OPERATION BARRA MEGAMIX: November 2011

Sunday, November 13, 2011

Design for the other 90%

I highly recommend going to the Cooper-Hewitt exhibit that's at the United Nations (it's free) through January, particularly if you're looking at informal housing development. Their website's pretty good too.

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Learning from Rio

In the inner city, in favelas, public and social activities take place on the streets

In the newly developed suburbs, high rise apartments, and inclusive gated communities, all activities takes place within; behind walls, gates, and guard posts.

Beach and soccer are neutral

Paradiso / Occupado 2.0

Whereas the initial scope of P/O attempted to democratize the issue regarding availability of social and public space of low income residents (in favelas, inner city) vs. their high income counterparts, 2.0 is a re-appraisal of the previous issues raised, where are public spaces for both communities (if any) and how are they utilized/under-utilized ?

Learning from Rio

There is a tremendous undercurrent of Rio populations, not only the affluent populous, but low income and impoverished pop as well, pushing for greater development of security measures for their homes and communities. Electrified fence, armed guards, and presence of military police are a reminder of Rio's turbulent past and persistence with drugs, crimes, and gangs.

However, statics reveal a sharp decline in violent crimes over the past several years along with eradication of much of the gang activities in Favelas. With the additional pressure from the federal government to curb crime rates, in preparation for 2014 Olympics, Brazil is witnessing a landmark in their intervention against crime. Despite this new trend, fervor over personal safety, protection, and gated communities have only garnered greater affluence.

The Streets are alive

A recent tour of key sites in urban, suburban, and impoverished communities in Rio reveals an interesting phenomenon: a genuine ownership of the street by the resident is taking place in inner cities and favelas, where social activities weaves deeply into streets and public activities such as street concerts and festivities takes on independent authorship without authoritative intervention. The rich and the newly affluent are eager to author their own public/private space with aspirations toward greater homogeneity and isolation (from the outside).

Beach, Soccer, and Samba are neutral

Despite this polarizing trend, the Brazilians love of soccer, beach, and Samba dancing perpetually lends the people of all class, race, and gender a common ground.

Datum

Paradiso / Occupado 2.0's new initiative is essentially cross ownership of public space through shared activities such as soccer games, dancing, beach going (datum) through universal access (transportation, safety, availability).

Variable

If 2 groups of people who are otherwise separated each other through different use of public space, how will the 2 groups take ownership of another kind of public space with shared social activities?

Intervention

A design of truly hybrid space, indoor/outdoor, artificial/natural, horizontal/vertical, exclusive/inclusive, common/seperate space for interchange, exchange, and communication between all residents of Rio.

Gradation

Instead of sharp, contrasting grouping of space, the program will be mixed together through gradual connection between different programs, building materials, colors, and textures.

Monday, November 7, 2011

Urban Perspective Exchange

A few thoughts: How can Rio's contrasting urban perspectives be reanalyzed in scale, overlayed, and woven together to expose its diverse urban typologies in different formats?