Recent demonstrations in public spaces of our cities are confirming a profound crisis of political institutions worldwide. While citizens are claiming a change in national political agendas to ask for more focus on their own everyday life concerns and less on global finances, public squares are emerging as places of political discussion. Moved by this contemporary interest, Intermediate Unit 8 have worked on redefining what constitutes a public space today, which is the role of the architect and the agency of people, and how innovation on fabrication methods might serve as fundamental tools for constructing a city of the commons.
This year the work of the unit has been located in the city of Mexico, a metropolis developed under neoliberal rules for the last two decades. The particular site for the unit work has been the massive modernist housing complex of Tlatelolco, and more specifically, the Plaza de las Tres Culturas. This urban square is well known not only for the mixed presence of Aztec, Spanish Colonial and Modernist constructions, but also for its past political life including the students’ massacre before 1968 Olympic Games. Based on a confrontation with the everyday life in the city, students have researched on the most “mundane” contemporary issues, including insecurity, informal economy, drug cartels, social segregation or cultural repression. These issues are the ones employed as alternative micro-agendas to inform the public space of today. After intense research and reflection on the realities of the city, students have proposed different material and programmatic tactics, reflecting on how traditional construction methods can be used to generate new fabrication techniques in which citizens have a more active role. Therefore, social participation and public action are considered a fundamental part in the definition of new political spaces as an endless process of contestation, negotiation and transformation.
29.1.12
W15- Tutorials
1- A wired Frame axonometric of your Frame.
2- The first tasks for a model of your Frame (material, size, files, slot booked, etc). we specify the sclae of your model.
3- 5 examples of your action in a A2 pdf.
4- 3rd years should send me their TS A4 reports to be sent to Manja and Clive.
The tutorials will be as follows,
10.30 Elliot
11.00 Camille
11.30 Fragkiskos
12.00 Eleni
12.30 Andreas
2.00 Andrew
2.30 Anand
3.00 Erez
3.30 Hao Wen
4.00 Frederique
4.30 Carlotta
26.1.12
TS Meeting
22.1.12
W14- Tutorials
15.30 Elliot
16.30 Anand
17.15 Andreas
18.00 Fragkiskos
18.30 Eleni
19.1.12
Animation Workshop
First meeting at 10.30 am in our unit space on Saturday 21st of January.
Tutorials from Monday to Tuesday will be individually arranged with tutors.
Wednesday there will be an induction lecture on Adobe After Effects
The workshop will be taught by Gerry Cruz (Zaha Hadid) and Arturo Revilla (Zaha Hadid & AA PhD)
Animations from last year: http://www.youtube.com/user/InterUnit8
Finally, on Saturday 28th of January we will have the final presentation in North Jury Room.
18.1.12
W14-15 DEPLOYABLE, MOVABLE, TRANSFORMABLE
16.1.12
W13-Pin-up
13.1.12
W13- Tutorials_1
Monday 16th of January
13.30 Elliot
14.00 Anand
14.30 Fragkiskos
15.00 Andrew
15.30 Eleni
16.30 Frederique
16.00 Camille
17.00 Erez
18.00 Carlotta (?)
Tuesday 17th of January
10.30 Andreas
11.00 Hao Wen
10.1.12
W12- Tutorials_2
- On Thursday 12th of January in the unit space as follows,
14.00 Elliot
14.30 Erez
15.00 Enrique
15.30 Andrew (?)
- On Saturday 14th of January in the unit space as follows
15.00 Hao Wen
15.30 Anand
16.00 Andreas
W12-W13 - Programme
6.1.12
Technical studies
Article:
Arquitectura Viva Número 138 M. Cámara y F. González Utopian Mechanics
Two Masters of Crafts. The exhibition devoted to Jean Prouvé at the Ivorypress gallery in Madrid coincides with the fiftieth anniversary of the travelling theater of the brilliant and prematurely deceased Emilio Pérez Piñero.
(Video in the right side of this blog)
continuous multidimensional transformations.” In Sites n.24, 1992, p.34-53
5.1.12
W12- Tutorials_1
10.30 Elliot
11.00 Andreas
11.30 Hao Wen
12.00 Fragkiskos
12.30 Erez
14.00 Anand
14.30 Camille
15.00 Eleni
15.30 Frederique
16.00 Andrew
16.30 Carlotta
17.00 Enrique