircases and common spaces and 110 kilometers or 68 miles of indoor ground- level corridors. There was so much space, and not enough people to fill it up, or watch over it. By the end of the 1980s the Bijlmer had the distinct profile of a poor black neighbourhood. Around 50 percent of Bijlmer residents were unemployed, relying on social benefits and the informal economy to make a living. The Bijlmer was far from the ‘functional and radiant’ city it was planned to be. In this period of Bijlmermeer's more updated plan, public participation has become an important link and consideration in the process of updating. In many newer decisions, the public has an important decision-making power, which is considered by politicians and socialists to be the most important reason for Bijlmermeer's success. For example, people who were close to one-half in 1990 thought that partial demolition was a wise move; and according to surveys in 1995, 1999, and 2001, the ratio of proportions favoring partial dismantling was already high. Up to 65%-70%. Similar surveys and feedbacks have played an important role in subsequent planning and transformation. First, combing the spatial relationship of matter. Defining the boundaries between private, semi-private, semi-public and public spaces in the residential area. According to the move, 1/4 high-rise residential buildings were demolished, 1/4 residential units were sold, the size of units in other
residential areas was reduced; shrubs were removed, only lawns and trees were preserved; elevated roads and underground parking garages were removed to eliminate “hidden Space" to put an end to crime. At the same time, by creating a new part of the housing with different forms of construction form, development density and property rights, it breaks monotony, enriches people and structure, attracts middle- and highincome people to stay, eases the concentration of poor people, and material renewal. At the same time, social renewal is achieved (Figure 4). Second, revitalize the social and economic factors. Newly built a large number of office spaces and shopping centers to introduce new urban functions; at the same time, let residents participate in decision-making settlement management, improve the quality of living in the residential areas, activate the vitality of the community; set up specialized employment training, education and Entrepreneurship and other institutions to improve the employability of residents; promote the employment of residents and improve the social and economic conditions of residents by transforming some high-rise residential buildings in the residential area into large-scale entertainment and leisure facilities and commercial complexes, and building some sports venues. Guide low-income people to move to middle- and high-income groups. Third, promote multicultural integration. Through the establishment of various cultural and sports facilities, providing venues for cultural exchanges and religious activities, safeguarding the legal and cultural rights of residents, especially special groups, removing psychological isolation and promoting the integration of Bijlmermeer settlements into multicultural integration. The dynamic new city transformation.
PLACEMAKING IN AMSTERDAM The Everyday City and Beyond imparted precisely that- one part the ‘everyday city’ and one part ‘beyond’ - done through multidisciplinary academic lectures touching on core components within urban planning, amalgamated with applied street level tactics. It is not enough to understand theories behind a “living” and ‘everyday’ city, it is also imperative that urbanists exert theoretical practices in order to evolve our built environments and societies. This combination of theory with practice has awarded our class the ability to complete the RapidLab project efficiently, collaboratively, and democratically. During the first part of our RapidLab procedure, we completed an overall site analysis of Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal (NV), which included general stakeholder information, historical context, and the spatial setup of the physical street. Furthermore, we broadly discussed the various ways in which the street’s function could be altered to ultimately improve the everyday experiences, specifically prioritizing the locals, and transform this space to a place. Using a SWOT framework, we concluded that NV’s biggest weaknesses include absence of public seating, lack of green space, lack of bike storage, and sidewalk and traffic congestion. It is noteworthy to highlight NV’s weaknesses compared to its other characteristics, as our purpose within this strategy creation and implementation is to improve the issues found on NV. After making our initial observations, we then gathered field research to investigate if our preliminary theories were on track with users needs, frustrations, and desires. In joint with our colleagues, we spoke with various residents, tourists, shop owners, and commuters who voiced two main concerns, namely, the absence of community felt between pedestrians and locals in the area, as well as, lack of seating and congregation space found along walkways. Interestingly, our group believes these two concerns are interlaced and feel that addressing one issue will impact the other. We postulate that access to physical space to exist
within, pause, and congregate around is positively associated with the ability to feel and form community bonds. Before isolating a specific strategy and area to improve on NV, we considered the different stakeholders and the identified who would be most affected by these changes. In order to this, we accumulated self-report and people moving count data alongside a power interest scatter plot. From this consideration, we were then able to make an informed decision regarding a strategy that would beneficially impact locals while mitigating associated barriers. Ultimately, our group decided the strategy to improve community bonds on NV revolves around bolstering public interactions between neighbors done through a physical, proxi- mal, and interactive seating space. Moving forward, we formulated a concept and design plan to tackle community bonding through a physical seating intervention. At this point, we knew our RapidLab NV main problem to fix, and now this phase challenged us to formulate a design answer that could also be tested in real scale. In addition to the providing public seating, we also hope to inspire unexpected positive conversations between neighbors further than what proximal seating could accomplish. To do this, our design considers, and makes use of, form, func- tion, and materiality. This is a two-pronged approachproximal, reactive, connected, semiportable modular seating in unison with creative provocative designs on the seating façade. There is a physical force that very symbolically represents connections, while the façade designs take the concept a step further to invite increased sociability. In order to achieve the above aim, we decided to build a cluster of cube structures (56cm) to an ideal comfortable height for people to sit on. A rope is also tethered between al l cubes to f ost er co mmun ica tio n and interdependency- “Blocks Build Bonds”. The rope creates proximity and autonomy by allowing people to change the distance between cubes, while avoiding total isolation from the general congregating area. The facades are
decorated in a colorful and patterned way to attract attention and convey a sense of playfulness. Inspired by the idea of “conversation cubes” and “story cubes”, content about different topics are printed on top of each surface. They serve as conversation starters and help people find common- alities, including but not limited to, hobbies, books, weather, animals, and even could include the history of NV itself. Since our priority is the local group, content on the facades would be primarily in Dutch, and specifically “Zit hier” (sit here) sign is stuck to its front and top sides in the hope that it will first catch Dutch’s attention. Inside the cubes, triangular pillars were lined structural support, enabling people to sit on them.
Reflexive I have accumulated some experience from previous projects, which I think can be used in doing future research. In my opinion, one of my advantages is that I have good analytical ability, which enables me to put theory to real designing scenarios. For example, I came up with the idea of using Max neef’s Fundamental human needs theory to analyze the homeless. Besides, mastery of programming technique such as audio gives me the advantage in interactive design. The design techniques I learned from my undergraduate study, in addition to some basic film shooting and editing techniques I mastered will give me extra advantages in the new project. However, Lack of working experience is my greatest disadvantage. As a student, I don’t have many chances to participate in business design projects. As a result, I am not competitive enough in the business market. In addition, as an international student, it is hard for me to get a work visa. Although I could find an internship and extend my social network, I can’t stay for good after graduation. These factors are sure to influence my performance. Conclusion In conclusion, this project provides a good opportunity for me to carry out more specific hands-on experience and conduct research in a field of interest. I hope I can dig further and deeper on the path of academic pursuit in this semester. I will challenge myself by taking greater initiatives. Therefore, I make a detailed plan and schedule and make up my mind to stick to it. Anyway, this term will be a good opportunity for me.