Managed decline

I guess you will have seen this story in the news:  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-16355281

Maybe this could influence our project in someway?

Adaptation of existing form

I think this is a nice precedent for how some of the more substantial building develop, adapting the existing fabric.

http://www.haworthtompkins.com/built/proj04/index.html

Programme Diagram

Hi Matt

Just knocked up a quick axe to try and summarise the different programmes.  We could colour-code the buildings on the top part like Matt was describing.

Urbanisation of Panic

I was searching the Occupied London (an journal of theory and action that has spouted from the occupy london movement) website today and found article by Finoki. A couple of poignant points are extracted below.

"During the past centuries, the building of the modern urban environment used to be dependent on the rationalist plan of the political city. The economic dictatorship of the last few decades has accelerated the urban expansion. The interaction between cyber-spatial sprawl and urban physical environment has destroyed the rationalist organisation of the space."


"can the city be viewed as an architectural weapon to enforce a certain behavioral code, or to forcefully spatialize neo-liberalism in a way, to rear obedience (or addiction) to a rampant commerce?"

http://www.occupiedlondon.org/urbanisationofpanic/

Top result on Google

Matt

The google search "figure ground inversion" now lists our blog as the top result and we didn't even pay them.

DH

Production & manufacturing areas

Here is a view from within the "masterplan" of a typical space used for both subsistence farming and cradle-to-cradle manufacturing within the larger existing buildings. The new built-form is made from found materials and develops in an ad hoc manner enabling it to adapt as necessary.  There is still an element of nomadism about the whole thing.

There will hopefully more to follow and these images will get across that 'grittiness' we talked about, which the previous images weren't quite as successful in doing.

DH

Master Plan first draft

Heres the first draft of the masterplan during the last phase of development.  Here is has become a valid part of the city and is home to a society of people, formed from the occupy camp,  concerned with social justice and sustainability.  Infrastructure has reached an advanced level, figure-ground inversion has occurred, and as these means of living become more accepted, we it starting to affect surrounding areas.

The graphics need a bit of work on the plan but at least its establishing some principles.

This render is more successful but needs more context.