Istanbul-based practice SO? have designed and built a prototype floating structure for post-earthquake relief. “Fold&Float” is formed of a light, foldable steel structure specifically designed for emergency situations.
Developed off the back of emergency assembly points being designated by the authorities in 2001, SO? questioned where people could be housed in the event of an earthquake. The question has gained added significance in the last 20 years, with Istanbul having privatized 70% of the land set aside for emergency assembly. The result was a floating structure that depends not on vacant, stable land, but on managing water.
Fold&Float is composed of two main parts: an upper structure will fixed, folded furniture, and a floating concrete pontoon. The attention to quality of living within the structure is derived from research suggesting that earthquake and flooding victims spend at least one year in temporary housing following a disaster.
Designated emergency assembly points in the case of an earthquake in Istanbul were announced in 2001. Since then, most of these public spaces have been built up, which raises the question of where everyone will be housed in the case of emergency. The idea of designing a speculative prototype of a floating emergency house came out of this fact: what if the response is not about stable land, but manageable water?
-SO?
The prototype Fold&Float is currently in operation at the Earth School satellite at the Rahmi M. Koc Museum in Istanbul.
The structure’s development coincides with the Hope On Water education project organized at the 4th Istanbul Design Biennial, a collaboration between civil engineering and sociology students from Boğaziçi University and architecture students from MEF University.
Design Team: Sevince Bayrak, Oral Göktaş, Elif Çivici, Derya Ertan, Gülce Yuyar, Selcen Fidan, Selin Çubukçuoğlu
Coastal Engineering Consultant: Emre Otay, Boğaziçi University Coastal Engineering Lab
Prototype Sponsors: Metal Yapı, Fibrobeton, Aluform Pekintaş, Polinet
Fold&Float animations and gif: SO?
Introductory video: Piknik Works
News via: SO?
