as architects we choreograph spaces for events to happen within. we design spaces to be used. the design of these spaces is shaped by much more than just visual aesthetics, there are the invisible conditions - economical, cultural, climatic, historical, legal, social, current trends, personal propensities - that contribute to making the architecture what it is. the same space is seen differently based on the viewpoint of the particular individual within it: movements and gestures, past learned experiences, purpose for being there, familiarity with the place, age, gender, ethnicity and class all effect how one situates themselves within a space. architects design using materials and textures and forms to create a certain sense and feel to a space: we have an idea about how we expect the space to be manipulated and used, but we can never anticipate all the possibilities of how people will react to it - and it is those unknowns which can make it all that much more poignant and interesting.
this project used the act of performance to construct a participatory environment, inserting a spontaneous, counter program into a calculated, formulaic space: the Exchange Square, found within the financial district of the City in London. on the weekend, in the space’s inactive and empty state, this performance staged a sequence of scenarios mimicking its use in an active, bustling weekday condition. each act was allowed to be malleable and to change and develop as the participants grew more confident as a group in the space.
the participants in the performance were given general roles to play with specific actions and behaviours attached, this forced them to experience the space in a way they wouldn’t normally. through the gradient of experience they became more aware of each other and how they would move through the space and how the space effected their actions. there is a relationship between sensing and action; the logic rules developed from the specified human behaviours given to each participant form a response to individual regions in the space which can be triggered by combinations and patterns found within an array of regions that have been previously experienced.
the fabric in the performance was used as an activator and a foil: it directed attention onto certain aspects of the space, it allowed for play to happen, it gave visual form to environmental conditions, it provided shelter and a soft juxtaposition from the hardness of the city surrounding the group. the green fabric was a prop which allowed people to act in a way they normally wouldn’t - a ‘green screen’ simulating other activities and prompting different behaviours - enabling the participants to test and investigate the space through their roles in the performance.
the outcomes and events of the performance are turned into a series of descriptive drawings that tell the story of this corporate space being taken over and used in a new way. for each of the sequence of six drawings, both a character and a location from the performance are paired together - illustrating the experience through their eyes, and expressing their form of movement and method of engagement with the space. the character is represented as both the individual person who played the part in the performance and is stereotyped as a representative of certain behaviours and traits in today’s society.
each drawing adds another facet and layer of complexity to the experience of the Exchange Square. the story begins [1] in the one-dimensional world of the corporate personality who is entering his domain clad in pin-stripes. [2] next the surveillance system that monitors the behaviours of people in the square is portrayed with the guard as a walking prop, allowing this public space to exist as a private entity. [3] a glittering, opulent party takes place under the blanket of twinkling evening lights, blending with the elegance of the train station emanating into the square and providing a glimpse into this affluent world as personified by the lady. [4] a new day arrives and a change occurs, the crowd fills the dark passage, it is chaotic, sounds reverberate off the hard surfaces and the wind blusters about, it feels like a completely other world with the brightness just outside visible on either end. [5] out of this crowd come two strangers, they are situated on either side of the chessboard as opponents but end up laughing together on the bench with the chess pieces strewn about around their feet. [6] finally, a mother and child play in the soft grass set in the very center of the square, taking over an area which the public is not allowed to use and discovering a gentle, humane space within the unyielding, tough city exterior.
by intimately engaging with this place during the performance the relationship between people and the space of the Exchange Square is reframed. the performance was a temporary re-articulation of the square but it created a lasting memory of the space in each of the participants’ minds, changing their experience of it for the future. it made them question how the space is used and challenged the corporate identity of the place. this provokes a dialogue about the contemporary state of constructing public space in cities - is public really public when it is privately owned? how do we balance public and private desires? how do we create engaging environments that invite everyone in? how do we design for spontaneous activities, to allow for the unknowns to happen?
