Urban Pioneers // Upper lee valley

The final event was a sort of (very informal) press conference. Lots of people from the workshops came, even Mariska all the way from Rotterdam! I was quite apprehensive about seeing the films we made for the first time, hearing my voice on the big screen, but we were all really happy with how the films turned out. It was a nice way to conclude the whole project.

I’m so grateful to have participated in this project. It has transformed my understanding of architecture and urban design. I’ve learnt to look beyond the aesthetic value of a design and think, in a critical manner, about how people are able to interact with a space. I really enjoyed the boat building workshop, which was something I never would have sought to do independently. So I think the project has also given me a real drive to explore different areas of design.

Thank you to Tom and all those involved.

Jo

On Monday it was time for our final event, which was held at the Architecture Foundation. We could sit and discuss what we had learnt from the Lee Valley project and present our thoughts and ideas to about 20 guests. It was really nice to see some of the people we had worked with earlier in the summer like Daniel, Prisca, Verity and Mariska. We also saw the films we had made with Verity- I was really pleased with our one, “Boat Folk”, but it showed me how bad my Italian accent was (a cross between Indian and Welsh).

Talking about the work we had undertaken showed me how much I had learnt and got out of the urban pioneers program. I feel as though the way I look at the built environment has changed alot and also the way I see London. I really enjoyed discussing the future of the Valley’s development and the different ways it should be used. Plus, I mentioned in the discussion how I have developed my ability to think critically when looking at buildings- I can now justify why I like/dislike a building or why a building works or doesn’t work in its environment.

If I had to pick out a favourite part in the program I would probably say Rotterdam. I was so pleasantly surprised by the city and felt like I learned so much in those 2 days. But I also really enjoyed the walk on the first day. I remember it was really sunny and I would never have expected so much open space and greenery to be sandwiched between such busy London boroughs.

I would definately encourage people to be part of this program because its such a good opportunity and really rewarding. You meet new people, see new places and its generally just really fun.

Thanks Tom and everyone else involved

Ellie

When told we were going to be making boats the picture that entered my mind was foot long polystyrene models – how wrong was I… The day began constructing the basic frames for our rafts – which were to hold 5 people each. With the help of designers Studio Superniche we quickly became familiar with the different tools needed for the task. In no time at all we were all drilling, sawing and jigsawing..? away. By the end of the morning we were all fairly comfortable with the tools, and we had made two floating rafts!

While we had our lunch we thought about ways we could customise the rafts. My group decided to make a sort of picnic themed raft; the idea being it could provide space for socialising on the river. By the end of the day we had two magnificent rafts, which we then raced down the lee. Being kept afloat by your own creation was an incredibly satisfying feeling and something I defiantly never though i’d experience. Thanks to all those who made it possible.

Our workshop started at 10am at the Waterside Centre by Stonebridge Lock to build boats with architects and designers Studio Superniche. We then devided into 2 groups of 5 and started to build the structure of the boat. We started off cutting the woods in to 3 different sizes  using the tools they provided us with. Later on, Ruby bought as ice creams and had a little ice cream break for five, ten minutes then went back to work straight away because we didn’t have no time to waste .

We finaly build the frame, supported it, placed the barrels safely  and flipped it over to test it before the lunch and it did work. So we all then went to lunch. After lunch time, we then went back to work to finish it off. It took too long to finish building the boat but it worth our time and it payed off at the end. My group made our one look like a bed and the other group made a table in the middle of the boat.  We also made flags for our boats which was representing what it was.

Then it was time to sail down the boats on to the River Lee and race! I was abit scared in the first place of falling in to the river but  I didin’t though and the winner of the race was my team obviously!

On Saturday the Pioneers took part in a boat building (and racing) workshop with architects and designers Studio Superniche. Here’s how they got on…

Ahoy!

For the penultimate workshop on Saturday 18 September, the Pioneers will be working with architects and designers Studio Superniche to build boats and sail down the River Lee. After looking at the built environment from a boat in Rotterdam, what will the Pioneers see from their own boats in the Lee Valley?

Check the blog for more watery updates.

Where to begin! the past two days have been unbeleivable. I will start from the begining which feels like an age ago. 3:10am Micheal and I woke up and wioed the sleep from our eyes, slowly but surely we headed to kings cross on the train for a 5:30 meet with the rest of the pioneers. On arrival at Rotterdam central station we were greeted by mariska, an architect working for the NAI. As soon as we left the station we were met by modern sky scrapers clad in tinted glass. 

Mariska took us to us to get the bikes we would be using for the rest of the trip. The bikes were amazing and i think we all fell in love with them. We then headed off to the NAI to meet the rest of the team who would act as our guides around the city. We were then taken for a tour of rotterdam by boat which is a brillian, if not the best way to see the city. We learnt so much about the history of the city and how it has shaped its architecture. The boat pulled up on shore and the guide took us on a walk throught the city where we were given the task of photographing aspect of the city in a variety of ways, the photos would be used for a later task. I really enjoyed doing this it was great to be photographing a new city. We then travelled by boat to visit the floating pavilion. The pavillion was an eden project looking building which floated on the water in the middle of rotterdam! The structure was facinating as it was filled with cutting edge green technology and building methods such as walls which regulate temperiture truly James Bond stuff. We then headed back to the hostel to relax and have showers etc before we headed of to eat dinner. The the hostel was amazing, designed by architect Piet Blom, they were huge concrete trees tilting in different directions. Dinnerwas rather tasty, we rode our bikes to a resturante named Bazar which served us turkish and morrocan food which was lovely. The next day we woke up at 7 and made it downs stairs for breakfast at 7 30 where me and Akin destroyed the the buffet, never eaten so much brek in my life! we then met Mariska outside the front of the hostel and we rode our bikes to the architecture firm Maccreanor Lavington, with a tour of the city on the way. Here we spoke to architects about our ideas for the lee valley and what we thought about what the valley could be used for and best utilised. The talk was very interesting and it was also almost a debate but in a positiveand constructive way. We then head off for the final leg of our journey to the NAI where it all started. We did a workshop on what we thought made up the perfect city, i really enjoyed the way other people opinions altered my perception on different cities and how they are presented to us. It had been a great tripbutnow it was time for the long journey home

It did not matter that Athena woke me at 3:15 or the fact that I only had 2 hours sleep, or that we arrived at St. Pancras before 5am. I was just glad that we were going to Rotterdam (and that Starbucks was open). Thankfully, no one missed the Eurostar and the train wasn’t delayed so thus began our journey to Holland! I like the idea of travelling by train, its was a longer journey, but it’s less polluting than air travel and it provided a long rest period, even if I did forget to bring my ipod =(
The Eurostar took us to Brussels and from there we took another train that went through the other cities to Rotterdam. Looking out of the window, Athena and I noticed how different the houses were from England and how each house varied from one another. Arriving in Rotterdam, Mariska was there to meet us with a big warm smile, and not long after we were all on red bikes. Our first stop was the Netherlands Architecture Institute (NAI) where we were greeted by the tour guides/Architects and Silvia, a very enthusiastic woman that wanted to replicate this program in Holland =). We then spent most of the day touring Rotterdam on a boat, learning about the history and culture of the city. We visited The Pavilion, a floating Museum that resembles the Eden Project. Although, the structure of the building was fascinating; it made me feel quite sick, because you could feel the rocking of the water.

That night the Architects from the NAI took us to this amazing Moroccan/Turkish restaurant with intricate hanging lanterns and the biggest bounty of food I have ever seen! The next day we rode to Maccreanor Lavington Architecture Practice, where we heard a presentation from Kevin, a very inspirational Architect that could verbally destroy your favourite building and world famous landmarks in 10 seconds flat! But it was interesting!! And I can clearly say I’ll never look at the Sydney Opera House in the same light again. Other thing to mention is The Kube, which supposedly is a youth hostel, but it would rival many 3-star hotels I’ve seen. The building (as you may have guessed from the name and pictures) are formed from a series of cubes. Inside the hotel rooms were quirky-shaped walls that poked out and sunk in at unusual angles. I would definitely recommend this place to anyone travelling to Rotterdam.

Here are a few photos and artwork I did based on the Architecture of Rotterdam =)

Hotel New York Clock Tower

An early start (5:30!) meant we had the whole of wednesday to enjoy and explore Rotterdam…

As soon as we arrived we went from the station to hire bikes, and were soon on our way cycling to the NAI. Cycling provided a great opportunity to inspect the city’s architecture . However maybe the city was a bit too interesting to be viewed by bike, as I couldn’t help myself from compromising some basic road safety rules (e.g. looking at the road) meaning I did encounter some minor collisions!

Fortunately Mariska had organised a boat tour – so we could all enjoy viewing the city’s architecture safe from oncoming vehicles and the days rain. I found it  interesting hearing how the city’s architecture has been moulded by its history.

We then visited a floating pavilion in which was a display of possible solutions to flooding.  One idea was to create flood planes which could also (temporarily) serve some sort of function. Another suggestion was floating houses.

After a lovely evening meal, a good nights sleep and breakfast we set off to the offices of the architecture firm Maccreanor Lavington to talk to Kevin about the work the firm does in Britain and the Netherlands. What I was most struck by was the consideration given to the community (will this design exclude people, would demolishing a certain building harm the community, how can residents of an area be more involved in the designing of an area?). We then cycled to the NAI where we categorised photos taken from the day before. Next we looked at images of different waterfronts, an exercises that gave us an opportunity to consider what different components are successful.

Then it was time to go – a changeover in Brussels and back to King’s Cross.

Thanks to everyone who made this great trip possible!