Networked Urbanism

design thinking initiatives for a better urban life

Design critics: Belinda Tato and Jose Luis Vallejo, principals of Ecosistema Urbano

Understanding the cultural background as a determining factor for urban life. How is urban development linked to cultural aspects of the local and global context? How do people understand their relationship with the place they inhabit? How do habits, traditions or laws transform cities?

Continuing research into new types of technology to transform the visitor experience:

Research Update

Further mapping of issues with the museum’s current paper-based tickets and maps:

Brainstorm_problems_for_upload-01

Initial exploration and proposals for paper items offered for museum visitors:

Research Presentation 10.01.13


Bringing a bit of the museum to class, instead of bringing the class to the museum.

10.01.13 Experience Presentation


My network thus far (includes people and proposals).

My network thus far (includes people and proposals).

 

 

The following are speculations on why people fear death and their body’s decay:

 

The Seventh Seal, Ingmar Bergman

Ingmar Bergman’s portrayal of death seems very classic, with his flowing black robes and intimidating features.  The main character in the movie later states that he fears dying because he wants a guarantee that heaven awaits him.

 

The Hearse Song

Don’t you ever laugh as the hearse goes by,
For you may be the next one to die.
They wrap you up in a big white sheet
From your head down to your feet.
They put you in a big black box
And cover you up with dirt and rocks.
All goes well for about a week,
Then your coffin begins to leak.
The worms crawl in, the worms crawl out,
The worms play pinochle in your snout,
They eat your eyes, they eat your nose,
They eat the jelly between your toes.
A big green worm with rolling eyes
Crawls in your stomach and out your eyes.
Your stomach turns a slimy green,
And pus pours out like whipping cream.
You’ll spread it on a slice of bread,
And this is what you eat when you are dead.

This song was a popular “scary story” used to frighten friends at sleepovers.  When my aunt explained that she wanted an airtight casket because the thought of worms eating her body terrified her, this is what came to mind.  Through my conversations with people outside of the funeral industry I have found that many people do not understand the process of decomposition, especially the fact that it is inevitable.  Many still operate under the misunderstanding that embalming preserves you for eternity, when, in fact, it merely used a highly toxic fluid to preserve your body for the short amount of time between your death and internment.  Everything from your body to your “airtight casket” will eventually decay and return to the earth.


After our work resume, here’s our video for VUOTIdiSardegna, the Social Database for abandoned places in Sardinia.


VUOTIdiSardegna is a social database born to map the Voids present in the Nurra territory and in the rest of Sardinia, and to attract attention on them giving proposals about their possible future.

1

The project begins from the topic of the Void and its possible interpretations. After analyzing the Void concept in culture, art and architecture, we developed a personal vision of the Void culminated in the “City of Voids”, an ideal city where every cluster corresponds to a different Void declination; in general, the Void is conceived as dynamic and moving. The advancement consists in the Void research in the Nurra region; we investigated the Nurra history and we went to the different hamlets to meet people, in order to understand how they feel the Void in their own territory: the result is the presence of the Memory Void in a context of Social Void. This outcome brought us to categorize these Voids as Potential Voids.

After the previous result and a deep research about the importance of building regeneration , we began the Void mapping, that led to VUOTIdiSardegna. The website is a platform that connects the different mapping voids realities already existing, and operating in the territory; the aim is to create the most complete database about abandoned places in Sardinia, thanks to the work of organizations like SardegnaAbbandonata and of every person and association, public and private, interested in contribute to the project. In fact, it’s a totally open website and this allows everyone to participate to the mapping process and the database construction, a social database because every attendee becomes a user linked with the voids and the other users.

2

VUOTIdiSardegna is set up as a tool thanks to which it’s possible to obtain different information layers about the Voids and make overlaps with them. In this way, the website facilitates the Voids use, in facts it connects empty space availability with any people need compatible with them. VUOTIdiSardegna is configured as a triple network: the Voids network, the Users networ and the Ideas network; they’re interconnected each other.

3

For every Void, it’s possible to see who are the users connected with it; for every user, it’s possible to see what proposal he made for that Void and for the others, and so on, in order to have connections and links between people, the Voids they mapped and the ideas they have for those Voids. In particular, every Void has its own page, where everyone – after the registration to the website and becoming a user – can make 5 simple actions:

  1. Add infos about the Void, contributing with images, videos and general informations
  2. See proposals made by other users for that Void
  3. Add proposals saying what the user wants for that place
  4. See what’s around, a list of similar examples
  5. See the action that was made for that void

 4

Focusing on the action, it’s a kind of intervention on the building, in order to show a possible new life for it. In particular, our action shot for the Consorzio Agrario building in Pozzo San Nicola, a village depending on the Stintino Municipality. Since it was impossible to refresh the whole building with no resources, we provided to reactivate just a strip of it with different operations along: wall whitewash, climbing wall, a bench, the greengrass, a flooring, a bricks flooring, a path, a bikepath and the sidewalk refurbishment.

5

In a 80 cm strip, we gave a snapshot of a possibility for the abandoned building. The hope is to make Nurra (and Sardinia) inhabitants aware of the importance of these places, for the memory that they carry on and for their worth not only in the past but also in the future.

PicMonkey Collage 2

Actually, the website is working. It’s a testing phase and it will be followed by its implementation. We guess that it could really represent an important tool for Sardinia and for Sardinian people.

Eleonora, Claudio e Giuseppe


Something has been built…

1011933_10200711266956350_1486752496_n

…in Pozzo San Nicola.


something happened…

PicMonkey Collage

 

…in Pozzo San Nicola

PicMonkey Collage

 


qrcode

We have just to decide between one of these four hypothesis!

Any suggestion???


The workingprogress of the new website for the void of  Sardegna

developing with https://drupal.org/

Vuoti di sardegna2 copia_Pagina_1 Vuoti di sardegna2 copia_Pagina_5 Vuoti di sardegna2 copia_Pagina_3Vuoti di sardegna2 copia_Pagina_4


catalogo0

Following our general concept, here we focus on a single project tool: a catalogue of 50 ideas.

This catalogue grows out of an overlapping process, ultra-layers to apply to a basic configuration (layer O); physically is a book that plays with a rotation and overlapping of trasparent layers.

catalogo3

catalogo1

catalogo2

catalogo4

catalogo5


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networkedurbanism.com is a platform for sharing knowledge and design thinking experiences with the world around us, breaking through the walls of academia in an attempt to improve the society in which we live.