A future vision can be explained well through a scenarios with well-considered contextual background and highly imaginative plot. Our project site is to become a stage, the proposed architectural entity and other built environments will set scenes and your characters are to perform according to the plot and scenes. (Unit theme and approach, DAB810 Blackboard)
Federal Goverment assists in establishment of facilities and pays $850 dollars per person per week to accomodate refugees in transition from detention centres to society. Detention centres will be phased out if the program is successfull. Currently, it costs $850 dollars per person per night to keep a refugee in detention. So that is a 85% cost saving to the federal government for relocating to Woodford accomodation.
The grounds and accomodation are managed wholly by the Woodfordia Folk Festival Organisers and additional staff are requried for day to day running. $11,050,000 is the net income of housing the 250 refugees.
After running costs are deducted, it is feasible that Woodfordia can purchase back the land from Moreton Bay Regional Council.
Accomodate 250 people initially, increase to 500 once running effectively.
Accomodation for families, men, women and children.
There will be 1 Australian staff member per 8 refugees.
Refugees would participate in the community by:
- Working on farms in the woodford area
- Preparing main meals for the other residents
- Socialising with Australian organisers and other refugees
- Maintaining the grounds
- Building structures
- Growing food
- Learning languages
- Learning skills
- Teaching others
- Understanding other cultures
- Volunteering in Festivals
- World food Stallholders
- World culture performances, art, music etc
The basic facilities required will be:
- Housing for families and small groups of individuals (DWELLING)
- Upgrade of amenities
- Food preparation and hall facility (EATING)
- Welcome/administration area
Festival Integration
The facility would need to be integrated into the festival event in December. Refugees can remain on site during the festival and participate as any volunteer would.
The EATING area could become a multi-purpose stage/ dining area. Kitchen facilities can be utilised by stallholders, or run by a organic catering company who bids for the event.
Australia's population growth in Australia in comprised predominantly (64%) through immigration.
To avoid a negative population growth Australia need to rely on accommodating people from overseas. This is an issue that affects us now and into the future. Australia has one of the highest population growths worldwide averaged at 1.9% between 2005-2009. The average globally is 1.2%.
The largest proponent of immigrants (186,500 people at 39% of all immigrants) is those entering on temporary and student visas, predominantly originating from China and India.
"The smallest proportion of immigrants were humanitarian visa holders have been closer to 12,000 people in previous years. The main countries of citizenship for Humanitarian visas were Burma (25%), followed by Iraq (18%) Afghanistan (12%) and Sudan (11%)."
(information sources from Australian Bureau of Statistics. http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/lookup/4102.0main+features10jun+2010)
Australia sees itself as a multi-cultural society, however, where have we seen multi-culturalism being successful in a small and large scale. There will always be conflicts, in race, gender, religion. How can we all get along? Through collective work, education, celebration, sharing in cultures?
"In Australia, asylum seekers can be people who arrive in an authorised manner (e.g. with visitor or student visas), or people who arrive in an unauthorised manner, usually by boat. People arriving without authority are confined in detention centres until they are granted a visa to remain in Australia, or they leave the country." (ABS, 2012)
"In May 2010, there were just over 3,600 people were held in detention in mainland Australia and Christmas Island. Around 93% were people who had arrived unlawfully by boat, 2% arrived unlawfully by air and 4% were visa overstayers." (ABS, 2012)
While Australia's asylum applications have increased in recent years (6,000 in 2009) it is less than 2% of the total applications worldwide. To put things into perspective, "in 2009, the United States had 49,000 new claims for asylum, while France had 42,000 and Canada had 33,000."
Yet 'boat people' are a no. 1 topic of concern for Australian politicians and the people 'unauthorised' to enter the country at treated as criminals and are locked away in detention centres. Boat people are a massively controversial issue, and i hope to approach this is the most sensitive way I can.
The government dept. website on this issue states:
"One of the major challenges facing the world today is protecting refugees who have been forced to leave their homes by armed conflict and human rights abuses.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimates that there were 43.7 million forcibly displaced people worldwide at the end of 2010, the highest number in 15 years. Of these, 27.5 million were internally displaced persons, 15.4 million were refugees and 837 500 asylum seekers." (Dept. of Immigration and Citizenship - Fact Sheet 60 – Australia's Refugee and Humanitarian Program http://www.immi.gov.au/media/fact-sheets/60refugee.htm)
The breakup of visas granted per country are as follows, however this is constantly in flux, depending on countries that are in conflict: By 2025, it is impossible to predict the origin of asylum seekers. Currently:
Countries
Number of visas granted
Iraq
2151
Burma
1443
Afghanistan
1027
Bhutan
1001
Congo (DRC)
565
Ethiopia
381
Sri Lanka
289
Iran
271
Sudan
243
Somalia
190
A quote from the Dept. of Immigration Annual report 2010-11 is as follows: it highlights the challenges of applying a solid standpoint on the refugee issue, quite wishy washy really:
"The 2011–12 program year will present a sustained challenge for the department to determine expeditiously the refugee status of the substantial number of irregular maritime arrivals awaiting decision on their claims, as well as to consider the claims of those who have arrived by air.
The introduction of complementary protection legislation will require further investment in training and guidance. Quality assurance in decision-making will remain a priority. There will be a need for continued efforts to improve on and build the department’s understanding of conditions in asylum seeker source countries to ensure fair, robust and transparent use of country information in decision-making. Changing circumstances in the countries of origin of asylum seekers will require a sustained focus on collection and collation of up-to-date country information for decision-makers."
Dept. of Immigration - Immigration Detention Statistics Summary -31 July 2012 - updated monthly
What is disturbing about these statistics is the number of women and children seeking asylum when compared to men.
Does this mean that women and children are valued lower than men in their own country?
Does this mean that men are more at risk of persecution in their own country?
Does this mean women and children cannot afford to pay people smugglers as they cannot hold jobs in their country and men are not wanting to pay for their women?
We can only guess. It is fortunate however that a greater portion of children and women compared to the large amount of men are given visas, or do not remain in detention for long. Is this reverse sexism. Although I do believe that women in most cultures are not treated equally so this would put them out of harms way. Not to say that men are not in danger or deserve to be in detention.
Research on the recent Labour government initiative to house refugees within Australian homes highlights some important economic factors against the current detentions system. Many Australian citizens are unhappy that immigrants can come here and 'waste taxpayer money' and they can receive centrelink payments similar to any Australian citizen. If we can reduce this enormous amount of money spent on immigration detention and support and empower people to contribute to society this can be turned into a win-win situation.
Apart from the obvious humanitarian values, could this be a viable option for Woodfordia to host refugees on their land, to help pay back the government for the land?
HEALTH RISKS
"A recent parliamentary inquiry into mandatory detention for asylum seekers, which has been Australia’s policy for 20 years, found that about 85% of asylum seekers held in detention had some form of mental illness, which grew worse the longer they were held." (http://www.greenleft.org.au/node/51004)
This reduces the capability of anyone seeking asylum to be introduced into normal work, living and socialising in Australia.
"Hotham Mission Asylum seeker Project state that 40% of refugees living in the community on bridging visas are homeless. The Asylum Seeker Resource Centre says that asylum seekers are turned away from crisis and transitional housing because of lack of funding and because few refugees have an income or an “exit strategy”. Others must try their luck on a competitive rental market, with no rental history and often with no income."
There seems to be a clear link between detention and treatment in this country and the homelessness, joblessness that we see today. If we can reduce the number in detention and more in rehabilitation then we could have more valuable citizens.
ARCHITECTURAL POSSIBILITY
Could Woodfordia become a place for 'rehabilitation' of refugees or asylum seekers. They could contribute via their traditional building methods, agriculture, arts, music, culture, religion, to support each other in learning languages, social norms etc. Harnessing the multi-culturalism of refugees can contribute to the 'think farm' of our Woodfordia future goals. Woodford Folk Festival has always celebrated a diversity of cultures and it would be appropriate that different cultures could contribute to the festival throughout the year. They can work, eat, move, play, breathe together and be a showcase during the festival for multi-culturalsim in practice.... if managed successfully.
Perhaps I should to select one of the "eat, move, dwell, breathe, make" components from Project 1 to explore the idea further
DWELLING
Refugees could work together to build housing prototypes in line with the woodford 500 year plan. Where they can live together. They can recycle waste from festivals such as the stack of pallets seen on site.
See video below for an example of a temporary refugee home designed for Kosovo:
Dwelling is very personal and i don't think we can design a one off solution to suit many cultures, I think this could be an individual approach to each dwelling that can be exhibited around the site. Each built using traditional building methods or new ones discovered/ tested on site
'EATING' AS A RITUAL
How do we combine so many cultures so all can participate in the daily ritual of Woodford. Maybe the ritual of eating together would be a great anchor to bring all cultures together many times a day. The 'eating' place can be a collective place of ritual and worship for the multicultural community. Perhaps the kitchen and dining part of the site could become a monument to all the worlds cultures?
The image below is a church designed by architect Friedensreich Hundertwasser. He designed twelve doors that symbolise the world's major religions, thus making a gesture toward tolerance and ecumenicism. Can we learn from this is creating a building that facilitates a multitude of religious rituals but then takes on its own ritual and personality as a Woodford lore?
(Church of St Barbara, Austria. Image from book: Friedensreich Hundertwasser, 2003)
(Church of St Barbara, Austria. Image from book: Friedensreich Hundertwasser, 2003)
There are a number of local quarries in the area. They provide sand, clay, gravel. One small one, very close to the site, could be utilised quite easily.
The glasshouse mountains are comprised of mineral called 'Comendite', see image below. Comendite is a hard, igneous rock, a type of light blue grey rhyolite. Comendite occurs in the mountains Tibrogargan, Coonowrin, Tunbubudla, Coochin, Saddleback, Tibberoowuccum and Ngungun in the Glass house mountains, South East Queensland, Australia. The blue colour is caused by very small crystals of other minerals. These mountains are volcanic plugs which were formed millions of years ago and have slowly become exposed through erosion of softer Landsborough sandstone. Eroding basalt rocks have formed the fertile soils of the nearby Maleny rainforest areas. Rocks and landscapes of the Sunshine Coast by Warwick Willmott, Brisbane: Geological Society of Australia Queensland Division, 2007)
"Imagine being able to make spray-on roads across the desert, or being able to take a sandcastle home from the beach in the form of a solid rock sculpture. These are just two possibilities presented by a new treatment for sand pioneered by Murdoch University’s Dr Ralf Cord-Ruwisch. The treatment alters the consistency of sand, doing anything from solidifying it slightly to changing it into a substance as hard as marble. It blends a calcium solution, bacteria and other inexpensive compounds, forcing the bacteria to form carbonate precipitates with the calcium. This creates calcium carbonate, also called calcite, identical to limestone. This kind of technology can be used in mining, and civil works, it does not require oxygen so can be used underwater or underground. Tests have been done already creating blocks of sand as large as a shipping container. The possibilities are endless."
The following quotes are taken from a reading of Festival Architecture by Bonnermaison, S & Macy, C, 2007) which I believe are appropriate to consider when designing for an important and symbolic festival site.
"Festival architecture, throughout the ages, has allowed architects to experiment with new ideas, new forms and new spatial arrangements."
"From coronations to consecrations, and carnivals to world expositions, festival architecture brought vivid colour and sensory delight to the cities of the past."
"Festivals throughout history were well funded by the ruling classes in order to magnify and glorify their reign."
Distinction between solid and ephemeral architecture. Temporary architecture is no less valuable/signification of a contribution to society/culture than permanent architecture.
"The origins of architecture lay in the universal human need to create order through play and ritual."
"in the wreath, the bead necklace, the scroll, the circular dance and the rhythmic tone that attends it, the beat of an oar [...] These are the beginnings out of which music and architecture grew" From its ephemeral beginnings in the ritual movement, the ordering activity of art is embodied in the artistic motifs, which in turn are fused in works of architecture" Hvattum 2004: 66
"Work on French revolutionary festivals explains symbolism of ephemera built after the revolution. The state festivals gave physical form to new ideas about liberty, transparency, historical memory, and the role of the public, as they helped to forge a new sense of national identity in a turbulent era."
"Festivals had an effect on officials responsible for urban beautification. For a few days, festivals functioned as urban design proposals for improvements to the city. He argues that festivals worked deeply in the spatial imagination of governmental officals and citizens."
"While rites of passage may differ in detail from culture to culture and one event to another, they share certain features and a common social function. Rites of passage share a common structure, composed of three phases; separation, transistion and incorporation. This can be applied to study of large contemporary rituals, from modern pilgrimages to youth gatherings such as Woodstock. The awareness of the symbolism of space and place."
"The passage from one social status to another is often accompanied by a parallel passage in space, a geographical moment from on place to another. The may take the form of a mere opening of doors or the literal crossing of a threshold such as the groom carrying the bride over the threshold of their new home."
"The process of passage through thresholds, participants are stipped of theirsocial status and removed from social structures."
"Carnival is a possibility to present alternatives, if only fleeting, to rigid societal norms."
Visual participation. Spectacle. Being able to participate by viewing only.
Seeing, moving and sensing
Duality between permanent, relic like material such as stonehedge, colosseum and how different they become with temporary ephemeral architecture.
Can the design be flexible to become a permanent relic lost within the landscape that transforms for ritual and festival?
“
The first man who, having fenced in a piece of land, said "This is mine," and found people naïve enough to believe him, that man was the true founder of civil society. From how many crimes, wars, and murders, from how many horrors and misfortunes might not any one have saved mankind, by pulling up the stakes, or filling up the ditch, and crying to his fellows: Beware of listening to this impostor; you are undone if you once forget that the fruits of the earth belong to us all, and the earth itself to nobody.
Lynch, K., Banerjee, T., & Southworth, M. (1990). City sense and city design : writings and projects of Kevin Lynch. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press.
Here we have a reading that explores the true nature of adaptability. It is difficult to accomplish in an uncertain future and often is dealt with by providing generalised flexibility. In theory flexibility means less material waste, but this needs to be well considered for each use in its context and its life time. I am a firm believer in anything can be re adapted to a new use, however the cost of this, can outweigh the benefit. Bangerjee and Lynch distinguishes between two types of adaptability. A "large house with many rooms widens choice, but may not be suited to future change", although a small house can be easily remodelled to suit a users needs. Lynch & Banerjee explain each typology of adaptability through biological analogies about evolution/ survival of species in order to explain the adaptation of the environment. There are many ideas about adaptability but implementation may prove inefficient for present function, or simply not be a happy place for human existence.
I will summarise Banerjee and Lynch's discussion below:
Un-specialised Forms
Multi-purpose spaces with large spans and concentrated structure can be considered flexible, however this can unintentionally also considered too vague. Complexity in design can be flexible, if considered with a purpose for future adaptability.
Zoning and Concentration of Structure
The zoning of places by segregating the temporary and permanent spaces could be more adaptable than if they are intermixed. It is important to identify areas that are like likely to change and separate them to avoid conflict between permanent areas. However where categories shift this can be an inflexible feature.
Additive Structure
This relates to the modular building type where, singular mass produced prefabrication units can be arranged into a variety of different shapes of patterns. This can benefits in simplicity of manufacture. However designs can be oversized, inappropriate and generalised.
Precedent: Below is a design by Architecture Studio 4of7 for a Pediatric Clinic in East Africa, which provide a variety of different sized courtyards surrounded by modular clinic buildings, which can be dispersed into a variety of patterns. The design is improved by visual guides to permance such as a tree, symbolically placed in the middle.
Creating a variety of spaces today does allow for individual flexibility and choice. However that does not allow for evolution or adaptability.
Over-capacity
Extra space leaves room for future growth and change. This however is at the expense of resources for no immediate gain. In time the space will fill up leaving the leading us toward an inevitability of zero flexibility. It is prudent to leave some space for change, but at a balance with present cost.
Growth Forms
The authors suggest that there are some logical urban forms that flexibility can take:
Own sketch of forms described in reading
Temporary Structures
"The internal parts of organisms are continuously being torn down and rebuilt to meet changing stress. Life is willing to pay a tremendous energy price to achieve flexibility." (Lynch, Banerjee, p389, 1990).
With temporary structures it is important to compare the life-time costs against more permanent structures. In poor economies, temporary solutions may be the only possible ones, however the hidden costs over many years for a temporary solution may outweigh that of a permanent one. Where small surpluses are possible it may be more economical to staged construction and have a longer life. There is a need to ensure that facilities are not used longer than intended. There are many instances where disaster accommodation is used for hundreds of years.
Precedent: Quinta Monroy by Alejandro Aravena incorporates adaptability in an economical sense. Start up buildings are constructed cheaply, whilst allowing room for people to build onto their dwellings when they are financially able. This staging allows, expensive land to be built upon cheaply and inhabited quickly, this is continually improving as extensions are built, strengthening the community in activity and ownership. see images below:
Unfortunately I had to leave the presentations early to attend a funeral, however we did manage to present to the other groups before I left. The feedback was minimal, however I feel that perhaps we did not fully explore the every aspect and practicalities of a barter system throughout the community and the global market. I think that we each had our own ideas about how this may work. It is a very tricky future scenario and touches on many issues about current society. If it was a simple solution we would probably already be living in a different world already.
The other groups boards look very visual appealing and I would have liked to explore further. Most of the woodfordia groups had similar ideas, as there are few options to explore for this site. Well, I look forward to finding someone that came up with a unique idea, which i need to explore through the photos I took and other blogs.
Consumerism and capitalism drives us quickly into an unsustainable future. People with the power to make a positive world contribution are blinded by a comfortable lifestyle so have little connection with real issues. There is evidence of overpopulation around the world currently and a large percentage is unable to receive a basic level of human needs; eating, breathing, moving, making and dwelling. Natural resources are almost depleted the price for these grow exponentially, causing a spike in unemployment, poverty and social upheaval. A Society dependent on the current social model now need to adapt and re-skill themselves without access to basic human needs (eating, breathing, moving, making, dwelling). We understand the environmental devastation caused by agriculture, mining and dams to basic ecosystem services, climate and bio-diversity. Decentralisation of cities will occur as the energy required to feed the dense population will not be possible so they need to move closer to resources. Low energy transport will need to be addressed by new technology, rail, or foot. The typical household structure will need to be addressed to allow maximum accommodation for minimal material & energy use. People will need to care for the ageing population. The world population will need to be address as an influx of climate and political refugees around the globe. Shelter, education and integration into society will need to be provided for all the people. A place for eating, breathing, moving, making and dwelling will have a built form. A diversity of people coming together to form smaller communities bring them closer in terms of strength and shared knowledge, skills and resources. By living with a barter system, the global economy will not affect socially strong communities around the globe. By learning from the mistakes of the past we can improve the future. We explore these issues through BOB, (Billions of Beings).
Another reading about Archigram, 'fun palace' or adaptation into Kenzo's 'festival plaza' and Cedric Price... whoop de do... Let me just stab myself in the eye with a pen whilst I read it to ease the pain.
Is anyone else glazing over at page 33? 'archi-babble' about "such calculated awareness of the time factor related to the enclosing of activities and their interrelationship must extend to an assessment of the valid life-span of the total complex, assessed primarily in socio-urban terms"
Is it just me being ignorant or do the academics sometimes lose the plot, grip on reality and humanity?
'Nuff said, more reading.....
yes, its great, flexible, transportable... its a space frame. So what? Whats wrong with building a structure from local biodegradable materials, and built exactly where you are going to be building it. There is no homogeneous approach to design. I'm ranting again.
Oh wait, here we go, something relevant. The technology education facility.. "Town Brain", very similar to our "Think-Farm". Very interesting that this was thought about decades before the Internet.
I do like this quote however "If today writing about utopias is a sign of spiritual desolation, then planning them must be a criminal act" (Cedric Price, 1972)
I wonder is this the very thing we are trying to do, this semester? Do we need to plan for flaws?
*A sigh of relief, definately looking forward to Project 2*
This hypothetical project summarises the need for humans to slow down their development. This is a representation of creating something so selfless, that you will never even see in your lifetime. It is giving something to future generations. Something so beautiful in nature will take 100 years to produce. The industrial revolution changed the speed at which humanity impacted the each tenfold.
“If we can be patient with the building time we can reduce the need for transportation, waste of material and different manufacturing processes, simply by helping nature grow in a more architectonic and useful way.” (http://dornob.com/100-year-treehouse-will-take-a-century-to-be-completed/)
"The question for the artist and the architect alike is: how can we create works of art and architecture in a world in which such consumerism - itself a symptom of false consciousness or bad faith - is now the norm?"
"How can I make an authentic work in an age subservient to economic imperatives?"
The Structuralist, Existentialists and Situationist each portray a need for deeper meaning into architecture than just function. There are moral, political, philosophical and social issues which influence people and design. This reading highlights the correlation between visual arts and conceptual architecture to explore deeper social and moral concerns.
The existentialist theologists expresses that freedom and choice is what sets apart humans from animals or stone. Apparently a horse behaves as it does because it is a horse, of course. However they seem to think that man is born free to live a life they choose.
This is true to an extent, however much of human nature is about the social systems we have created and have little control over. We are social animals by nature and therefore, assimilate with like-minded groups. We are governed by a set of rules, whether socialist or capitalist and it takes a great deal of effort to change or choose the life we lead due to existing societal forces and a human nature to impress, succeed, breed, prosper, eat. We are provided with a given set of values, spiritual, consumerist, and yet we rarely question them, due to habit, advertising, and our current level of comfort and acceptance. "Capitalism has created 'pseudo-needs' to increase consumption" and "the media" has been instrumental in providing "the great driving force of the capitalist economy in the latter half of the twentieth century"
Creating a hub at Woodfordia for the exploration of people existing in a free, low consumption society is our aim to a sustainable futures. The current global trend of growth is good is unsustainable.
(Aesthetics and Architecture, Chapter 8, Politics and the Situationist International, pg 92-)
I have been reading an AD architectural magazine called 'Architectures of the Near Future' published in 2009. The entire journal is a tribute to the author JG Ballard. Bleak, stark, uncompromising Architectural landscapes are the sets in his writings. However there is faith in the social ability to endure hardship and prosper. To quote directly from the introduction:
"Like Ballard, let us not despair; though the future may be uncertain, uncertainty is not without its attractions".
"The current economic situation offers great potential for developing a new agenda in architecture. The fact that the discipline of architecture has become synonymous with the architectural profession is something that will no doubt become contested as unemployment rises through the building industry - those of us who can remember previous recession can also remember them as highly creative periods" (Architecture of the Near Future, 2009, pg 9)
One article suggest that we are already seeing the city model slipping out of control. The city becomes a site of military conflict a petri dish for political, economic and social decay. We have seen the warfare throughout the Middle East, SARS in China and New Orleans destroyed by a hurricane. Is our Utopian vision of cities slipping away from us where slums, and crime dominate the social fabric?
Another article provides some insight on how we could present our own future scenario. This student has used collage and motion-graphic technique to portray how life would emerge from a destroyed city. This short film is entitled London After the Rain. It is reference to surrealist Max Ernst's painting Europe after the rain which was a reflection on the effects of World War II.
London after the rain by Ben Olszyna-Marzys
Again, this is a grim outlook on the future, but I think this is necessary to present our fresh start of a future, as we move towards a decentralised and low-impact lifestyle. This type of setting could be the beginning of our character's journey, minus the warfare. But emphasising the shift in the way cities, and regional areas can function with high unemployment and low resources.
Saturday Morning, nice day for a drive.
It was great to finally meet some of the people behind Woodford Folk Festival. Bill Hauritz took us around the site demonstrating the massive effort gone into transforming the ground from grazing lands into the rainforest it is today. Woodford is geographically located as far north as temperate species survive, as far south as Tropical species will thrive, as far west as coatal species can handle and as far east as desert species exist. This area could become a habitat for a myriad of threatened species.
Own photo: Bill Hauritz in the well-established season camping area
The new territories were purchased 6 years ago and were previously a Radiata Pine plantation. The acid from pine needles has destroyed the topsoil. To turn this into useable land, WFF experimented by cutting terraces into the slope to relocate topsoil to flat areas and expose subsoil to planted slopes. This has allowed tree seedlings to be planted, which will make this place a perfect accomodation site once trees are fully established.
Own photo: New territories - Regenerated Radiata Pine Plantation
Bill explained that any new development on the site needs to be in accordance with their 500 year plan. They are the caretakers of the land, and don't want to relfect the arts in any permanent constructions. Woodford can be a place where technology and innovation can be tested. Their sewerage treatment plant is testament to this.
Own photo - Woodfordia sign
Pipe Dreaming
3rd year accomodation project to generate income through conferences and can be used for artist accomodation for the festival. This idea was inspired by the Austrian hotel which uses drain pipes as hotel rooms:
Reuse of materials or donation materials are considered to be an environmental and economical option for WFF. Rainwater tanks could be fitted out for buildings.
Flat space is at a premium so hillside design is important.
The timeframe for the development is 100-500 years so this needs to be considered.
Design Constraints
- Speak/ reflect values of woodford folk festival
- Safe / secure
- Comfortable
- Revolutionary approach, innovative ideas, use little and low cost material
- Should be built using mainly unskilled labour (volunteers)
- Accomodate a variety of people
- Use Indigenous management practives
- A place for innovation / learning / melting pot
- Synthesis of arts, science, poetry, craftsmanship. Interdisciplinary
- Disruptive Innovation - Avoid constraints of current South East Qld Regional Plan and building codes
- Self sufficiency model
- Transformation institutions
- Encourage a supply chain of locally grown organic food. Organic farms surrounding Woodfordia
Own Photo - test models for 3rd year project
Own Photo - brainstorm for 3rd year project
Crawl - Walk - Run
It was great to see the site while the festival is not on. Being a regular festival goer, i have a great attachment to the ground and festival. It definately takes on a different character when uninhabited. I can't wait to start designing for the masterplan now that we have seen it in its bare form: Woodford Site map - see below
(own image - based on Woodford festival map and site contours)
2009 Festival Site Photo
Most of the flat space is utilised during the festival so this needs to be considered when designing more permanent structures.
"The site is ideally suited for the development of a future village, however it is up to you to more fully define the year-round purpose of these buildings and their role in the future Woodfordia village. Keep in mind that the Woodfordia committee take sustainability seriously - they have developed a 500 year plan for the festival site [see below].
Your brief is to analyse the Woodfordia site, put forward a case for environmental-community-economic sustainability in line with Woodford’s 500 Year Plan and then make an architectural proposition for just one component of the overall scheme. This component may be the educational facility, residential housing facilities or another building (in consultation with your tutor) which you have identified as integral to your strategic plan." (QUT Blackboard brief)
The 500 Year Plan
- We recognise, appreciate and graciously receive gifts from our ancestors. We understand these are the gifts of lore and the celebration of our existence. - We aim to gift future generations a clean slate: an organisation unencumbered with financial social or environmental debt. - We’ll cultivate a convention of decision making, strengthening through time, that will resonate in our work and nurture our future. - We’ll plant a forest of goodwill and benefit from its shade. - We will build with the eyes of artists. - We’ll provide space for our descendants to meet the challenges of their generations with vigour, courage and imagination and encourage them to celebrate their journeys with levity and frivolity.
The 500 year plan lives in our minds. It is our myth. It is a vision for how we might be and sensed by all who feel our welcome.
"We are no more qualified to be the stewards or developers of the Earth than are goats to be gardeners" (James Lovelock, revenge of Gaia)
We focus our journey around B.O.B.
B.O.B is one but s/he is many.... and from all the lands on earth we come.... etc
BOB is Billions Of Beings
BOB has a job, lives comfortably, then he doesn't, where does BOB go, what does he do
WOODFORD
Barter
system
-
Carpenter, civil engineers, new networks
How do
they manage skills, trade (origin or the word?) exchange?
'Burning
man' philosophy
Aboriginal
Philosophy or way of life, indigenous management practices
Work
collectively. Build, grow, learn together without financial gain.
Central
characters - White collar, blue collar, housewife, family, different cultures,
sharing ideas
Living together, eating together, working together, playing together.
ILLAC DIAZ - LITRE OF LIGHT
Illac Diaz is an entrepeneur of sustainable lifestyles and architecture, he has empowered many people living in poverty and little electricity to achieve light into their dense and dark homes. See link below. Something as simple as a PET drink bottle can build a happier and healthier community.
This Youtube clip follows a carpenter who has been reskilled to help the community, through this idea:
LECTURE
The lecture guides us to define our fiction into:
Characters - Future citizens - put ourselves into this character
Scenes - Future Lifestyle
Sets - Proposed spaces (for project 2)
The fiction should be based on Reality and Fact. Use data to back up the story
The presentation could be storyboarded - Each group member could draw a scene/character, and see the contrast between characters.
Are the characters freinds, colleagues, strangers, family, community?
What do they want to do?
What do they need?
How do we deal with indeterminacy? Should the spaces be flexible? We need to consider the timelines of:
Structure
Skin
Services
Space plan
Stuff
We should consider how the future could adapt the structure into something totally different.
What can machines contribute?
Recycled machine waste?
Transport issues?
I found it really interesting ot consider a building in this matter, the way it evolves and has the capacity to evolve over time. It is really important for a designer to consider, yet I have never thought in terms of Site, Structure, Skin, Services, Space plan and Stuff, and the number of different reincarnations over a lifetime. I know can understand the viewpoint of Archigram and their adaptable spaces being prepared to accept change. I had not considered this. This is why the structure, the bones of a project were so expressed, so the skin and services can change over time.
