Social Condenser, re-envisioning the Public Library (UA)

2017 Spring
ARCH-400 Delta Cities Coastal Resilience Studio
Location: Significant Maritime Industrial Areas

Urban Infrastructure is sometimes referred to as the underlying foundation for an organization or a system: for example, the basic facilities, services and installations needed for the functioning of the community or society, such as transportation and communication systems, water and power lines and public institutions, including schools, post offices, prisons and the public libraries. 

In the pursuit of shaping the public realm and designing public facilities there are few entities who share responsibility and work together. The process of defining the built environment require: 

the City, the Community and the Architect to collaborate. It is expected that such collaboration will enhance or activate connectivity between facilities and the communities. 

‘Users and uses’, the makers (architects) and the facilitators (the city agencies) as well as the donors/funders are central to the process. In other words, everyone who contributes to urban life, collectively elevating community members as active participants of this work. 

The studio will investigate and assess instrumentality of public library that combines interrelated aspects urban life and work as a coherent entity. The building size/scope will reflect and respond to all environmental pressures. Site selection is an integral part of the design process. Stakeholder’s analysis will be the foundational for the proposed project.

Faculty:  

Kuz, Zehra 

Students: 

Brown, Santiago 

Sun, Hanshen

Hsu Chih-Yuan

Kishnani Saatchi

Pillasagua Victor

Wong, Cynthia 

Xu, Tianran

Zaytseva, Elina