Unit 2.1 Concept to Conception in Public Spaces

Bjarke Ingels Group: Carlsberg Campus – Copenhagen, DK

1.0 Context

            1.1 Site

                        The Carlsberg Campus project site is about 330,000 square meters in a historically industrial area of Copenhagen. This project focuses on reconnecting the site to the surrounding urban and green spaces. Through creating a “twisted chess game structure” they managed to link the existing historical structures with a more navigable urban framework without being monotonous (Carl). The site is represented through most of the graphics by an abstracted shape that begins to develop zones within illustrating different areas of design. The site plan itself is a more realistic graphic but still very stylized. There are conventions to presenting site plans but graphic representations do vary, and their effectiveness is subjective relating to the audience the graphics are prepared for (Mertens 32). BIG does a good job of creating easy to read graphics that are almost self-explanatory, and reflect not only the up to date technology but also the respected aesthetics of the region.

            1.2 Scale

                        The project so far is only in the idea stage so the project scale is mostly master planning, and massing with photomontages and sections to show the proposed character of the space. If the project is to continue they will need to develop more detailed plans, and the design will undoubtedly evolve. The scale of a project is important in determining what graphics are necessary to illustrate the design. Some project scales lend themselves more towards abstract representations, diagrams and the like, while others need more specific, realistic imagery (Mertens 33). This project required a variety of imagery, both literal and abstract, because while it is a planning project that could be more easily represented through diagrams, it also required a sense of place and personality in order to sell the project to clients.

            1.3 Terrain

                        This project is in a relatively flat area of the world so rather that worry about the ground plain terrain of the site they focused on the balance of urban structures. They created a plan to make smooth transitions between building heights to ensure the design fit within its context. This concept is represented through both a plan and section diagram showing the proportion of height as to location in plan. Generally we focus on the topography of a site when we consider terrain, but as this project illustrates it is just as important to consider how the height of elements will fit in with the surroundings, especially in an urban environment.

            1.4 Ecology

                        While ecology has not been a primary focus of this project up to this point, BIG has a history of creating environmentally conscious designs, and if the project continues there will likely be a level of design development devoted to the site’s ecology. Typically when their projects involve engineered environments like this they would create a series of diagrammatic sections to illustrate their solutions.

            1.5 Culture

                        Culture is another common theme within BIG’s work, that isn’t especially highlighted in this project. It is almost subconsciously dealt with in the emphasis on creating links between the urban environment, green spaces, and this site. It is also implied in the character graphics, but BIG also does a good deal of demographic research and diagramming during their design process for other projects. Computer generated drawings, that are common today can create a closer relation to reality than other graphic styles can (Mertens 84). While BIG utilizes computer graphics to help clients relate to the images, they do not create photorealistic graphics. Their general style is more abstract but still relatable. This relatability through graphic style provides a sense of the culture or character of the area that is important to establish within the design.

2.0 Process

2.0 Process

            2.1 Analyses

                        BIG uses uncomplicated diagrams to portray this projects overall theme. Large black arrows represent urban environments connecting with the site while yellow/green arrows represent connections to open spaces. As the diagrams progress they become more detailed, showing building masses, developed areas, and green space. For this project BIG established a desired land massing pattern and fit it into the available design space. While these diagrams are effective and useful, the analysis does not really seem complete. An analysis should give a clear indication of the site’s strengths, weaknesses and opportunities (Mertens 10). BIG does not provide a graphic showing these three qualities, but it is likely they have done that work and just chose not to included on their website, or create presentation graphics for it. Because they utilized only a few colors and repeated them throughout the project graphics it is easy, even for someone unfamiliar with the project, to associate each color with its symbolism. Humans are skilled at assigning data to color and recognizing its significance so long as there are not too many colors involved (Tufte 81).

            2.2 Discovery

                        BIG’s graphic presentations do an excellent job of carrying through the logical process of a design. They usually start by identifying the qualities of the site and the problem they will try to solve through design. They then show a bit of their research and how that has influenced the design concept. From there they do a lot of diagrammatic sections and even sometimes axons or models to represent a finalized concept in a more relatable way. Finally they produce a great number of photomontage illustrations to show character, culture and space relationships.

            2.3 Tools

                        Graphically BIG has developed a kit of parts that they use for most of their projects, keeping them consistent and easy to present. Diagrams are very abstract and only a few colors to keep them clean and readable, plans always focus on the site itself fading any context to deemphasize it, and their photomontage perspectives give great character and sense of scale without being too photorealistic. From this images are linked not only within the individual project, but throughout their website BIG has a very distinct design style that is easy to identify.

           2.4 Systems

                        All of the graphics for the Carlsberg Campus project are computer generated using an amalgamation of mostly the Adobe Creative Suite, and AutoCAD. They kept the diagrams very clean and abstracted most likely with the use of Adobe Illustrator, and kept a similar color palette range for all of the images including perspectives, axons, and diagrams. It appears that they might have also used some sort of 3D modeling software but it is unclear which program was utilized.

            2.5 Performance

                        Overall the computer graphics that BIG developed to illustrate this design are effective. They show a good range of clear diagrams, as well as dynamic photomontage perspectives, and sections. The master plan is also clear, showing only the project area in color and fading the rest to black and white. In general BIG specializes in crisp, clean, and concise graphics. Each project gets its own logo, and presentation graphics are loaded on to their website in a format that is easy to present from, relieving them from the worry of accessing up to date portfolio material when presenting to clients.

Resources:

            “Carl.” Bjarke Ingels Group. Web. 27 January 2013.

            Gregory, Danny. An Illustrated Life. Cincinnati: HOW Books, 2008. Print.

            Mertens, Elke. Visualizing Landscape Architecture. Basel: Birkhäuser, 2010. Print.

            Tufte, Edward. Envisioning Information. Cheshire: Graphics Press, 1990. Print.

            White, Edward. Site Analysis. Hong Kong: Architectural Media Ltd., 2004. Print.