Week 6: Theme

As Pomona has many art related areas such as the old railway station gallery, museum and the arts part of the school, there weren’t too many theme related issues as the art parts of pomona have a connection to the platform, making it a great area for a civic art platform. 

In the tutorial we looked at the bridge over the Arno, in Florence -Ponte Vecchio. This was a great way to ‘see’ what would be expected in the project - gave us a new perspective on how to ‘connect’ each building to create an entity, like the bridge. Began to asked myself questions, what does pomona need and how would they walk about town? when looking at pomona in plan, what’s different, what stands out? the division of the town with the railway running through the middle stuck out the most - maybe use this to bring the town ‘together’ and use that use of space either side of the railway. must also think of the layers we referred too - flood areas could be an issue when working in this area - how will you overcome this?

C1: CONTEXT - geographical and social relevance of the proposal 

Due to the small space within the town, an entity would suit them better to connect all their well organised recreational activities together - to give the town more of a connection to each project/area throughout the town. visitors also will be able to communicate and understand the town a lot better. their art and cultural areas will be brought out stronger in a civic space due to the interaction with other spaces and flow of traffic around the town.

These reasonings are also inspired by my ‘timeline’ node of pomona in project 1 - the locals and visitors will be able to ‘communicate’ with the town more with a better understanding of their history and how the town comes together as a whole - this is reflected in the civic space designed in this project.

Possibilities and potentials in the chosen site for your design proposal

Use the ‘pathways’ connecting each building as an introduction into the next phase. make the person WANT to go in that particular direction and onto the next building, create them a story, allow them possibilities to take, let them make their own decisions but guide them through the space in the most practical way possible. Refer to week 5’s reading and the ideas explored.

The area on either side of the railway is deserted, so building my civic space there will not only integrate the other service and retail buildings that are on either side of the railway, but bring them together, as a whole.

Development of ideas have been documented with the use of bubble diagrams and arrows referring to the foot traffic. These mind maps have enabled me as a designer to look beyond what the obvious is and really think about how this civic plan can work smoothly and practically. Diagrams are seen below: 

C2: FUNCTION - contributions the proposed structure is expected to make

This civic place allows the residents of Pomona to cross the railway and connect with the other side - so much unused space either side of the railway that won’t disrupt the other shopping/bank areas of the town. This entity will connect the town together smoothly and seamlessly. the museum on factory street seems to be quite separate from the other areas of the arts in the town - the new civic plan will make sure the museum smoothly runs hand in hand with the rest of the social, commercial and civic components of the plan

My design creates desirable spaces for the people of Pomona. The architecture allows them to seamlessly work their way around the art areas of the town without losing the journey. Each social or civic space is thoughtfully set out to allow for an easy flow of traffic and movement throughout the space. See C3 Image.

C3: COMPONENTS - details of how the proposed functions are to be accommodated

This design responds to the changing needs of the people, it circulates them around different areas of activities and each space smoothly interacts with each other.

This diagram below shows the foot traffic and circulation through the civic space. It also shows the thoughtful space between each building - which is the making of a good civic space! 

C4: STRATEGIES - Architectural entity

A great example of this was found in Norway, Havoysund Pathway by Reiulf Ramsted Architects.

This gave me inspiration for the next assessment. The beautifully designed form leads down to the beach and is a place to rest. The concrete structure mimics the winding forms of the mountains behind it as it meanders toward the sea.

Collection of systems and physical entity, needs to work as a single architectural whole - must present identity through physical presence, see model below:

People can experience and utilise sequences of spaces as a whole. Discussion about my architectural entity is above.

C5: DESIGN COMMUNICATION - summary of design outcomes 

Sturcture of the presentation:

1. Show current buildings

2. Show the relationships between the buildings and the thoughtful space. Explain what each building is used for and how it relates to others - also show connection to the museum so it seamlessly interacts with the space.surrounding it

3. Show the foot traffic and circulation between the buildings - emphasise that you have thought about the space in between the buildings to suit a civic architecture proposal

4. Show the sketches/diagrams and drawings of your civic space

The presentation needs to be shown consecutively, so others can view the changes in order. The presentation needs to clearly show how the buildings interact together and comfortable become one architectural entity.

See uploaded presentation in Week 9.