Intersection

Project

269820

Status

Submitted

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NEW EUROPEAN BAUHAUS RISING STARS : concepts or ideas submitted by young talents (aged 30 or less)

Project title

Intersection

Full concept/idea title

Description

This project seeks to develop a new design process for architects and designers. Our current design process is heavily focused on the visual yet this is not always the predominant sense for everyone. As humans we are all different. We are big, small, young, old, visually impaired, deaf..the list goes on. This project looks at how simulation technologies can be used to design with all the senses and therefore more inclusively. Check out my website : https://c16737605.wixsite.com/mysite

Where is your concept/idea being developed or intended to be implemented in the EU?

Please provide a summary of your concept/ idea

This project seeks to develop a new design process for architects and designers. Our current design process is heavily focused on the visual yet this is not always the predominant sense for everyone. As humans we are all different. We are big, small, young, old, visually impaired, deaf..the list goes on. Thus, this project looks at how modern technology can be used to influence improve built environment for everyone. It attempts to replicate positive lived experiences in design using simulation technology to create a more sensory inclusive environment.    The process of designing this new methodology has already begun. As part of my Masters research project I have been researching in detail how acoustics can be included in the design process. I have developed with grasshopper and Rhino a process that could allow the architect to hear the space they are designing as they are designing. This acoustic technique could benefit people with visual impairments through echolocation and removing of flatness of buildings. Designing each space to sound unique, as listening was a key navigation technique I realised from focus groups I held with service users of the National Council for the Blind. Similarly this technique could also be used to make silent problematic spaces such as Museums more accessible to those held back by their historic "Be quiet, do not touch nature".    As I said earlier we are all different and it is important to note that this technique benefits not only visually impaired people but many others. From scientific research (which can be viewed on my website - https://c16737605.wixsite.com/mysite ) , there is scope for acoustic design to improve our psychological wellbeing. Spaces can also be designed to improve or deflect acoustic activities.    Going forward with my research I plan on investigating how all the senses can be included in the design process. I also want to test my research on a 1:1 scale

Please give information about the key objectives of your concept/idea in terms of sustainability and how these would be met

As for sustainability my current test project can be seen as an example of how this type of design can be created in a sustainable way. As I looked at Ireland's first sky scrapper , Liberty Hall and looked at how it could be turned into an acoustic experience. A museum as such without over emphasising the visual. This project which can be view in full on my website. Shows that simple materials and forms can be used to retrofit existing spaces into more inclusive ones. This light touch could allow older buildings to be brought back to life for the greater good and to include all of our population. 

Please give information about the key objectives of your concept/idea in terms of aesthetics and quality of experience beyond functionality and how these would be met

The spaces created by this new design process will have a quality of experience that is much more than visual aesthetics. Buildings created with this new technique will be heard, smelt, touched and tasted. They will be a feast for all the senses. This technique will allow people to enjoy spaces like they have never before and will make this experience accessible to as many people as possible. 

Please give information about the key objectives of your concept/idea in terms of inclusion and how these would be been met

This project is all about inclusivity. It aims to bring to light the multiple ways in which we as individuals experience the world. To date I have consulted with the National Council for the Blind and undertaken focus groups with its service users. This has taught me lessons about how others experience the world differently than I do. I would like to undertake similar meetings with groups of people with diverse needs and lives moving forward. I then aim to take this lived experience and see how technology can enable designers to design for the optimal experience for everyone. 

Please explain the innovative character of your concept/ idea

This project is innovative as it looks to change the traditional linear design process specifically within architecture. It aims to widen the minds of architects and get them designing aspects of our lived experiences that we don't even realise we are experiencing. It uses new technologies and grasshopper scripts to simulate how we would experience spaces before we do, during the design process.  This new design technique also uses technology to learn from our ancient structures and analysis what we have done right and wrong over antiquity.

Please detail the plans you have for the further development, promotion and/or implementation of your concept/idea, with a particular attention to the initiatives to be taken before May 2022

I plan to further develop my relationship with the NCBI and bring some of my experimental techniques into everyday living. I also plan to liaise with other groups beyond NCBI. I would like to create multiple focus groups and integrate these groups into the design process. Using my learnings I would like to develop software that uses this knowledge and aids the design process through digital modelling and simulation. I would like to use this to design and then build prototypes and then return to my focus groups for their input. I would also like to work on encouraging people with different capabilities and experiences to engage with the design process. I would like to see a scheme in university that encourages people with disabilities to become architects. 

By ticking this box, you declare that all the information provided in this form is factually correct, that the proposed concept/idea has not been proposed for the New European Bauhaus Rising Stars Awards more than once in the same category.