3 tasks.
urban scripting – de/constructing site through narrative and documentary structure
every space has a story to tell. rooms, buildings, and cities all house memories of their evolution and existence. some stories are literally written in walls, from hieroglyphics to stained glass, while others are triggered by the experiences and memories of a space’s inhabitants. yet even within a range of growing explorations, documentary form in particular has remained an underutilized resource for spatial and analytical inquiry.
diane davis-sikora, ucla’s journal of cinema and media studies, fall 09
before we start writing urban scripts, we try to learn how to read. tell 3 stories of existing spaces based on the following:
1. photography exhibition
in/out – a photography by laurence bonvin at the market photo workshop in newtown, #2 president street. visit the exhibition and look carefully at the blikkiesdorp series. choose one image. take a picture of it. analyse the photograph spatially, then research the background | history of the project. re-construct the urban design framework that might have resulted in a settlement like blikkiesdorp (layout, density, location, number of units, public space, infrastructure, access, costs, target group (who is supposed to live there), client (who has commissioned the project)).
2. newspaper
choose any recent article with photograph that you consider part of an urban design process. this may relate to any of the following subjects: public space, transport, housing, art or infrastructure. describe the process and the consequences the event might have. identify the different actors that are part of the process.
3. dictionary
one of the tasks of the studio is to construct a spatial dictionary, verbal and visual definitions of urban design vocabulary. define access within the south african context. the definition should cover multiple scales and time.
tasks 1, 2 + 3 are to be graphically presented on single a4 sheets of paper (portrait). be cognizant of layout + eligibility. work should be clear, concise and most of all, touch on challenging urban issues.
pin up on 14.2.11, 8am, 4th year studio.
reading: a moving city, rory bester, from johannesburg circa now, published by terry kurgan and jo ractliffe in 2005.
prepare min. 3 questions to discuss on monday.
