Honorable mention – Next7 2015 Competition
After first analyzing the potential roadblocks that face tomorrow’s cities, and then reactions created to solve those problems, one can make assumptions about the direction that the future of urban design is headed towards. The goal of this project is to do just that. This thesis will imagine a futuristic setting based on predictions made by scientists and architects to develop a vision of a new urban realm that responds to the anticipated dilemmas of the forthcoming generations for a more efficient and environmentally friendly society.
The visionary aspect of the project is key to defining it, and provides a whole new series of opportunities that otherwise wouldn’t be plausible. It allows one to escape the parameters set by reality to create broader theoretical ideas that conceptualize what an urban realm could be. It proposes systems that haven’t been precedented, and makes assumptions about the world that may never become factual. The visionary aspect allows this project to explore ideas, rather then architectural design – these ideas are then visualized through architectural graphics that speak for the systems created and the way of life those systems can provide.
I spent almost a year researching and designing every aspect of the proposed city from the mechanisms that allow it to be buoyant to the organization of transit and streets and even the systems that supply the city’s energy, water, food and waste necessities. It is not just a floating platform with life on it- it is a visionary city that encompasses every aspect of urban life to create something that strives to be truly better than the contemporary situation.
