THE COORDINATED CITY
This book is a compilation of all the design explorations and experiments conducted under the Coordinated Cities Project. I am interested in cities, and the way our social interactions are shaped and and are shaped by our urban environment.
The Coordinated City explores ways of designing visualization systems that offer strategies for engaging local residents with the static and dynamic composition of the city space. The goal of this work is to stimulate vibrant social exchange in urban centers by composing new patterns of mobility and human connection, thus revitalizing attitudes and bonds between people and place.
The term “coordinated city” conceives of the city as a dense and complex series of pockets that flow together into an integrated whole. From this perspective, the design system works to build relationships across intervals of unused or under-utilized portions of the city. These ‘in-between’ spaces are mapped in order to become more dynamic settings for social exchange and civic use.
From a starting point as a traveller within numerous world cities, and influenced by my practices in dance and photography, I observe patterns of mobility, as well as existing narratives that inform and inspire identification with place. I then compose new perceptual maps to guide urban citizens to venture into, and to navigate the unlived lines of the city, facilitating a new connection to the urban environment.
The Coordinated City is a program to encourage connection between residents of the city and residents of the outlaying suburban areas who still use the city as a central meeting place. By seeing the small settings of the city as stages, we can create the potential for forging performative bonds between people and place in the urban landscape.
