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BARTER

#SustainableDesign #CreativeExchange #CommunityEngagement

Site analysis of Whitechapel area

Mixed media: Illustrator, Photoshop, Indesign

Site analysis of Whitechapel area

Mixed media: Illustrator, Photoshop, Indesign

Art mapping of Whitechapel High street

Mixed media: Illustrator, Photoshop, Indesign

Urban charrette workshop - Massing models  

My proposal for the aforementioned site in Whitechapel is a building dedicated to art. This building is intergraded in an existing network of art related buildings in the area. Its main purpose is to enhance the creativity of the citizens, whether they are artists or not. It is used by two groups, namely artists and visitors. The two user groups are following different paths and using different spaces within the same building. Artists follow a route that leads them to various workshops where they can teach, learn or create art. Based on the pro- gramme of the building, the workshops function with an exchange of services without cash flow (barter system). Visitors follow a route that starts from the gallery and guides them through spaces, providing different kinds of communication (visual, verbal, physical) with the artists. The component created earlier in the year is used as a boundary that separates, in a gentle way, the private from the public areas. 

Spatial sequence studies - conceptual model showing the paths followed by the user groups 

The programme of the building necessitates a shape that provides spaces of different sizes depending on their use, as well as various connections between them. Thus, I designed a building with different levels and interconnections that also provides increased visibility and optimal lighting conditions. The chosen materials are concrete for floors and columns, and glazing that dresses the main structure. The component is also used externally, in a bigger scale, as a screen, creating a further division between the public and the private on a city scale. The purpose of the building is not only to promote art and new artists, but also to strengthen the ties of the com- munity with the proposed multicultural and creative collaboration. Its programme can function as a political manifesto advocating the practice of exchanging rather than buying in an era of economic crisis. 

Section of the proposal; "the bARTer"

Mixed media: Rhinoceros, Illustrator, Photoshop

The proposal is about a building that will function as a large art workspace. In the building, there will be an extended network of knowledge exchange: all local artist will be invited to join the organisation as mem- bers. They will then have the opportunity to offer lessons in their domain, and in exchange for that they will get credits that will allow them to use the workshops and follow courses taught by fellow artists. The whole building will become a large art school and workshop, where artists will teach each other new methods and techniques without any form of payment. The only cash flow into the project will be ensured through the selling of art products: artists will be encouraged to place their creations for sale at the building’s gal- lery, which will be open to the general public. Part of the final price of each art creation will be retained as a commission, not for the creation of profit, but rather for the maintenance of the building and the coverage of its functional expenses. Thus, the building will aim at functioning as a self-funded, independent open art school and workshop, which will serve the local community and promote creativity among the citizens of Whitechapel. 

Sectual perspective of the proposal; "the bARTer"

Mixed media: Rhinoceros, Illustrator, Photoshop

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