marks on uj spreadsheet

udf provisional_ comments

partsotam narayan

comprehensive document, very well presented. backyards re-use, viatalization and sidewalks good idea, hope the urban design concept will come out in the presentation and conceptually be linked to the tower?

fernandes

very enjoyable sectional design idea in relation to tower, document still a bit too thin.  spelling mistakes and the general framework could demand more observational + academic depth and requires to apply the sectional ideal to more actual situations within the area.  abundant potential but the work discontinues too early.

almeida

finish figure info on content page.  incorrect legend on page 14. research plus case studies thin.  chapter could use an intro page, what you’ll look at and why (relevance for urban tower framework). rooftops could have been part of the case study chapter, there are great samples of roof landscapes, for example new york.  what role do they play in your final proposal? shouldn’t they have been one of the anchors? only herbal roof for muti is indicated in section, that doesn’t correspond to your vision map page 27. sections of page 26,29 need annotations, street names etc. general spelling, particularly page 28, it is phase, not phaze. page 30 too dark. urban design proposal in closer context starts of ok, but the link to the larger area is not made. generally chapters feel slightly disconnected. make a link to the tower design. you must, for the project’s sake, weave the information into one narrative for the oral exam.

letsoisa

check spelling page 1,18, text layout page 5, language page 3 (the concept of my proposal is informed by the problem statement that is based on my analysis and reading of the site.)  page 7 (region 200000, verb missing), page 12,13,14 the underlay should be lighter, difficult to see the analysis/ index. research and case studies thin.  chapter could use an intro page, what you’ll look at and why (relevance for urban tower framework). page 31 fuzzy graphic, text sits in area for ringbinder, p 32,34 graphic fuzzy, p 33, 34 titles and text cut off. 2 pages are numbered 40. your design looks very interesting in the section on page 41, try to link it to the urban design framework. how are the plantation gardens on page 43 connected to it? intentions and ideas all good and viable, but urban implementation stratagem is not clear. some beautiful graphics that you could use to re-construct the urban argument.

almond

check spelling (lower/ capital case, page 1 1.1,  page 4 3.3, 3.4, page 5 principle 3, page 7, special relationships, page 17, key, page 18 spelling dybamic?, page 19, cultural, page 27 redevelopment, page 34 subtitle, ) text formatting (page 8, 3.5), page order (page 8 before page 7). second page 8 (two different pages are numbered 8) 4.0 commercial analysis: it would be good to know on what data you base the maps and what the dots represent (legend/ key). how is the forecast generated? page 13-15 would need short explanation like the pages before. very interesting proposal, ideas and drawings. just make sure you are able to clearly explain it in the time you have. link framework to the tower design.

felix

content page check spelling consistent capital/ low case, general spell and punctuation check, mapping lacks some completeness and accuracy, page 4 legend is not consistent with map, mapping could have gone into micro scale, there are more smaller green spaces, some are missing, for example ernest oppenheimer park next to the old post office, page 6 add legend re: red dotted line and blue dotted line, page 8 noord street taxi rank missing, to and from jan smuts ave missing, why?, page 9: why minibus taxis can’t be completely disgarded – the minibus taxi industry has a highly political history that should be mentioned, page 12 brt stations map not complete, where is west gate?, your movement network framework is an interesting idea, but you would need to explain the rational behind the design – why that route for bikes and not another one, what effect does this have on the existing movement networks etc, reference for example inner city movement framework by asm architects, you need to link your urban design work to the tower design.

coter

general mapping could need some more layers of information, for example page 7 transport is not complete/ accurate: is there nor main road e-w running through the cbd?, page 8 not sure what a green space landmark is,  why is the university of johannesburg a transportation landmark?, page 9 suburbs would need boundaries if a map is dedicated to them, page 11 inner city johannesburg is not a land use nor is braamfontain, page 17 consider renaming the page urban programme rather than land use typologies, page 18 be prepared to answer where you gathered the data to place the red dots, did you observe, walk, photograph, are there statistics? p 26, 27 need legend, sizes for a,b,c,etc, indication to what actual streets in the precinct the specific types could refer to, analysis generally thin with few layers, your framework for the vision on page 34 is not included in the document, only fragments of it, you would need to develop an idea specific guidelines for the different phases. and: link framework to your tower design.

hartman

interesting approach. check spelling. the analysis is a beginning of the process, but would profit from some additional layer and accuracy, from macro to micro scale (the diagram on page 11 does certainly not represent all water flows in the area.) graphic on page 14 missing?

the new york – johannesburg comparison happens slightly abrupt on page 16, and so does the architecture on page 17. your urban water analysis is a commendable beginning, but you collect facts rather than construct an argument. page 30 and 31 are empty, why? p33 blurry, your drawings need a scalebar. the intervention needs to be communicated in relation to your tower and systematically in the recommended layers, in plan and section.

rodrigues

your pages need page numbers. check spelling. abstract: text size too large. your maps about pedestrian and vehicular movement could contain more info or be represented in another scale. they all miss scale, north and legend. you have an interesting idea that needs more information, different scales and context related accuracy to unfold into an urban design framework. check the initial handout of the project and the recommendations made.

sutherland

your binding conflicts with the text. check spelling. your document seems to have the idea of a ‘local code’ (rules and regulations) but you have to apply those to the area, accurately, and show on a medium scale how they could be applied, then link it to your tower. before you do any of that, you have to explain the reasoning behind those rules, why are they important and where do they come from? same applies for constraints and opportunities, otherwise it stays general and unconnected to the area and your design.

makgalemela

page 4: you have to explain where this ‘class’ distinction comes from, what do you base it on, and you might prefer to use the word ‘group’ (although also discussable as acceptable in relation to the ‘group areas’), you need a legend on this page and explain how you mapped these social groupings. your graphics look appealing, but they are not yet linked into one narrative to become an urban design framework. you need to work systematically and look at the layers required. spell check.

lundie

at this stage your abstract should introduce your intention, your design concept and not just describe what you are going to do. beautiful mapping and sketches (page 27,28) pages 29,30: explain why you looked at this precedent and how it is relevant for your project. your framework is still a bit short of strategic decisions (or the communication thereof) imagine someone had to implement it, what other layers would one need to understand. link sections to plans. add scales and north. and: link to urban tower.

badabili

a document with a precise focus. check spelling. analysis on page 8 is thin. legend page 11 is incomplete? how did you collect the data, are you sure these are the only illegal operations occurring in background? same accounts for the dangerous areas. creativity and conceptual sketches great, but you need to make them operational and use urban design vocabulary, land use, heights, densities, edge conditions etc in section and plan with sizes.

ferro

the work looks graphically very pleasing but stays general for large parts of the document and displays information that doesn’t seem to be of primary importance for the urban design framework. images need captions and pages page numbers. (as a result comments cannot be linked to the pages) plans need scale, north indicator. the legends of the maps are not always complete. you need to explain what 3^rd landscape means. image from sagrera precedent fuzzy. graphic on design application page missing and urgently needed. your framework is incomplete. for example ,if you introduce alternative modes of transport and reserve lanes for them, you need to indicate that on a map. objectives need to be implemented.

fick

solid document. check spelling. page 31 fuzzy images. it will be good if you can explain in your oral how you gathered your data that you used for your urban analysis (network densities, public and private spaces, informal and formal networks). not all your pages have page numbers. page 53 needs a legend. not sure if the title morphological studies is correct for pages 62. make sure you use the correct terminology in your urban design discourse. pages 64-69 need to be linked to the larger area in form of a map and generally clarified. they look nice, but the graphics are at times difficult to read. your titles like open gates are evocative but you have a) to explain what they mean and b) render them operational on an urban scale. that is the link between image and strategy. i don’t understand the red lines on page 69. make sure your presentation is clear, organized and the udf goes beyond pure graphics.

kruger

is centred text the best format for 2 columns? a dedicated document. the graphics are difficult to read at times, page 32 is clearer than page 33. it appears more as an effect than academic content, specifically as you use it on page 35 for exact that reason? it is nice that you included hand sketches. the structure of the document is not always clear as udf. you create images of the future, like on page 56/7 but in the immediate context there is not explanation how we will get there. the information might be somewhere in the document, but it needs to be somehow linked to the image to answer the question: how to get there. make sure your presentation in the oral exam is well structured.  

vollmer

an organized document, but the information displayed seems not always related to the project, like on page 17. your urban design framework needs to link to your site in the form of siting for example the bus depot on page 37. you write about it, but the bus depots have no icon and the sentence ends unfinished. the roof extensions appear out of the blue, which doesn’t mean they are wrong. a bicycle lane comes from somewhere and goes somewhere, you need a larger map to indicate that network. the drawings on page 42 do not tell much? is page 46 the ground floor of your tower? if so, thanks for including it, not many others did that. the document misses the link between the image and the strategy/ implementation, which is a main part of an urban design framework. 

wilson

a concise and commendable document. in the future, add captions to photographs and titles to maps, including scale and north (for example page 24-26). the land use map on page 28/9 is difficult to read and possibly to simplified (but beautiful). the images on page 43/4 are fuzzy and you need to author them. the framework is not so easy to access, hopefully you will be able to explain in the oral. careful with the use of the word morphology on page 72, the related drawings are not typically morphological. page 75 add street names. link your tower design to the udf.

schuyt van castricum

a document that shows intensive and consistent work. one of the few which introduces a strategy and uses the structure of urban frameworks. that said, changes in the transport network need to be shown on a larger scale than in the area shown on page 38. the child friendliness doesn’t really come out through the graphics. maybe you have added that in the visualisation of your tower project?  zoom into some points and show us moments of urban life in that ‘new’ johannesburg. as everyone,spell check and link specifically to tower project.

nicolatos

abstract: not sure what the visuals on this page illustrate. check spelling. not sure i can follow your arguments on page 1-3. page 4 illustrates what? you certainly try to cover the layers required in an udf but it is not very clear, why we are looking at them. page 12: legend difficult to read in relation to maps. page 13: perceptional threshold sounds very interesting, but not sure how it operates. page 17: what is a ‘lower class business area’? page 24: some interesting principles, how do you implement them and where? page 26: street name? page 27: what does the red arrow represent and how does the spine work in plan? and then it ends. this is disappointing and concerning. your initial ideas are fine, but you don’t elaborate on them within the context of an urban design framework. what happened to the social businesses? at this point, the work is unfortunately insufficient. i hope to see more in the oral exam. link the udf to the tower design.

falconer

a comprehensive document, however, the maps are at times difficult to read (page 14 vehicular distribution as example) pages 22-29 display an interesting comparison/ overview of different sub/urban areas. the elevated highway along your site clearly seems important to you and the case studies relate well. your urban intervention seems clearly framed and well illustrated. page 46 and 47 are a very good attempt in influencing the urban through the architectural realm. however, in the future, one would wish to see more of the structure of an urban design framework. link it to the tower project.  

provisional marks udf

important to remember now

you HAVE to integrate your tower design into the urban framework. 

while marking i started to write individual comments which takes a bit of time. in addition to the previous check list and the individual remarks to come, please concentrate on this. 

remember the first three paragraphs of the dissertation handout and edit your information accordingly:

term 3 + 4_dissertation: urban design guidelines

term 3 + 4 ask for the development of an urban design framework that integrates your design of a mixed-use alternative energy tower within the larger context of its site along the eastern edge of johannesburg central, between fox and durban street (n-s) and the elevated city highway m31(e-w), which turns into sivewright ave and siemert road before merging into joe slovo drive.

your dissertation needs to show your objectives for the overall area in which the building is located. by large the objective is to create sustainable environments that enable individual creativity to thrive and contribute to community development, identity, cohesion and efficiency. this will be done through alteration of the physical environment. based on your design approach and its locality the following three levels should be revealed in your project:

i. metropolitan scale (city)

explains the location of your site in the city-wide context and makes the connection of the contribution of your design to the creation of a sustainable city.

ii. local scale (neighbourhood)

explains the location of your site within an identifiable functional area. it shows the hierarchy of routes and distribution of public infrastructure. furthermore, it addresses the broader issues of access, circulation and open space networks.

iii. precinct area (block, street and building)

explains the immediate locational area of the chosen site with distinct characteristics which will guide the proposed design. it shows the nature of the proposed infill intervention within its immediate surroundings i.e. relationships at street level.

marks

pud4_urban tower design framework_provisional evaluation of hand in 4(final)

to be posted this pm. marks are broken down in various components, that should give an indication what to work on (if need be). 

content/40		techniques/40		presentation/20
idea, relevance/ 20	scales,layers, understanding/ 20	research,method process/20	design, method, process/20	clarity, language, completeness/ 20

still working on them, post soonest. 13.11. 6.21h

general comments re: urban oral exam

next to the individual content, which we discussed extensively in class throughout the semester, some comments for all submissions:

1
each graphic needs a legend or a key. if you use colors - what do they mean, if you use symbols, what do they represent? remember, a map without a legend is meaningless.
2
each plan, section, elevation need a scale, plans need north orientation
3
link plans to sections and elevation (indicate where the cutting lines are, name sections and elevations accordingly)
4
caption photographs and give diagrams a title, graphics have a meaning and are part of your narrative, not simply illustrations
5
make sure your maps display what you want to show (edges, densities, movement etc), use color if needed
6
make sure you use the right title for your graphics, google the meaning if you are uncertain ( example: 
urban morphology 'is the study of the form of human settlements and the process of their formation and transformation...Typically, analysis of physical form focuses on streetpattern, lot (or, in the UK, plot) pattern and building pattern, sometimes referred to collectively as urban grain' (wikipedia) 
figure ground refers to the relationship between an object and its surrounding, the object in the urban context being the building)
we went through those definitions, surly you'll remember.
7
your project is part of an existing context, make sure it is clearly readable what your intervention is, what you change (before - after illustrations help)
8
check spelling