New Years Resolutions

Asides from the usual personal resolutions I have been making for the end of 2012 (exercise more, find a handsome creative guy, get a proper job in urban design/town planning) I thought I would make a list of my blog based resolutions here as well. This is mostly because I am chronic for having broken all of my resolutions by January 1st and I thought if I had them here anyone reading would know about them and could hold me accountable - perhaps via the form of an angry tweet (@UrbanSubmarine).

So here goes, my list of blogging resolutions; 

1. Spend an hour a day working on blog posts and design (unfortunately I have realised recently this wont mean a blog post a day but maybe 3 or 4 a week)
2. Design at least a sweet header for my blog, possibly business cards
3. Carry a camera everywhere so I can rely more on original photography as well as practice my photo editing
4. Get my first comment on a post! I know there has to be at least one person as interested in urban design as I am out there.
5. Post more original and up to date content, whenever possible

So there are my blogging resolutions, not too many so I have a better chance of keeping them. I am heading to a new bar in Brisbane tonight to ring in the New Years and I hope you all have fabulous evenings planned! 

Changing Urban Landscapes - Technology

As I unwrapped my (albeit wonderful) kindle touch at Christmas and thought of the myriad of other wonderful technological gadgets friends had received, I wanted to take some time to think about how the way we use technology and the level that it integrates into our daily life is changing. As awesome new gadgets such as the Ipad mini (I am very jealous of anyone who received on) have shown us, even good new technology can be improved and made increasingly portable. 

With many of my university friends overseas on big adventures I am amazed at how often they can call, text, email and of course update their Facebook with plenty of photos to ensure complete jealousy. Compared to a story I heard the other day where a friend was backpacking a few decades ago and to meet up with his friends had to wait at the same spot at 8 every morning and every night until his friends appeared (which took 3 days) - our ability to remain in constant contact is fairly breathtaking. 

It also is something that needs to be increasingly incorporated into the design of our cities - if we can now take our Ipad or laptop and access wireless throughout the city why are there not more public places which allow us to do so comfortably and easily. Why should WI-FI access and the opportunity to work be limited to coffee shops and chains like McDonalds? Why can't attractive, WI-FI enabled office pods and meeting areas be available for use in the public realm alongside the BBQs and benches?

Urban Submarine design for a WIFI pod - Park Image via Newton Research and Explorations

Not only would these pods allow us to change up our daily routine and spend more time out in the fresh air (especially in generally sunny climates such as Brisbanes) but they could also be designed to reflect the character of a city e.g. refurbished cable cars as WIFI pods in San Francisco. What do you think, is this the way we should be heading in the future or am I totally barking up the wrong tree?

Semi Permanent? Super Cool

I am currently in the middle of writing about 3 different blog posts (some awaiting my own illustration- eek!) but as soon as I saw this post over on the Habitus Living blog I had to drop everything and talk about it too!  This is exciting because it is a little bit of a departure from what I had originally considered temporary urban design but something that I can get just as excited about! Basically a fabulous creative Melbourne couple have developed "The Super Cool" and noticing a resurgence in "pop up shops" decided to make that market their own. 

The Super Cool pop up store @Habitus Living

Basically The Super Cool live in a semi-permanent state, constantly popping up in new locations across Melbourne. Although the idea of finding a favourite store and upon heading back finding it missing is slightly horrifying, the idea of using different spaces and constantly moving areas paints a picture of a progressive and evolving city. Creating a mobile business also allows The Super Cool to set up in different spaces then where you would regularly expect a store (e.g. a warehouse or a fishing dock) adding an element of surprise and whimsy to an all ready magical Melbourne. 

I know I want to see more of these popping up in the future, what do you think? 

City. Living. Buys - Herb Lester

As today is currently boxing day, a day renowned for shopping, I have decided it is the perfect time to introduce my first regular posting series - City. Living. Buys. Each Wednesday I am going to aim (this is kind of like an early new years resolution) to create a post featuring a city/living themed item I am coveting, or generally have seen elsewhere and think is too awesome to go unmentioned here. As an avid blog reader, and beginning blog owner, this kind of post where I get to discover cool new things that are out there are always one of my favourites. Also it would be super awesome if you guys wanted to comment with some things you think I should know about at the same time! 

But after all that, today I want to talk about these amazing city guides/maps produced for the Herb Lester Associates store (click here). Their about me states that they "publish guides for tourists and locals: witty, pretty, curious and opinionated" - what could have me more hooked then that? (besides the fact I am a complete sucker for a map) 

Herb Lester New York City Guides - 13 pounds for 4

Each individual guide focuses on a different aspect of a cities personality, or presents a different way of exploring a city. Not only do they provide a functional and unique purpose they are also very attractive to look at. My personal favourites include the New York City collection and the Copenhagen map - but that might just be because they are the next places on my list to visit! Let me know what your personal favourite is!

Copenhagen map with guide - 4 pounds

Merry Christmas!

Manchester Christmas Markets @ Albert Square

As a naturally festive person the Manchester Christmas Markets were my highlight of visiting England at Christmas time and I hope this photo gives you a little bit of the festive spirit. Anything temporary, including a pop up market, has my heart and hopefully I can meet new people with this passion through Urban Submarine. 

My best wishes are with everyone and I hope you all have your perfect Christmas. 

- Prudence

Rethink: The Way You Live

I recently purchased, read and loved Amanda Talbot's book "Rethink: The Way You Live". Not only is this book so full of glorious pictures and outstanding design that it should take the place of pride on your coffee table, but it is full of useful, innovative and important ideas and concepts. What I enjoyed most is that although the book presents a large range of big ideas on living more sustainably and changing the way we treat our homes and daily life, it never took on a "preachy" tone. 

One of my favourite spreads from Rethink via The Design Files

The above spread was one of my favourites in the book and the simple quote and idea that the way we as humans are interacting with the world is changing. This sparked particular importance for me in the way that our ideas in architecture and urban design can no longer rest on the same historical ideas but must push towards a brighter future. 

I especially relate with the idea that a single room does not need to have a defined purpose, a typical "bedroom" throughout the day can function also as an office, a living room, a meeting area, a quiet space and a range of other things so why limit it to just being "a bedroom". I think this idea, as well as the fact that we should always be growing, should also be applied to the urban realm. A park does not just have to function as a recreation and leisure area but can also be where people meet, work, meditate, etc. 

Subway to Work

Subway car offices in Shoreditch, London (Nov, 2012)

While recently travelling in England I became addicted to the program "George Clarke's Amazing Spaces" which is like a less pretentious grand designs for the conversion of small, irregular spaces into habitable homes and offices. One of the spaces featured was these subway cars which had been converted into cheap, rentable office space in the middle of London. As I was wandering around Shoreditch (mostly looking for the more famous "Box Park" nearby) I took the above photo of some cool graffiti and subway cars which turned out to be the very offices featured on amazing spaces. 

Inhabitat, again, has featured these offices with a number of pictures showing their sleek interiors (am I ever going to feature something those geniuses haven't found first?) which you can visit by clicking here. Or I have been guilty of borrowing one of their photos showing the inside of the converted car and placing it below - it was just too sleek and pretty not to have! I wish I had known at the time what I was photographing, but all the fun of visiting a new city is stumbling across the unexpected. 

The interior of "village 2" subway car from Inhabitat.com

Shipping Container, Container?

In order to keep this blog true to my own interests, I decided not to limit myself to just the outwards design of a city or building but also the design of elements within these spaces and everyday household objects. Now I am the first to admit that I love anything with a novelty design, I am just a complete sucker for it. As soon as I saw these porcelain shipping containers by David Ballou I knew I had to have a set.

Not only are these adorable, they are also functional, providing plenty of space to store things such as pens which litter my desk in abundance. They are also only $30, which suits my student price range and makes me think about going back and getting the orange and grey as well as blue and white. I also think they would make great gifts and although at December 21st I am a bit too late to put together a gift guide, these bad boys would definitely be featured! 

They can be purchased at Area Aware or through Amazon by clicking here.  

Cardboard Houses

I am currently reading "The Happiness Project" by Gretchen Rubin (because Kikki K did a collaboration and sometimes you can judge a book by its cover) and one of her tasks was to spend a little bit of time each day working on her blog. And so, I have decided to dedicate myself to doing the same, to stop this blog being a dream and to do the work to make it a reality. 

So, my very first thought was that I should write a post about something that really excites me and at the moment that is the work of Japanese architect Shigeru Ban. Luckily (and to my excitement) Shigeru Ban has contributed work to the rebuilding efforts in Christchurch, by designing a cardboard cathedral to replace one that regrettably had to be demolished. This cathedral, pictured below, uses the humble cardboard tube as it's main structural support elements. 

Model of the cardboard cathedral from Inhabitat.com

The coolest thing about this design is that it can be quickly assembled to allow Christchurch to resume life in the inner city and it can remain indefinitely until it is taken down and the parts are reused in another project. This work really highlights a new era in the realm of sustainable building design and development, that not only fills a need for buildings in the present but also accounts for the future of what is so called "temporary" architecture. Not only is this building sustainable, I am also highly attracted to the simple geometric design and the idea that the stained glass windows can be created by local artists which really helps connect the project with the city and provide a sense of ownership. 

Shigeru Ban has done countless other amazing projects and has fast become my hero. Inhabitat.com has featured a number of other projects which are definitely worth taking a look at if your interested in architecture, design and sustainability. 

The Process of Temporary Urban Design

What first got me excited about the idea of temporary urban design is the diagram below by Rick Agnes which was discussed on the Gehl cities for people blog in relation to the processes currently being implemented in Christchurch. As a concept it has only evolved relatively recently in response to a number of factors (e.g. natural disasters and the GFC) and really incorporates those intermediate, unplanned uses that can be put in place immediately in empty spaces throughout the city.  

The process of Temporary Urban Design @ Gehl Cities for People Blog

For the purpose of this blog I want to look at temporary urban design in terms of achieving a number of goals, namely; 

• Increasing activation and community involvement within our cities 
• Rebuilding a sense of community and bringing people back into the city after damaging natural disasters 
• Allowing for "unplanned", intermediate use of undeveloped land within a city 
• Creating unique uses which bring fun back into the urban realm 

So this basis leads us to the fun part from now on, looking at different temporary urban design that has been put in place worldwide, what it has achieved and in some cases even future ideas for temporary urban design! 

P.S. I promise this will start getting more colour and interest on the blog and I am working on learning my HTML to make the template more exciting! 

An Introduction

Hi All, 

I am Prudence Blake, a Town Planning student looking to become an urban designer that is about to embark on a thesis in regards to the use of and importance of temporary urban design in areas affected by natural disasters.

So with that out of the way, I am starting this blog, Urban Submarine, to keep track of my ideas in terms of what is happening all over the world in the realm of cool and innovative temporary urban design and artwork. In an age where people can increasingly live, work, shop and entertain all within their own homes, my basis is on the importance of maintaining and improving the public realm and getting people excited and active about going out into the city. 

Although this is mostly just to keep track of the ideas I find, hopefully it will also get the ideas of temporary urban design out there as it was something I knew little about until I was studying in the field of town planning and in order to be successful I think the initiatives really need to come from and be supported by the community. Primarily the focus of my thesis is what is happening in Christchurch in regards to rebuilding after the devastation of 1000s of earthquakes, but there will definitely be cool ideas of stuff I come across from all over the world. 

Please bear with me while I get my bearings on this blogging business, generally anything more than a tumblr is a bit beyond me at this point but we will get there! 

That's all for now, 

Prue