Contemporary cities and urban settlements manifest as intricate structures that demand deep reflection and a careful approach. The social models and spatial layouts within them are in constant evolution, transforming over time. In this context, a crucial question arises: What is the predominant model for cities today? Many contemporary cities result from a paradigm that reached its apogee in the 19th century, characterized by intensive densification and urbanization in response to needs that weren't always reflective of its inhabitants.
In some cases, due to the transformations experienced by large cities, certain urban sectors have fallen into disuse, becoming residual spaces or moving away from purposes oriented to community development. Recognizing that people are the driving force behind the dynamics of cities and human settlements, it is imperative to reclaim these spaces. To this end, theoretical approaches such as the one proposed by Henri Lefebvre's right to the city and the 15-minute city are presented as alternatives. In these cases, people regain the focus, becoming key elements in the design, and allowing for the re-establishment of a community-person-space bond.
Nowadays, numerous proposals exemplify the connection of people with underutilized open and public spaces through architectural interventions, whether temporary or permanent. These proposals share a common element of contextual understanding and adaptive planning to specific needs.
Temporary architectural interventions: CWLane Reading Space
Francesco Rossini, Associate Professor of the School of Architecture at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK), highlights this pilot project as part of a three-year research plan funded by the university. The initiative seeks to revitalize a small public space in one of the oldest districts of Hong Kong —a city known for its extreme vertical urbanism— to create a new community gathering point.
The project consists of a series of steps and platforms, inspired by the city's landscape, while the bright red color and a white geometric pattern intend to capture the attention of passersby. In addition, it features shelving along its side that can store more than 350 books. The transformation into a reading space emerged from the various discussions during the community engagement process.
By involving the community we can address the tension between bottom-up and top-down processes by creating an enhanced and more inclusive urban environment. – Francesco Rossini
Considered a low-cost architectural intervention, the choice of wood was based on its suitability to support the weight and demands of the users. The wooden structure was built in three days by students, volunteers, and residents, proving to be resilient even in the face of extreme weather conditions, such as a typhoon.
CW Lane Reading Space, the first of three planned interventions, emphasizes the significance of experimentation before implementing permanent changes. In addition, by addressing materiality, design, and urban impact in a holistic approach, the proposal suggests that such initiatives can be replicated in other underutilized public areas, generating a sustainable and comprehensive impact on the urban space.
Focusing on alternative mobility options: Nachtspur
Since 2019, the organization Reallabor Radbahn gUG has been promoting the vision of a cycle path through the center of Berlin, leveraging a disused space under the subway viaduct. To revitalize this space, Radbahn launched a competition whose winning proposal came from SKIA Studio, led by Matias Ernstorfer. The Nachtspur or "Night Footprint" light sculpture has been built for the final section of the Radbahn cycle path.
Nachtspur consists of four Neon Flex LED light lines suspended from the viaduct through a steel structure. Two of them are connected to the electrical network, while the power for the remaining two is provided by two bicycles acting as generators. The viaduct is protected as a heritage building, so the design seeks to reduce as much as possible the contact points between the subway infrastructure and the light sculpture.
The recovery of urban infrastructure through lighting can be an awareness-raising tool in the context of transport transition, especially in countries where the winter and dark seasons are long. - SKIA Studio
The installation starts with horizontal lines resembling a cyclist at rest. As it progresses to the center, these lines turn into curves that peak just above the bicycles, symbolizing the peak activity state of a cyclist. Towards the end of the sculpture, the curves gradually decrease their oscillation until they become a horizontal line once more.
The final arrangement of the LED hoses is influenced by the development of cycloid curves found in a bicycle. As stated by the design team, Nachtspur is visited daily by passers-by who might overlook the roof provided by the metro viaduct and the potential for a covered cycle path if not for the neon effect.
Examples in Australia, Brazil, South Africa, and Other Contexts
The underutilization of spaces has become common in various contexts, as it tends to share a common denominator with misused areas. This phenomenon is especially prevalent as our built environment and cities are consistently planned by an isolated building approach rather than a communal one. This fact opens the opportunity to link and generate more enriching spatial experiences.
Linking disjointed areas: Rodda Lane Intervention
Rodda Lane Intervention is another notable case, whose project brief was to improve the amenity of the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) urban campus by bringing together a series of redundant, diverse, and unconnected spaces. The design response centers on two courtyards that act as anchors for social activity on campus. New custom seating and pergola-like shade structures were placed between the planters, along with increased lighting to enhance the outdoor experience for students and provide new places to dwell. The common spaces bring together diverse areas and students to promote integration and enhance the campus experience.
Recycled materials and socio-spatial improvements: Cabral Lookout
Similarly, and as an example of an urban intersection, the Cabral Lookout project carried out the socio-spatial improvement of a lookout spot with thousands of reutilized plastic caps as its main material, which were donated by the inhabitants of the neighborhood, creating an effect similar to glass tiles.
The central space in the transformation of the Cabral Lookout is a plateau overlooking the water and city, where, according to the neighbors, there used to be a house. Access to the viewpoint is on foot, through alleys and stairs. This was one of the biggest challenges faced in the execution of the project due to the amount of materials that had to be transported manually. Upon completion, the plateau became the largest space within the project, used for community presentations. Additionally, an existing staircase is used to provide angles for filming and rehearsals, serving as a grandstand.
Transforming a violence hotspot into a safe space: House of the Pink Spot
This project is situated in an area identified as a hotspot of gender violence, characterized by a lack of street lighting and limited human activity; factors that contribute to an elevated risk of violent and criminal behavior. In response, the project aimed to reclaim the space, where community members could sit, find shade and light, and engage in small theatrical productions, lucid activities, and dialogues addressing solutions to the high levels of violence against women in the area.
For its construction, all materials were obtained locally while all signage and painting were designed and handmade by community members. In this context, through the integration of a community-based process, the potential of the Pink Spot lies in its inhabitants and their reciprocity with the space. It is a project commissioned, designed, and built by the community.
Architectural solutions to safety in public areas such as this corner are not architectural, they are human. - Amnesty International South Africa
The recovery of a space can be motivated by a variety of factors and lead to equally varied results. What maintains a constant connection between these projects and the community is their focus on human-centered design, facilitating the reconnection of individuals and social groups, and enhancing the qualities of both the design and the materials used. In this context, seemingly simple elements, such as lighting, a bench, a stroke of paint, or a piece of wood, cease to be merely aesthetic gestures or inert objects and take on a deeper meaning when integrated with a purpose defined by projects like these.
Explore more projects that reconnect people and activate public spaces in the ArchDaily folder curated by the author.
