Urban Exhibition and Retail Space

Project

Academic

Year

2016

Introduction

The proposed project is an Urban Art Exhibition and Retail space. The site is located in the former old Bangalore area. I wanted to respect the cultural history of the area and came up with a design that resonated with the past. I researched old neighbourhoods from the region and found that a central well and courtyard with seating was a consistent feature. These spaces promoted social connections among the families in the neighbourhood. These features and values were taken up and translated to create a contextual urban public space. The idea was to break notions of art being exclusive to a few communities and individuals by opening the design up to its surroundings, thus creating a welcoming public space pubic space.

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LOCATION:

The site is located off the bustling Sampige road. On the north lies the metro station, on the northwest, a multi-story car park, and, on the south, low-income housing and small businesses.

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SWOT ANALYSIS:

Strengths - Ideal location for a public space.

Weaknesses - Noise and pollution. Existing temple structure on site.

Opportunities- Creating an intermediate breathing space for commuters.

Threats - Vandalism

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DESIGN:

A contemporary cluster of art, retail, and exhibition spaces was designed around a central gathering and seating area. Facilities in the design include - a restaurant, a public library, an admin block, and a waiting area. It was important to make sure the scale of the built spaces was not overwhelming.

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USERS:

The public space is universally accessible. Because of its strategic location, the proposed design would attract people from all walks of life. It was designed such that one could just take a walk through the site to reach the metro or the sidewalk ensuring a considerable daily average footfall.

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