“THE WORLD LOOKS DIFFERENT FROM ABOVE. MORE EXCITING, MAYBE MORE PROMISING...

IT IS OBVIOUS FROM ABOVE THAT BUILDINGS AND URBAN PLANNING IS A TOTALLY THREE-DIMENSIONAL WORLD. IT IS NOT JUST A SERIES OF ELEVATIONS AND PLANS. ACCORDING TO LE CORBUSIER, VIEWING THINGS FROM ABOVE BRINGS A FOURTH DIMENSION. OF COURSE HE WAS RIGHT.

WHAT A CHALLENGE HERE. FROM ABOVE”

Jan Kaplicky“CONFESSIONS Principles Architecture Process Life”

CONTENTSSummary..............................5Brief................................6Research.............................9 Gardens.......................10 Paths.........................12 Parasites.....................16 & (varia).....................18

Brain Pickings......................21 Tom...........................22 John..........................24 Dave..........................26 Jerry.........................28 Cigarette Elections...........32 Malcolm.......................34 Survey Monkey.................36 Analysis......................38

Development.........................41 Balconies.....................42 User Profile..................44 ‘Future Systems’..............46 Existing Solutions............48 Structural Development........50 Form Development..............54 Final Proposal......................58Project Analysis....................61

WHOWHATWHYWHEREWHEN

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OUTDOOR SPACE FOR PEOPLE LIVING AND WORKING IN THE CITY TO ENJOY A BREAK FROM THE DAILY GRIND, ESPECIALLY WHEN THE SUN SUDDENLY COMES OUT.

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BRIEFTraditional Scottish urban architecture considers a roof first and foremost as a means of keeping the rain out and rarely provides or encourages public access on to it.

From a Le Corbusier 5 Points of Architecture* point of view this means that the cities are lacking in potential outdoor space that has been taken up by the footprint of the buildings.

On top of that, due to the unpredictable nature of the Scottish weather, people living and working in the cities rarely have the time or the means to access an outdoor area suitable for taking a break to ‘get away from it all’.

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Define the nature of the experience of being on a rooftop or an elevated outdoor space within a city scape.

Identify a set of users and user scenarios that this experience is or could be relevant to. Explore, compare and communicate the positive and negative aspects that can be gained from the experience.

Use the definitions and explorations to identify design opportunities for creating an experience, an environment or a set of objects to provide or facilitate a ‘heightened’ moment of contemplation and escapism within a busy, urban lifestyle. Consider the difficulty of access to roofs and the unreliable nature of weather in Scotland.

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5 Points of Architecture, 1926

Le Corbusier lifted the bulk of the structure off the ground, supporting it by reinforced concrete stilts. These, in providing the structural support for the house, allowed him to elucidate his next two points: a free façade, meaning non-supporting walls that could be designed as the architect wished, and an open floor plan, meaning that the floor space was free to be configured into rooms without concern for supporting walls. The second floor of the Villa Savoye includes long strips of ribbon windows that allow unencumbered views of the large surrounding yard, and which

constitute the fourth point of his system.

The fifth point was for the roof garden to compensate for the green area consumed by the building and replacing it on the roof.

*

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RESEARCH

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GARDENSUsing rooftops and balconies as green spaces is growing in popularity, especially in big cities all around the world. This is partly due to various ecological movements but also because of overpopulation and limited private outdoor space.

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Priority zone rooftop Garden in Durban

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In Scottish cities the popularity of ‘roof gardening’ is most apparent in Edinburgh city centre, perhaps due to the general level of income being higher than in the rest of the country. Therefore allowing residents more freedom to ‘customise’ their homes.

PATHSIn fictional writing, from children’s books to adult fantasy, one can often find themes where rooftops become a second layer of travelling within the city; offering an alternative point of view. Below are examples of only a few publications.

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The Harmonica Bridge, 1924, Denmark

The Rolling Bridge, 2004, Thomas Heatherwick. Completed as part of the Grand Union Canal office and retail development project in Paddington Basin, London.

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The images on the right show a project based in Stockholm, Sweden. Sections of the Old Town rooftops were lit up and opened to the public as a walking tour.

How could ‘bridging’ be used in Glasgow to facilitate an alternative route through the city? Would it be of any interest to anyone?

The High Line is a public park built on a historic freight rail line elevated above the streets on Manhattan’s West Side. It is owned by the City of New York, and maintained and operated by Friends of the High Line.

Imagine being able to use the motorways that slice through the heart of Glasgow for something other than just automobile traffic.

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PARASITESFrom alternative paths of travelling I moved on to looking at parasitic architecture and ‘second level’ housing.

Examples like these are more common in places where cities have a very high number of inhabitants.

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Didden Village by MVRDV Architects in Rotterdam

Surprisingly often these examples are temporary structures and frequently carry a design language of an urban ‘pod’ for the modern day nomad.

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&When looking at examples of other uses for rooftops, it is clear that one is only really limited by their imagination...and perhaps their ability to put together a good planning application.

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Fiat test track on top of the factory in Turin

Rooftop tennis court by Arno Piroud

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The Day Cows Fly, Santiago, 2005

Jelly drinks promotion, London

Rooftop exhibition space for Jeff Koons

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BRAIN PICKINGS

On top of general conversations with people living and working in the city, I made contact and arranged interviews with the following individuals:

Tom Warren (Architect) John Duffy (Architect) Dave Wylie (Sound technician)Jerry (Man on a roof)Malcolm McFetridge (Skypark Centre Manager)

O HAI!

I CAN HAZ INFO?

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TOM

..at least when it comes to a visual online presence

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“Biggest factor is access. Can you get a staircase up there?”

I met Tom for a coffee and a biscuit at his office at Collective Architecture in Glasgow.

My main goal was to use his knowledge to understand some of the technical and planning related issues when talking about roofs and rooftop architecture.

We also discussed ways in which Scotland differs from the rest of the world and how the weather affects the way building design is thought of.

“In Scotland a roof is obviously there to keep the rain out so a flat roof is instantly more against a traditional way of building.”

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JOHN

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“Think of mass production; a system that can be adapted to

different buildings as an add on.”

I met John for a pint in the Ben Nevis to pick his brain over his perspective on utilising rooftops and how his opinion is shaped by his architectural practise.

A lot of our time was spent discussing Glasgow tenements, the way they are designed around a central staircase and whether an industrial design approach could be applied to mass producing rooftop access systems.

We also talked about the importance of a skyline of a city and how it forms an integral part of a character of a place.

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DAVE

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“A sound effect to make someone believe they are on a rooftop, you say?”

I picked Dave’s brain over Sunday breakfast. The meeting was greatly influenced by my previous chats with Tom and John.

My main question to him was how to create a soundscape that would mimic the sounds of being on a roof in a city centre.

We talked about technicalities in terms of recording and playback; both, through speakers and through headphones. We also discussed advantages and disadvantages of binaural recording techniques.

Watch Listen out.Sound installation to follow.

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JERRY

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“Imagine the view from here on a winter’s morning with the har over the whole city.”

I met Jerry by pure chance. One minute I was on top of the Lighthouse tower, trying to send an aeroplane message to his roof. Next minute I was there, on his roof, drinking vodka and talking to him about his garden.

He takes great pride in his plants and looks after numerous birds.

Jerry has lived on the roof for 25 years and has just been bought out. He will be moving on the 28th of June. Where to? He doesn’t know.

The main insight from the sudden meeting with Jerry, was that people SHOULD be able to experience gazing out and over roofs in the city.

Instead of trying to recreate the feeling of being on a roof, I proceeded by further testing the demand (or lack of) for access.

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CIGARETTEELECTIONS

WOULD YOU LIKE TO BE ABLE TOSPEND YOUR BREAK ON THE ROOF?

VOTE WITH YOUR CIGARETTE

YES NO

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On a beautifully sunny week day in the beginning of May I carried out an engagement experiment on Skypark campus.

I distributed over 20 posters around the main areas where smokers spend their breaks (marked with yellow circles on the map). This was to try to engage workers in Skypark in a conversation around the possibility and desireability of utilising the campus roof spaces for communal use.

Instant feedback was very positive and every person I spoke to said they would love to be able to get to the roof.

Unfortunately my posters were taken down within an hour and the only one to survive the cull is pictured above. I can’t prove it, but I know the experiment was successful :)

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MALCOLM

MALCOLM SAYS NO

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Vana:

Hi Malcolm,I’m currently doing some research into utilising rooftops in Glasgow as public spaces and would love to be able to pick your brain about the rooftops of Skypark.

Hope to hear from you soon.Kindest regards,

Vana

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Malcolm:

Hi VanaWhile I would love to be able to use these spaces for recreation activities, the age and nature of the design of the roofs here, tied to the access and egress routes negate any safe use of these areas for the general public.

We are duty bound to wear safety harnesses in these locations because of the associated risks so it is highly unlikely we will ever be able to utilise these roofs.

Thank you,

Malcolm McFetridgeCentre ManagerSkypark

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SURVEY MONKEY

How old are you?

Have you ever been to a rooftop?

If YES, why did you go?If NO, why haven’t you been?

What makes being on a roof different from any other place? Please list as many things as you can think of.

Despite the usually questionable use of online survey tools, I went ahead and compiled a quick questionnaire.

I was particularly surprised at the quality of info I managed to generate within 24 hours.

Nearly 50 people took part and provided amazingly detailed and emotional answers to the questions.This confirmed that I was heading in the right direction with my explorations for this project.

Just about every single person mentioned going to a roof for the view. Exploration and parties were also very widely given as reasons.

When describing the different feelings associated with being on the roof, an overwhelming majority talked about a sense of freedom and escapism that comes with being able to be on a roof.

Interestingly the answers between the 2 monkey age groups were very similar.

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“The view, the openness, but at the same time it separates you from the crazyness of the city,

the sky is above you, its liberating”

0-25

25-50

YES

Ever been to a roof?

NO

Age

50-100

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At this point I had to accept that I was shoe horning a project into something I desperately wished it to be, without really considering all the information I had managed to gather and what the actual design opportunities were.

It was time to channel the manic passion into some serious re-thinking.

ANALYSIS OF RESEARCH

TOM

JOHN

The combination of face to face interviews, online correspondence and site experiments provided me with a wide understanding of the desire to inhabit ‘high’ places within a city.

I also gained a comprehensive overview of different limitations that are associated with rooftop access within Glasgow and Scotland.

Led by an overly emotional rationale and a deep, personalpassion for climbing onto roofs I considered setting up a system bringing together insider knowledge of accessible rooftops within the city.

INTERIM PROPOSAL

Up High Rooftop Mapping System:

“Are you a keen urban rambler or just want to spend your lunch break somewhere ‘away from it all’? This app has all the knowledge you may need...”

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DAVE

JERRY

MALCOLM

MONKEY

CIGARETTES

POST-INTERIM RECONSIDERATIONS

Access onto roofs is an undeniable restriction that, given the time frame of this project, is likely to remain unsolved. Therefore:

How could I convincingly recreate the experience of being on a rooftop or a high place?

What other outdoor spaces might provide the same possibilities?

Am I clear on the benefits of pursuing a design proposal for shared access/public spaces?

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DEVELOPMENT

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PRIVATE OUTDOOR SPACE.

COULD I MAKE A TEMPORARY

STRUCTURE TO FACILITATE

THE DEMAND?

BALCONY ACCESS THROUGH A WINDOW

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WHO WOULD IT BE FOR?

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Accommodation either rented or privately owned. In both cases the focus group is characterised by the lack of finance available for big scale property renovation or upgrading.

One of the most common house types in the city is the Glasgow tenement, which forms the basis for exploring the lifestyle of this particular user group.

Traditionally tenement houses do not have balconies nor roof access.The only outdoor area is a communal garden space to the back of the building which is shared by all the inhabitants of a close.However, it is not uncommon for the garden area to have been turned into a private space for the use of the basement flat only.

This, as is often the case, leaves the people living in the rest of the building without any access to private outdoor areas.

Even though Glasgow has one of the highest numbers of parks per person in the city, unless sunshine is forecast for a whole day, these people are often pushed for time to get to a park or an outdoor space.

YOUNG PROFESSIONALS LIVING OR WORKING IN THE CITY

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FUTURE SYSTEMS

Jan Kaplický was a world-renowned Czech architect behind the design office, Future Systems.

A joining characteristic for a lot of his projects is a high level of consideration for ‘what is there already’. They show wonderful adaptability and understanding of their contexts and environments.

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The ideology behind Future Systems offers great inspiration for approaching an existing ‘landscape’ and proposing something that is perhaps not traditional.Not yet, anyway.

EXISTING SOLUTIONSFrom further research I found that existing solutions for ‘temporary’ balconies are often still permanent parts of the fabric of the building.

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In the context of development for this project the biggest problems with these solutions arise from the relatively high cost of acquiring and installing the structures.

If one was to explore the potential of temporary balcony space in a typical Glasgow tenement, two likely scenarios would need to be considered.

1. The property might be inhabited by tenents who are not the owners and therefore rarely have the right to make structural changes within the accommodation. Equally, they would lack the motivation to put money into developing a property that only serves as a temporary living space.

2. The property is inhabited by the legal owners, however the cost of aqcuiring planning permission and installing a structure is outweighed by the potential rise in the total value of the accommodation.

The latter scenario is particularly relevant in the current economic climate and instable housing market conditions.

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STRUCTURALDEVELOPMENT

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I took the initial proposal of a collapsible, temporary balcony that can be extended outside a tenement window, back to John. I needed to discuss feasibility and to find out structural requirements from a building regulations’ point of view.

He agreed that the idea of a temporary balcony would be perfectly acceptable and one wouldn’t need planning permission as long as it adhered to a couple of basic rules:

1. A balustrade that is at least 1100mm tall.2. Balustrade gaps (if any) no more than 90mm. (The baby head test)

90mm

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My next step was to take the initial drawings to an engineer.

Ben Craven from the Product Design Engineering department at the GSA talked through some of the structural requirements with me.

We discussed different pressure points and ways of distributing the weight of the structure.

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We also talked about different materials. Especially things that have properties similar to corrugated cardboard and the build benefits that come from having an internal structure.

This would also allow for a lighter material to be used, making the whole structure more user friendly.

FORMDEVELOPMENT

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Despite the appeal of structures and systems inspired by yachting,I feel the language of this particular proposal needs to look and feel ‘chunkier’.

The colours and the proportions need to evoke feelings of child like exploring, perhaps being even a little bit naughty. After all, I’m encouraging you to climb out of your window.

At the same time the space needs to feel solid, secure and accommodating.

Ideally the structure, while not being used as a balcony, would be able to be used as a piece of household furniture, rather than something that gets hidden under the bed or in the cupboard.

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FINAL PROPOSAL

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A temporary, collapsible balcony system that can be erected through a tenement window.

Thanks to proposed use of light weight material, like carbon fibre, the structure can ideally be set up by one person while maintaining the structural stability for 2 people to stand on.

A choice of different colours would be available, providing bright and eye catching breaks into the usual monotony of a typical tenement facade.

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FOR USER SCENARIOS & THE FINALPROPOSAL TESTING ANALYSIS

PLEASE JOIN ME IN THE BOURDON LECTURE THEATRE ON MAY THE 23rd

AT 11:00.

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PROJECTANALYSISThe self initiated project has proven to be challenging, yet highly enjoyable in a rather unexpected way.

From the beginning I was aware of the large amount of research I would need to cover as I was delving into fields of study that needed a lot of tecnical and background knowledge.

Another matter I found myself coming back to was the question of developing a final project that would allow me to keep working on it after graduation.

Even though this was a conscious consideration, I didn’t expect the topic of the project to become quite as engrossing as it did. On the positive side this kept me excited and enthusiastic. On the downside it made it easy to get lost in research and lose sight of delivery times.

The latter has ended up being perhaps the most disappointing part of the project; lack of time (due to somewhat inadequate time management on my part) to deeper explore the potential and further develop the concept.

On the other hand I remain hugely keen to keep going with the research and to keep developing the idea, perhaps even push it to a manufacturing stage.

It has been an exciting four years and I feel happy with where I’m ‘finishing’ with this particular project.

Keep watching the windows..

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