RESTRICTED AREAS WITHIN EACH PROGRAM

As the 'architectural moshing' concept indicates movement within the facade or structure, I have identified the areas within each program where the movement will have to be restricted.  These include the entrance and reception, toilets, kitchen and also a number of cells within the prison.  

Because these areas have now been identified, it now allows me to place these within each site and to begin designing how the rest of the building will sit and also the idea of the 'architectural moshing'.

DESIGN CONCEPT: ARCHITECTURAL MOSHING

If an image or film can be manipulated is it possible that physical objects, even structures, can be adapted and manipulated by the information that creates them? 

The three buildings, stated in the previous post, will work together to survey the financial system.  Therefore, as the financial system changes, these changes can be seen in the physical structures of the prison, school and community centre.

The following images are exploring the idea of 'Architectural Moshing'.

PRISON ARCHITECTURE

After deciding to place a prison on the third site I researched some examples of old, new, successful and unsuccessful prisons. The first set of images show a number of prisons from around the world, over a number of decades.

I found the Caseros prison, particularly interesting as the inmates began to 'control' the social environment within the structure and they also adapted the architecture itself to fit their own needs. Removing cell doors and punching holes through the exterior walls are just two examples of the physical manipulation they placed upon the architecture.

“Caseros was conceived as a paradigm of ‘modern’ architecture: its form followed its function. Architecture was transformed into an enemy of surveillance rather than its primary means. Despite its extreme transformation its form remained related to function. What was inverted, however, was for whom form functioned for. The transformation of its façade from its original impermeable nature to its new porous condition revealed the inversion in architectural servitude.”

Gaspar Libedinsky

More information on the Caseros prison and its history can be found at:

http://www.domusweb.it/en/architecture/caseros/

SITE 3

The third site, situated in the area surrounding Shoreditch High Street Station will house a prison.  This idea has stemmed from reading Michel Foucault's 'Discipline and Punish' and also because of the idea that prisons act as an antagonist to the banks.

SITE 2

The second site is within Spitalfields where a community building will sit.  The building will act as a halfway house and also, if possible, offer other services to the community.

SITE 1

I have chosen three sites within the area to place three new programmes that will eventually form a network to survey the financial system.  The first site is within Brick Lane where it will house a school.  I was originally thinking of a secondary school, however after some research into the area, according to the Tower Hamlets Council website, there are no nurseries in the immediate area.

DATA MOSHING

Something that came up during the portfolio review was 'Data Moshing'.  A process that involves altering the data of the image/film in order to create glitches or errors. Below are a number of tests where the original files have been altered.

CELL DESIGN

In order to begin designing the individual sites where the cells have landed, I decided to go back to the cell design itself, as I felt restricted with how I had previously represented the cells (as simple boxes)and how to develop them further.  I kept in mind the idea that the cells are collecting and processing information, so I began to look at things such as servers, circuit boards, computers etc.  The cells therefore have become a series of components and elements and because of this, no two cells will be the same.  These components can then be manipulated and adapted, creating new structures within the city.

STUCK CELLS

Continuing the idea of the cells becoming caught within the city, I have created 3 images to outline the general scenarios of the cells within their new positions, and the implications that they might have, in terms of the surrounding environment and their new programme.

ANALYSIS OF FILM 2.2 'THE FINANCIAL TRANSPARENCY'

Here are some sheets that analyse the film made for Project 2.2, which I presented in December.  The diagram at the top is a chronogram, trying to incorporate time and sound whilst the other sheets analyse the camera movement within each scene.

CHRONOGRAMS FOR EARLIER FILMS

I have created some chronograms for previous films that were made last term after realising that apart from the film themselves, I hadn't actually documented them for the portfolio...

CAUGHT BETWEEN THE CITY

I have created some images of the cells 'stuck' within the city. Some are more successful than others, but in creating these images I've realised that each cell, depending on where and how they land, will all have a different affect on their new surroundings and also the programme that they will hold. Some may land in open spaces where they can become independent structures, whilst others may collide with existing buildings, possibly damaging them, and so their new programme has to take into consideration the surrounding programmes.  Depending on where they land within the city, one may become a homeless person's shelter whilst another may become a state of the art gallery. The location of the cells within the city is integral to their success.

15 YEARS LATER...

The use of the panopticon to 'observe' the banks has, over 15 years, succeeded.  Combined with advances in technology, where the walker and googler are able to access information easily, the panopticon, is no longer needed. Because of this, over a number of years, with nobody to maintain or control the movement of the cells, they begin to loose momentum and direction and start to become embedded within the built environment.  It is here, stuck between the city, that the cells begin to take on a new life, and also the structure that used to house the cells, also begins to take on a new meaning and programme.

The diagram below shows, how over a number of years, less and less cells return to the structure as they become 'stuck' within the city.

STRUCTURE IN USE

The following images show how the cells move out of the structure and also how the panopticon is constantly changing through out the day with cells entering and exiting.

STRUCTURE

As I continued with the project, I found myself taking the panopticon as a physical object on site more than a theoretical one. Unsure what to do, I decided to create a simple structure for the panopticon on site, where it begins to interact with the existing environment.  With a permanent structure in place, it is a constant reminder to the banks that they are being watched.

The structure from the walker's point of view.

The structure when all cells are in place, when some have moved across the city and when it is empty.

SHAPE AND SCALE OF THE PANOPTICON WITHIN THE CITY

Following the crit in December, one of the references that was give to me was Super Studio's Continuous Monument.  When looking at this piece of work, it made me question, not only the role of the panopticon within the city, but also the scale, shape and programme.  

 

Does the panopticon act as a boundary for the entire city? Or does one exist within each borough?

If one exists within each borough, are they all physically connected? Does it have to be restricted to the circular shape or can it, for example, follow the river Thames, which would allow the 'cells' to move, and to observe both the north and south of the city?

How will the structures look when the cells are all moving across the city?