Last note, curtains close- A final statment and the beginning of a new adventure

SPEAKERS SHELTER
The concept behind a new HSW

Underneath the Story Bridge at Howard Smith Wharves was once a central part of Brisbane. Heritage buildings, world war two shelters and a decaying dock are what remain of a once busy area. Recently damaged by the floods the council’s development proposals for redevelopment are going ahead. There is controversy surrounding the rezoning of the area with many residents upset that council will now allow commercial interest and further development on the site.

Controversy surrounding development proposals is nothing new but there is no one place in Brisbane to go where people, both residents and international visitors, can go to air their thoughts, protest against council proposals.

The Speakers Shelter is a follie for people to gather around, debate, protest and reflect. The follie is designed to promote honesty, community spirit and the sharing of ideas. 

The different sides of the follie all facilitate the concept of democracy, freedom of speech and community action in different ways. The eastern side is a threshold for speaking to large crowds, the west a more sheltered area housing a deposit box for submissions and petitions. The southernmost side houses a table and chairs to enable private discussion, as well as a flat surface for filling out forms. The north side is dominated by a feature wall of Light-Transmitting Concrete which gives the sheltered area of the follie its feel. During the day the sunlight is filtered through minimising glare while at night an interior spotlight throws a shadow of the tree against the wall as seen in the image to the right.

This comfortable space is honest and open but not exposed. The forms of the concrete structure are softened by sustainable Australian hardwood and pine blinds held in place by tension. The majority of the structure is poured, reinforced concrete in compression. This heavy solid element is prevented by being oppressive through the open void centred around the presence of a native Australian tree.

Follie Wharves- A Brisbane Follie? The final design

Presenting Tegan's Follie- Poster Design

Tegan's follie- The Journey of Design

Urban Ecological Subversion: The Art of Guerilla Gardening in Public Spaces

http://weburbanist.com/2007/08/21/urban-ecological-subversion-the-art-of-guerilla-gardening-in-public-spaces/

Have you ever wondered why so much public space seems to go to waste? Even apparently ‘natural’ green areas are carefully cultivated, requiring time, energy and water. However, these only produce a return if people are sitting, interacting, or playing on them. A great deal of urban green space is never used for these purposes. However, such spaces can be (and many are) subverted through guerilla gardening: the act of seeding useful plants in public spaces.

This is all to true, overly structure "green spaces" seen in so many cities around the world seem cold and transpartently unnatural. The goverment has consistantly compromised space put aside for parklands

Possible Design Ideas

Floating viewing platform as seemingly unattainable as a a Brisbane propritising spaces for people over profit.

Above: Peaceful Plateform

A plateform for viewing the surrounding river and built environment. Filter of light and a natural hub for peaceful contemplation. In reaction  to the peacefullness of the site. The cliff face, bridge and river form a cosy enclosed environment.

The problems with this idea were threefold. The lighting for natural growth of plants is minimal underneath the bridge, the concept of peaceful thoughts and soul searching seemed to match an physical environment filtering light which would not suit the placement under the bridge. The last main issue was moving this structure to a sunnier spot would make it less of a viewing plateform, i feel this brief and the character of the site calls for a strong purpose or function.

Above: A peaceful protest

A follie allowing the people to speak, debate, share and contemplate.

The lecturer suggested exploring an alternative canopy that was less oppressive.

I also explored the idea of a bus stop but i had no strong concept to back it up.

I briefly simplified the structure by deleting the canopy to investigate the merits of a conopy for the space and what forms it could take.

I chose this shape as it's open edges envoked the feeling of security and free speach, offering various possibilities for work and play. The variation of solid concrete panels and adaptable blinds opens up the space, ensuring it doesn't feel dark or heavy.

Journey to HSW- A pathway through the CBD (Walkshop)

My pics of HSW
I took photographs of the model of Brisbane in D Block to gain a better understanding of the site. The images of the HSW model are below:

My own pictures of the site from the walkshop for DAB525 helped me understand how the site stands today, how it might feel to walk under the bridge, and the challanges of this site. The site is currently of limits as there is work being done by council to stabilise the cliffs and banks, maintain the heritage buildings and the WWII bomb shelters. Some of the images from my time on the site are below.

Currently Council is developing the site for new use. The plans currently in progress i found on the couriermail website i found the artist impression below very helpful in understanding some of the infrastructure we need to build for which isn't present on the site yet.

Plans that Council has for HSW in progress now:
http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/restoration-of-howard-smith-wharves-on-track/story-e6freoof-1226017051819 The Courier-Mail

March 07, 2011 12:03PM

FLOODS have delayed the development of a park but council is continuing with plans to restore the historic Howard Smith Wharves on the Brisbane River. Two barges will arrive on site today and will be moored, along with a third barge, for the next two months as construction continues on a new 170m-long wharf.

The barges will be used to drive new piles in the river to replace the old timber piles with concrete and steel to stop them being damaged by marine borers.

Brisbane City Council Finance Chair Cr Adrian Schrinner said the restoration was the first step in council's $17 million plans to revitalise the area.

``Securing the old wharf will allow pedestrians to safely use it as a walkway as well as allowing us to liven them up with outdoor dining and other events in the future,'' he said.

The new wharf will be up to 7.8 metres wide and will feature bench seating.
 Schrinner said while recent flooding and damage to the floating Riverwalk had delayed the wharves' parkland development, Council was working to determine a timeframe for its delivery.

Last year, cliff stabilisation works were completed to ensure the safety of the community and help protect the World War II air-raid shelters at the base of the cliffs.

The Howard Smith Wharves area includes five World War II air-raid shelters which will be restored along with the timber wharf.


This building is heritage listed for several excellent reasons i found the following site helpful in understanding why:
http://www.epa.qld.gov.au/chims/placeDetail.html?siteId=16518

The first of the new structures erected was a two-storeyed reinforced concrete building completed by 1936 as offices for Howard Smith Co. Ltd. It was located on the waterfront, and commanded excellent views of the Town and Shafton Reaches of the Brisbane River. Three berths with five new storage sheds were planned. Each of the gabled sheds was constructed primarily of hardwood timber, and sheeted and roofed with timber boards and corrugated iron. Sliding doors within these sheds opened towards the river for the handling of cargo. Sheds nos.1-3 were located at the upper berth under the Story Bridge, the middle berth accommodated the large no.4 shed [double-gabled , twice as wide as the others, and much longer], and no.5 shed was located at the lower berth downstream. No.5 shed was the first to be erected and a temporary wharf constructed. The middle berth with no.4 shed was almost completed by 1937, then work commenced on the upper berth, which was to contain sheds 1-3. This was completed in 1939. For the wharves, a reinforced concrete base was laid on the rock at the river's edge, with timber piles rammed into the riverbed. Large hardwood timbers were used for the walings and decking, which extended about 24 feet (8 metres) out over the river. Hundreds of thousands of feet of timber - mostly hardwoods such as ironbark, blue gum, yellow stringybark, spotted gum and messmate - were required to build the berths. The road widening behind the sheds, which necessitated the cutting back of the New Farm cliffs, was completed by 1938. As work continued on the lower berth into 1940, the Second World War intervened. By 1942 the men working on the Petrie Bight works were transferred to other projects more directly connected with the war effort, and work on the wharves was closed down. The third berth appears never to have been completed. A 1945 plan of the site shows the upper and middle berths complete but the lower berth still without any timber decking for wharfage. In 1941-42 the Brisbane City Council constructed five air-raid shelters near the Howard Smith Wharves below the cliff face, for the Bureau of Industry. The threat of invasion by Japan appeared very real at the time, there was a substantial workforce employed at the wharves, and the site was located adjacent to the Story Bridge - a prime target in wartime. Three of the shelters were the usual 'pillbox' style built by the City Council at many places in the inner city and in the suburbs. This was a standard type, rectangular in plan and constructed of concrete. However, the other two shelters at the Howard Smith Wharves were constructed of large stormwater pipes with multiple entrances. The Brisbane City Council used concrete stormwater pipes to cover the slit trenches in the Botanic Gardens and Victoria Park, but no other air raid shelters of the 'pipe' type have been identified in Brisbane. It is not known why the two different types of shelters were constructed at the Howard Smith Wharves. Howard Smith signed a 21 year lease over the Brisbane Central Wharves site in 1936. After this lease expired the company made the inevitable move in the early 1960s to better facilities downstream at the mouth of the Brisbane River. The Water Police then occupied part of the site [the office building and several sheds], and Queensland Works Department has used the site for storage for many years. Vehicles impounded by the police were stored here as well. A large part of the timber decking from both the upper and middle berths was washed away during the 1974 floods. Most of the wharves which were built in the late 19th and early 20th centuries in the central city have been demolished in the riverside re-developments of the last 20 years. The former Howard Smith Wharves remain one of the few surviving, and the most intact, with office, sheds and wharfage.

Follie? Madness? Brilliance? Architectural Insanity?

What is a follie? Why is it relevant to architecture? How is it appropriate for the HSW?


Ok lets try wiki:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folly


In architecture, a folly is a building constructed primarily for decoration, but either suggesting by its appearance some other purpose, or merely so extravagant that it transcends the normal range of garden ornaments or other class of building to which it belongs. In the original use of the word, these buildings had no other use, but from the 19th to 20th centuries the term was also applied to highly decorative buildings which had secondary practical functions such as housing, sheltering or business use.^{[dubious – discuss]}


General properties
The concept of the folly is somewhat ambiguous, but they generally have the following properties:

• They are buildings, or parts of buildings. Thus they are distinguished from other garden ornaments such as sculpture.
• They have no purpose other than as an ornament. Often they have some of the appearance of a building constructed for a particular purpose, but this appearance is a sham.
• They are purpose-built. Follies are deliberately built as ornaments.
• They are often eccentric in design or construction. This is not strictly necessary; however, it is common for these structures to call attention to themselves through unusual details or form.
• There is often an element of fakery in their construction. The canonical example of this is the sham ruin: a folly which pretends to be the remains of an old building but which was in fact constructed in that state.

Now from google:

In architecture, an eccentric, generally nonfunctional (and often deliberately unfinished) structure erected to enhance a romantic landscape. Follies were particularly in vogue in England in the 18th and early 19th century. They might resemble medieval towers, ruined castles overgrown with vines, or crumbling Classical temples complete with fallen, eroded columns. In the U.S., the term has been applied to ornate gazebos. It may also be applied to any unusual building that is extravagant or whimsical in style.

For more information on folly, visit Britannica.com.




Read more: http://www.answers.com/topic/folly#ixzz1GMPl69c5 

Lincoln Road in South Beach is, without question, a Miami Beach Landmark.  Interestingly enough, it’s a pedestrian mall with a series of architectural follies that have become sculptural objects in the landscape.  Adam Mizrahi from www.UrbanCityArch.com does it again with these unbelivable captures and he also educates us about them with the following description:

Around 1960, Miami Beach architect Morris Lapidus, whose credits include Miami Beach’s Fontainebleau and Eden Roc Hotels, was commissioned to redesign Lincoln Road. Lapidus’s design for Lincoln Road, complete with gardens, fountains, shelters, architectural follies, shade structures (each shade structures exploits one 20th century technology in concrete construction – folded plates, cantilevers, floating slabs, etc.) and an amphitheater reflected the Miami Modern Architecture, or “MiMo,” style that Lapidus pioneered in the 1950s. The Road was closed to traffic and became one of the nation’s first pedestrian malls.

http://www.miamism.com/miamism-fridays-11-2/

The students’ iconic ‘folly’ buildings are intended as small retailing outlets on the water’s edge, adding character and vitality to the NewQuay promenade.


The studio aimed to investigate the relationship between art and architecture through the design of the follies.




Mr Fender said the winning design was chosen because it fulfilled the brief in an imaginative way. “The two pieces are like crafted jewels with very highly worked facades that provide an interesting internal environment,” Mr Fender said.


“They are made of a myriad of different types of materials to create optical effects through refractive and reflective illusions.


“At night they can be very interesting, glowing on the edge of the promenade as foci, and in the day their shapes are very pleasing and provide an interesting ambience.”

http://www.architecture.rmit.edu.au/Projects/Docklands_Follies_Built_Projects.php

http://www.assda.asn.au/technical-info/applications/architectural-building-products/122-mirror-mirror-on-the-water--stainless-steel-fish-bar

Beyond Representation- our challange today for HSW

Architectural Design 5- Follie Design
The Task:
Design a Folie in a chosen location in Howard Smith Wharves.

Observe the site, analyse the context, and propose a simple architectural installation that has a function.

Artistic investigation to find a way to communicate your message and to provide a service for people

Folie Design Guideline

1. Folie has to fit within 5m x 5m x 5m bounding box.
2. Folie has to be at least for one person.
3. Your design will be evaluated with design criteria listed below.
4. You need to consider all design qualities described below.
5. Your follie design should be communicated through one A1 poster by following the poster guideline below.

Design Criteria: Your design presentation is expected to satisfy following criteria.

Design Concept
Strong narrative is evident to provide your own interpretation and description of folie design. It is very important that you have a story to tell about your design. Project statement, up to 300 words included in your poster, should help you to describe your concept but you should otherwise not rely on text to tell your story.

Site Context
Folie demonstrate a good understanding of its immediate context and beyond. Your folie design is appropriate for the context among which it is built. The context should include its immediate environment as well as Howard Smith Wharves at large.

Design Tectonic
Folie is designed with simple but creative use of structure and materials. The choice of structure and materials should be considered carefully and rigorously.

Design Function
Folie provides a unique space for users to do something. Your folie should support a simple daily activity such as reading, resting or eating.

Design Experience
Folie provides a unique possibility for users to experience Howard Smith Wharves. This is an extra layer to the function to induce specific sensations to people experiencing your space. The association has to be made to an aspect of Howard Smith Wharves.

Design Qualities: you need to communicate following aspects in your design.

1. tension and/or compression
2. heavy and/or light
3. solid and/or void
4. bright and/or dark
5. natural/artificial
6. soft/hard
7. comfortable/disturbing
8. choice of materials (Concrete, Steel, Timber, Stone, Glass + other modern materials)

Poster Guideline: Your folie design is to be communicated clearly in one A1 poster.

1. Size: 594mm (width) x 840mm (height) - must be in Portrait (Vertical) orientation.
2. Mounting: Poster has to be mounted on a foamcore and it has to be trimmed to the correct size.

Submission Guideline

1. Poster is to be exhibited in the predefined position in the studio. Your position will be announced in week 3. Your poster has to be uploaded to a designated position by 5:30pm, Thursday 24 March 2011.
2. A digital copy is to be uploaded to Blackboard by 5pm, Thursday 24 March. The method will be announced in week.
3. Nothing other than one poster should be exhibited and uploaded. Anything else we see will be ignored.

Once apon a time in Brisbane- Site history

Howard Smith Wharves was constructed in the 1930s in conjunction with the Story Bridge. It was one of the main employment generating projects of the Forgan-Smith government. While the site was originally built as the Brisbane Central Wharves, it was leased by shipping company Howard Smith and Co. from the mid 1930s until the early 1960s and became known as Howard Smith Wharf.
Construction of the site began in 1934. The first structure was a two-storey, reinforced concrete building completed in 1936. Three berths and five new storage sheds were planned and construction continued through until the early 1940s. In 1942, World War II disrupted construction and the third berth was never completed. During 1941 and 1942, five air-raid shelters were constructed below the cliff face.

Alternative uses

After Howard Smith and Co. moved downstream to alternative facilities in the early 1960s, the site was occupied in part by:

• the Water Police
• the Queensland Works Department for storage purposes

Since the relocation of the Water Police downstream to other facilities, the site has remained vacant except for minor use as storage and mooring space.
In the mid 1990s, the state government drafted a plan to redevelop the site. The plan included public parkland, 17 villa units and 42 apartments across the site, along with commercial activity around to the Story Bridge.
In early 2000, one of the heritage wharf buildings collapsed and fell into the Brisbane River. The building was then demolished.

Heritage significance

The site is an important physical, economic and cultural example of development in Queensland. It shows the history of Brisbane as Queensland's premier port. It also shows how the expansion of the city has moved port activities further downstream.
The remaining wharf buildings provide rare physical evidence of the pre-1940 Port of Brisbane and the air-raid shelters are the most intact group of shelters remaining in Brisbane.

Taken directly from http://www.brisbane.qld.gov.au/planning-building/local-plans/inner-city/brisbane-city-centre-master-plan/howard-smith-wharves/site-history/index.htm

http://www.ozatwar.com/bunkers/howardsmithwharves.htm