task_1 comments

baloyi – slides should be stitched together to form 1 document  locating the site needs a larger contextual map, minimum scale of 1:20000.  would be helpful to know where the photographs are located on the plan.  attractions in the area page isn’t accurate.  from the project, it is difficult to ascertain why you like this area.

dugmore – very well done 2^nd handin which covers all the required + necessary scales.  captions accompanying the images on page 2 would have vastly enhanced the project giving the reader a richer indepth to those spaces.  a missed opportunity.  why are the drawing lines on page 3 + 4 fuzzy?  overall, a strong project.

hadebe – very difficult to access the project.  font is too small to be legible.  project needs to be framed in a larger context for clearer understanding.  sections would have helped articulate hollard street.  project would benefit from additional work.

kluth – a well articulated project with a rich narrative, esp. the fact that 'it’s a parking lot'.  final entry is even stronger.  page 7 + 8 are just beautiful.  pity that the text creeps into the image on page 6 and blots out the sunset.  take note to format pages correctly.  a section showing the relationship of the ‘sunset viewing platform’ and bath street below would have helped tighten the project + demonstrate the level drop at that point.  sections should always show cut through a street to emphasise the building’s context.

letsile – project requires a context map + sections.  kerk street is one on the most unique streets in johannesburg and this has to be demonstrated by sections – a missed opportunity.  however the photographs are very beautiful with enhancing captions.  these though could have been pushed further to really help un penetrate the space.  fantastic reference, use this in your future projects.

mahlalela – strong project without any sections.  why?  as much as the plan on page 2 is appreciated, plans always have to have street names + a sense of scale.  always.  photographs would have benefitted from captions for richer access.  conclusion is well articulated + a pleasure to read.  next time, for a stronger project, caption, draw sections and then say something.

mavuso – as much as the 2 pages are very beautiful, but, what do they mean?  why do you like this place? project needs to go further in its narrative to bring us to the place as is what defines it?  what are the +'s or -'s.  you have to explore the themes and articulate the places performance or the lack of it.  ultimately it has to be your observations which communicate this.  work harder on this.

mndawe – project pages need to be stitched together.  you have to learn how to do this.  the project has enormous potential but, unfortunately is let down from adequate + appropriate formatting.  you also have to learn this.  sections are too small, images have no captions, plans no street names and the overall project has no conclusion.  it leaves on wanting.

momberg – fantastic cover page.  fantastic images.  fantastic sections.  fantastic layout.  the only thing missing is a conclusion + references.

mtshali – a well constructed project with a superb cover image.  what is the difference between the initial entry and the final entry?  kudos for covering all the scales namely: location, linkage, transport, soci-economics, politics and space design.  please continue to work in this fashion.  well done.

nathoo – initial project the pages were not stitched together.  glad that in the reworked version this was not so.  a very strong project with beautiful + poetic moments.  a project of this nature is well published and it’s a pity that you didn’t source plans + sections to complete the project for a richer narrative.  but otherwise, a sensitive piece.  keep drawing.

ngoqwana – you were required to present with the class.  that being said, the project id of mild interest which is marred by boxes within boxes + layout.  why?  if you orientate  a page to be landscape, you cannot have text running the entire length of the page.  its too much.  images could have been enhanced with captions as opposed to ‘the space’ or ‘the space.’  page 3, transformation: graphic representation, is esoteric + unclear.

njapha – kudos for a challenging site and thought provoking project.  that being said, you need to name streets when you draw plans and explain images with captions.  layout also has to be consistent.  in your conclusion, you begin your paragraph with a small letter, why?  it is interesting that you throw in a future proposal thing in there, next time, make this tighter + less european in precedent.  but a good beginning.

segooa – beautiful choice of space and well constructed project.  the only issues are layout.  on the opportunities within a space page, you cannot have text running the length of a landscape page.  break the text up into a minimum of 2 columns for crisper format.  fantastic photographs in which some are unfortunately missing captions.  why?  as much as the section is appreciated, it needs work for better articulation.  conclusion makes for a pleasant read.  what changed between the 2 submissions?

sibiya – the site only comes in on the 3^rd paragraph. this should have been done sooner.  succinctly state: my favourite place/space in jozi is newtown!  so there can be no confusion.  the cover image is very beautiful, but unfortunately isn’t yours, and it has slight pixilation.  why didn’t you photograph the sq. and make it your own? layout is clear on the first + second page, even as far as to say its crisp, but the narrative remains soulless.  why?  why do you love this place?  the narrative doesn’t respond to this – instead, remains at a historical level.  a rather dull one at that.  refrain from using boxes within boxes.  text doesn’t need to be in a box.  page should be numbered with a proper conclusion + reference page.  the 2 format thing is perplexing.  why a pdf + jpg?  be consistent.  always attempt to work in section.

simoes – a very strong project with way too much text.  reads like a thesis.  stay light + playful.  your choice is about recreation, remain there.  layout is beautiful + clear, making it easy to access the project.  captions are appreciated, next time, flood a project of this nature with more images and less text.  a conclusion would have completed the project.  well done.

tayob – well articulated project which lacks a ‘personal’ touch.  pity.  project remains too academic, ticking all the necessary boxes except the section box.  draw sections next time and make the project be an extension of your own voice.  talk about the shebeen etc.  let us experience greenside through you.  push yourself.

light reading . . .

http://www.vpuu.org.za/

re:BLOCKS
there is no block_7

re:TASK_1 i will place comments + marks before the end of wednesday

revised_groups

1.       BaloyiNyiko_DugmoreMatthew_KluthCharnelle             1           

2.       LetsileLesego_MahlalelaSimangele_MavusoNkosilenhle    2   
3.       MndaweThabi_MombergMark_XabaNtokozo                 3

4.       NathooNishkal_NgoqwanaLulama_NjaphaPhelelani           4       

5.       SibiyaZwelibanzi_SimoesVanessa_TayobMuhammad              5

6.      SegooaTjaka_MtshaliSkhumbuzo_HadebeCharmain                 6         

urbanBLOCKS

contemporary issues within architecture_task2

UNIVERSITY OF THE WITWATERSRAND

SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE AND PLANNING

ARPL 3003   Contemporary Issues within Architecture    2013

Task 2

PlaceMaking + Conventions 1/9:          all nine: 85% of the research report

Hillbrow Façade_017 1998 ©Solam Mkhabela

Open City:
the standard for the site envelope will make it possible to plan a city that can be developed quickly and cheaply using the advantages of mass production while eliminating its dangers.  The transformation of the standardized architectural project from a design for a building module to the design for an urban block creates a city that is adequate to the capitalist reality of developing economies.  Only the block offers its inhabitants a secure place to live while offering maximum of possibilities for integrating public programs.  Instead of the closed city of gated, free-standing buildings there will be an open city of blocks designed to incorporate private and public interests.
State of the World’s Cities 2008/2009 - Harmonious Cities, UN Habitat

Scale

The term ‘scale’ is commonly used in two ways.  One is differentiate between differently sized parts of a city or settlement (regional, metropolitan, sub-metropolitan, local representative scales and so on).  The second refers to the judgement about appropriate size, measured in terms of a ‘human scale’:  the achievement of a comfort fit.  It is this latter meaning which is by far the most important.  A central concern in place-making is creating settlements which are humanly-scaled (scaled so that human beings feel comfortable, and can function comfortably, within them).  This is a quality which should be present in the most modest, as well as the most bold, interventions.

Creating Vibrant Urban Places to Live: A Primer, D Dewar and R S Uytenbogaardt, Cape Town 1995

Your role this semester will be to focus and zoom in into the block.  You will unpack its architecture + typology – whilst recognizing its morphological footprint within the greater Johannesburg city area – and expose its anatomy.

1.     Methodology_week2

The project will collect, collate and map accurate, relevant and site-specific information.  Therefore you required to measure + map your block to detail.  Use photography to capture its 3 dimensionality.  Conduct interviews with the actors + agents who use and permeate the site.  Uncover what the architecture is used for?  Its historical evolution and if necessary, its future projection.  Things to consider, but not limited to, are:

§  circulation networks and hierarchies, patterns of transport and movement: motorized and non-motorized

ð  horizontal + vertical uses of the block

ð  horizontal diversity: units, entrances + frames

ð  inside-outside connections: permeable frontages

ð  vertical diversity: mix of functions and uses from road reserve, to sidewalk, to floor to floor to roof

ð  public and private, pedestrian and vehicular, and any other forms

§  infrastructural networks

§  edge conditions

§  vegetation distribution and green spaces

§  building scale, densities and typologies

§  open space system

§  land use

§  gateways and entrances

§  formal, informal structures and networks

§  management and ownership in the area

§  social patterns and networks

§  economical patterns and networks

§  height

§  courtyards

§  programme

§  the grid

You are expected to collect data regarding the bold text above.

The course outline stated:

The studio asks students to understand and unfold the complexity of urban Johannesburg through the understanding of the anatomy of a city block in the CBD. This includes physical form and thresholds as well as historical development, social and economic layers, urban politics and the larger and closer context of the site, its edge conditions, the relation of solid and void, existing programmes and movement patterns. The block is considered as the intersection of architecture (building) and urban design. Each team of three students will be responsible for a different block. The chosen blocks are connected via the existing open space network. Various ways of mapping will be introduced and applied. Comparative analysis will introduce to a variety of block-dimensions (for example Cape Town, New York, Berlin, Amsterdam). Projected visions of the future of each individual block and its closer and larger context should be developed individually. The work will be presented in form of a comparative matrix/ catalogue in a specified format.

What others think

Cities are perhaps one of humanity’s most complex creations, never finished, never definitive. They are like a journey that never ends. Their evolution is determined by their ascent into greatness or their descent into decline. They are the past, the present and the future.

State of the World’s Cities 2008/2009 - Harmonious Cities, UN Habitat

Urban Design is the art of creating and shaping cities and towns
Urban design involves the arrangement and design of buildings, public spaces, transport systems, services, and amenities.  Urban design is the process of giving form, shape, and character to groups of buildings, to whole neighborhoods, and the city. 
It is a framework that orders the elements into a network of streets, squares, and blocks. Urban design blends architecture, landscape architecture, and city planning together to make urban areas functional and attractive.
Urban design is about making connections between people and places, movement and urban form, nature and the built fabric. Urban design draws together the many strands of place-making, environmental stewardship, social equity and economic viability into the creation of places with distinct beauty and identity.

Urban design is derived from but transcends planning and transportation policy, architectural design, development economics, engineering and landscape. It draws these and other strands together creating a vision for an area and then deploying the resources and skills needed to bring the vision to life. Urban design involves place-making - the creation of a setting that imparts a sense of place to an area. This process is achieved by establishing identifiable neighborhoods, unique architecture, aesthetically pleasing public places and vistas, identifiable landmarks and focal points, and a human element established by compatible scales of development and ongoing public stewardship. Other key elements of placemaking include: lively commercial centers, mixed-use development with ground-floor retail uses, human-scale and context-sensitive design; safe and attractive public areas; image-making; and decorative elements in the public realm.

Urban design practice areas range in scale from small public spaces or streets to neighborhoods, city-wide systems, or whole regions.

"Urban Design and city building are surely among the most auspicious endeavors of this or any age, giving rise to a vision of life, art, artifact and culture that outlives its authors. It is the gift of its designers and makers to the future. Urban design is essentially an ethical endeavor, inspired by the vision of public art and architecture and reified by the science of construction." - Donald Watson

Urban design operates at 3 scales:
the region city and town	the neighborhood district and corridor	the block street and building

Urban design includes infrastructure, architecture, public spaces:

http://www.urbandesign.org/

Scale, Urban Design + Architecture

In short, the codes shape the built form of the city, if not the architectural style of the individual buildings.  Building a narrative about an individual’s style and his ability to shape the city accordingly is enticing, but the more important forces are legal ones. Now, whether those codes are shaping the city as intended or not is another question.

The other question is if bold architecture is wanted. Every city needs the kind of urban fabric that provides the bulk of the buildings but tends to blend into the surrounding context (more often, it is the surrounding context). Jahn Gehl has repeatedly noted how Dubai’s emphasis on monumental architecture with no surrounding context (“birdshit architecture“) fails to create a sense of place.  If every building tries to be unique, then none of them are.

http://www.alexblock.net/blog/?p=2081