Humankind has witnessed several historic, life-changing episodes such as industrialisation, colonisation and wars, and society has always adapted to such significant milestones fruitfully. Over the years architecture too, has been a witness the very same happenings, and has shaped itself accordingly to suit the times.
While most such events are read and studied about, the ongoing pandemic is a rather unprecedented one.
The future of architecture and the notion of a city too are standing at crossroads. The notion of the city and ‘city-life’ revolves closely around the act of gathering, and the possibilities that come with meeting, living and sharing lives with ‘strangers’. How will the city function if this very function was to change completely? This pandemic though alarming, brings with itself an aperture to redefine architecture and the very experience of cities and its spaces.
We at Project Platypus introduce a spatial design competition, which will touch upon our experiences, cravings and learnings from a times when the world has come to a standstill.
Since ideas are not bound by professions, we invite ‘creatives’ across all fields to collaborate and come up with design and space making solutions that affect us all. We encourage a fresh perspective, and a direct engagement with an exercise as the designer, architect and as someone who experiences their spatial environment on an everyday basis.
BRIEF:We are now looking at a world where social distancing is the norm. And like we always have, it is time to assess, evolve and adapt. Through this competition we want to imagine and design the future of performing arts’ experience.
Participants of the competition are invited to design a physical space which respects safety guidelines for a social gathering of not less than 10 (could be in 100s or 1000s!) For us to understand your response to the context and program, the choice of environment for the intervention must be made from the below options. The categories of environments that participants can choose from are as follows (scales within these categories can be chosen by the participants) :
Categories of Spaces1. Intimate Gathering,Indoor/Outdoor spaces catering to a dedicated crowd, curated for a specific performanceeg. Cafés, Backyards, Bars, Rooftops, Basements, Galleries2. Dynamic GatheringSpaces within the public domain with free access to common publiceg. Market, Streets, Alleys, Parks, Amphitheatres, public plazas3. Festive GatheringLarge spaces for prolonged festivities involving a larger, dedicated audience and a number of different performanceseg. Open grounds, fields, parade grounds, Stadiums4. MiscellaneousIf the participants’ ideas do not fit in any of the above categories, they are free to work on their ideas under this category.
While the choice of scale of the audience and environment can be decided by the participants, all members in the audience need to have a visual, auricular (audio) access to the performer. The proposed designs must allow for an immersive spatial and sensorial experience for both the audience and the performer (present in the same physical space). This could be achieved by architectural resolution, conceptual design, through secondary function in an existing space–or a combination of all these, and the participants have full liberty in the approach they would like to take in order to reach the goal.Social distancing guidelines with respect to this competition have been mentioned towards the end of this brief.
JURY:+ Gustavo Carmona – Architect, Mexico+ Kai Piippo – Lighting Designer, Sweden+ Lisa Findley – Architect, Academic & Architectural Journalist, USA+ Mare Trevathan – Creator of Site Specific Theatre, USA+ Pratyush Shankar – Academic, Architect, India+ Rupali Gupte – Academic, Architect & Urbanist, India+ Sajid Wajid Shaikh – Visual Artist, Designer, India+ Shubhra Raje – Architect, Educator, USA/India+ Vanessa Vielma – Editor, ArchDaily, Americas+ Virkein Dhar – Architect, Performer, India
ELIGIBILITY:This competition is open to people from all backgrounds.
REGISTRATION:This competition is not for profit. Registrations can be made through donations to any one of the listed NGOs or organisations working towards providing relief to the people in need during the pandemic.
Donations for registration:Minimum amount: $15 (₹1000)Suggested amount: $25 (₹2000)
SUBMISSION DETAILS:1. One Conceptual Graphic: to explain the idea and concept of the proposal (including, but not limited to collages, drawings, photographs, graphical representations, diagrams, illustrations. References attached in this link)2. One 3D Graphic ( 3D view / isometric / axonometric drawing, references attached in this link )3. Title of proposal (up to 3 words), Subtitle (up to 10 words) Textual description about design proposal (up to 300 words)
Participants are required to mention the following at the time of submission (through an online form):+ Category of space designed+ Number of people designed for (audience)+ Description the performance envisioned (up to 30 words)+ Team member details: (Name, professional background)
Submission Formats :+ Graphics’ Size : A3 (29.7 x 42.0 cm) Resolution : 300 dpi+ Format : pdf+ Title & Write Up : A4 plain text pdf
PRIZES & WINNERS:+ 5 Winning entries: Prizes to be decided+ 15 honourable mentions: Feature in a dedicated online and printed book published by Altrim Publishers, curated and designed by Sortedpandit Studio, Bangalore. These entires will also be featured in online platforms of our media partners: KooZA/rch, Architecture Live! and The Architects’ Diary.+ Winning and shortlisted entries would also be featured in a virtual exhibition on Project Platypus’ website and in a physical exhibition (when the world allows for it!)
MORE INFO:info@projectplatypus.orgwww.projectplatypus.org
Download the information related to this competition here.