A Visual Archive

London’s population demographics are ever-changing. As UK life expectancy continues to rise from 71 in 1960s to 81 in 2021 the spaces to cater for these vulnerable communities has almost not changed. Therefore, in our ageing UK society how can innovative design solutions cater to reduce the inequalities and create brighter prospects for our future-selves. Can the built environment create more holistic, integrated architecture that fosters intergenerational exchange in one of the youngest boroughs of London, Hackney. Consequently, the project depature point aims to explore a novel ideas of domestic living that can make the elderly feel young, building on Charles Jencks Maggie model. Meanwhile, how can the use of reclaimed materials and disused architectural elements from the Borough foster build on the nostalga of these communities to create the future.

Watney Market’s retrofit suggests an opposed scheme to the Council’s current regeneration strategy. The research proposes a new market concourse, courtyards for community gatherings, a slope affixing council residents to the street market, open-plan outlets for residents to sell goods, new disposal sites for market waste, and a new entrance for Shadwell Station. All design decisions elucidate Watney’s historical artefacts, engaging with collective memories and contemporary conversations to inform design decisions. This proposition acts as a catalyst for further change in London’s vacant land to produce more sustainable urban development practices that promotes dialogue at the forefront of Architectural design.

Year 2 encompassed a team project with a partner, Jihoon Baek, for a year long building project. The programme aims to relocate the Town Planning Office for Ealing Borough to Hanwell alongside community spaces to engage the localcommunity with the future of their local environment. Presently, conversations regarding town planning decisions occur by 26 ealing councillors in closed rooms. The building aims to democratise planning decisions by opening up local borough proposals to a public platform, engaging the local community with the town's future. This is achieved through: 1. Exhibition Spaces for Architects to display current building proposals publicly 2. Meeting Rooms for Councillors and Visitors facilitating Hanwell's diverse cultural and cross-generational users. 3. Recreational spaces to forge a stronger local community.

The module is an individual technology report based on the paired work building project this year. Each partner focussed on a different aspect of the design appraisal. My focus explored the role of sound to control conversations that occur in the space. The building intention is to expose as many users to the conversations that occur in the Urban planning department.This exposure achieved through controlled views and acoustic systems creates an open platform for conversation regarding town planning decisions. Therefore, the use of sounds becomes an instrumental part of the design process. It ensures that community users, who enter with the intention of utilising the Information hub (library), Activity rooms and contemplative spaces gain insight into the workings of the committee room without directly entering the building.

This research project investigates human-induced uncertainties within architectural design and manufacturing. Hughes in the book, The Architecture of error, explains that “the computer has changed not only the space but the politics of reproduction. With this, its control of error changed too”. Thus, the research questions the role of human imprecision in the design process. Where does the playfulness of human intervention play a role in a world controlled by digital manufacturing?

Making Architecture is an introductory module to the Bartlett, UCL. The project begins with a habit for investigation. The aim is to produce interventions. The project 'Pacing: Extending spatial boundaries' challenges our perception of space through scale. Architecture is best experienced by walking to reveal the different states that the room can take. Walking enables inhabitants to interpret and engage with their environments connecting static images into fully-fledged forms.