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FURTHER DEVELOPMENT
This sections explores on how I proceed with the 5 point plan of action on my building.
1
How to improve the connection to the hall ?
POTTERY AND ART
SPH
CAFE
GARDEN
VEGE SHOP
ART SHOPS
PREVIOUS DESIGN
Originally, the form of the village design on the east side of the hall (highlighted in orange) followed the slope of the existing staircase space. Although it created an interesting elevation but it did not have any form of connection to the Public Hall. Besides, the slope even made the form of the spaces to be formed differently from the rest which disrupts the consistency of the individual spaces. Therefore, I decided to flatten that area and also open up the connection between the hall and the restaurant. In addition, the position of the stairs have also been moved to fit the new circulation of the space. Overall, this is to ensure the flow of the space is more fluid while still providing access to the underground subway.
EXPLORING THE CONNECTIONS
THE DOUGHNUT
INITIAL TEST: I wanted to create a huge opening between the SPH and individual spaces. The reason for this is to allow people from the SPH to have direct visuals to the activity in the underground restaurant, which is a form of connection I want to achieve. However, the overall form ended up becoming less separated and a doughnut shape is formed instead, which seemed like an easy solution to the spatial correction.
THE 3 STRIPS
SECOND TEST: In order to get away from the doughnut shape. I ended up filling the spaces in the middle, which turned into a 3 stripped walkway space. The design might have moved away from the boring doughnut form but I still feel that it is not that practical as it covers up a lot of light to the underground area. Also, the form still feels very monolithic and the randomness of the design was still not achieved in this iteration.
THE REDUCTION
FINAL TEST: After some reduction from the previous design, I managed to create a more random flow. The concept is to create a zigzag motion in the space which managed to scatter the spaces. The first 2 individual spaces are now the reception and the cafe whereas the underground are the outdoor restaurant. Also, the reason for having the biggest open space to be closest to the hall was to allow more visual of the restaurant.
2
What would be a better overall arrangement?
IN THE BEGINNING...
I maintained the 3 way path at the back part of the building but changed the arrangement of the programmes a little. Due to wanting to have the artists being able to look down at the activity of the restaurant, I decided to move the pottery and art space close to the outdoor dining area. This decision was also to provide more views from the public to see the art activity in the building from Kingsway. Because of this, the previous pottery and art space is now a cooking and vegetable shop area. In addition, I added some green houses on the garden area as a way to allow plants to grow during the winter too. Moreover, the biggest space that is located in the middle have turned into a top floor dining area so that the dining atmosphere would be more exposed to the public.
INITIAL SKETCH
PROS : A much more interesting circulation, the spaces are more organized and there are more individual blocks which creates more activity in the area.
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CONS : There is still no consistency in the overall form, might be too noisy for the artist to work near to Kingsway, the overall flow could be explored more instead of just a 3 way path and the middle space might be too big for a dining area.
AXO
THEN...
I decided step back and explore a different approach to the back part of the space by have a central circulation. I wanted to make the middle space be the market area that sells all the art, food, and plants whereas the spaces surrounding it will be the workshop areas. Because of this arrangement, the organization of the underground restaurant space have also changed into a central arrangement. For this, the kitchen stalls are now in the middle whereas the dining areas are surrounding it. Also, the previous top floor dining does not exist in this iteration.
INITIAL SKETCH
PROS : The central circulation creates a center piece in the area and it also simplifies the circulation where everything goes to the middle point, creating an easy understanding of the space.
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CONS : Although the design is more simplified, this have created some awkward spaces around the center market. Also, the front part of the site did not fit well with the back part of the it and the arrangement created some challenges to the service areas.
AXO
FINALLY...
After realizing the issues generated from the previous one, I decided to try another method by simplifying the path to a straight line street. This creates a much easier understanding of the space for the people who enter the area. The path in the middle is where all the spaces meet as one and so that visitors get the whole food process experience in one go. Also, the pottery and art spaces are moved back to the original position as I feel that the other space will be too noisy for the artist. The underground restaurant have also been changed where one side of the area is the services and kitchen and the other is the dining space. Overall, this feels more organized and straightforward. Hence, I decided to stick with this idea and further improve the details of the space.
INITIAL SKETCH
PROS : The circulation has gotten even more simple and organized, the street concept managed to make the space more randomly distributed, the placement of the services are more logical too.
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CONS : Additional development needed to create a more fluid connection between spaces, more lighting analysis needed for the underground restaurant, more experimentation needed on the roof formation.
AXO
3
What kind of aesthetic should the building have?
ARCHED OPENINGS
Initially, I wanted the appearance of my building to be as different as possible compared to precedents that I looked into. I also wanted them to relate to the context, especially Stretford Public Hall. One way to stand out and also have some relation to the context was to imitate the curved elements that seemed to repeat consistently in the interior of the hall. I decided to test out bring in this feature into the openings of my building and see how it will look like.
INSIDE SPH : THE BALLROOM
INSIDE SPH : GROUND FLOOR
Model Location
Cafe and outdoor restaurant
Outdoor restaurant
Cafe
Walkway from Kingsway
GEOMETRICAL OPENINGS
After realizing that the arched design does not seem to fit quite well with the form of the building. I decided to go back to the basics which is using geometrical windows instead. This may not be related to the context as much but this approach would still allow me to experiment more on the size and position of the windows. Although this design is not the final form but it is still an initial step to more discoveries of the form.
4
How can I expose the dining atmosphere?
THE LOCATION
The location that I decided to reveal more of the underground restaurant is placed at the east side of the Public Hall. The reason for this is because I wanted the people who pass by the hall could immediately hear and smell the food of the restaurant below. Also, I wanted people from the subway to see the activity of the dining area through the opening end of it, letting them know that there is an interesting restaurant for them to try!
Green house
Cooking workshop
Cafe
Reception
Public hall
Subway under reception
KINGSWAY
CHESTER RD
5
What are the other dining experiences I should provide?
In order to understand more about the dining experience of a restaurant. I did a 3 day ethnography study of the food market in the Mackie Mayor building. Through this, I not only get the chance to see how does a restaurant work but also get a glimpse of the types of dining spaces provided in the market. I believe one of the reasons of its success was the ability to cater the different type of dining experience for different users. Overall, this gives me a better idea of what I should provide in my restaurant since there are many types of users dining in this space.
MACKIE MAYOR
GROUND
The Mackie Mayor market has 2 floors. The ground floor is more public and the setting of the seating areas are more communal due to the long table arrangement. Because of this organization, people tend to talk to one another and this foster new relationships with strangers among the community. Therefore, I would like to provide this kind of seating design in my restaurant as it allows the locals to know each other more. The other aspect that made the space more lively is due to how the market stalls surrounds the dining area. This gives a strong visual stimulation to the customers.
GROUND FLOOR PLAN
ANALYSIS ON THE ACTIVITY OF THE LONG TABLES
SEATING ARRANGEMENT
The long table is a 8 seating space. However, when it is packed the seats will expand to 12 seating at the side of the table. I noticed the long tables would normally have groups of friends that varies from 2 to 3, unless a big group is using the table.
THE INTERACTIONS
Due to how close the different groups are in seating together, interactions would occur between groups. From my observation, there are 3 types of of scenario that caused them to interact and here are the 3 situations :
THE SHARED UTENSILS
Sometimes, groups will start to interact due to the shared utensils. This is because sometimes the utensils are not enough for one group, so the group from one side of the table will ask the opposite which occasionally leads into conversations.
THE INTERESTING DISH
Besides that, based on what I heard and saw, people tend to start the conversation with one another by asking what they ordered because the food looked nice, tasty and interesting. In the end, this creates a new form of dynamic in the group.
THE ADORABLE KID
Besides that, occasionally, if there is a cute or bubbly kid, the neighbors will start to play with him or her and that leads to the adults having conversations at the end. Tables like these would facilitates conversations like these to occur.
THE BARS AND CAFES
The food market wasn't only a place that provided food for their customers but they also prepared some wine and beer for the people. This created additional dining experiences in the space which is want to achieve in my building too. Sometimes people just want to have a drink and relax and the market managed to provide that.
FIRST
On the other hand, the first floor space was more private than the ground floor. This does not mean the space is more quiet but the setting of the table arrangement was more separated which managed to allow individual groups to communicate more privately. This created a more intimate setting, which made this floor more noisy and vibrant. Overall, having this space allows people who prefer to sit with people they know or alone.
FIRST FLOOR PLAN
ANALYSIS ON THE ACTIVITY OF THE DIFFERENT TABLES
SCATTERED TABLES
Sometimes the place can be quite busy and the ground floor tables will be packed. Luckily, there are more seating on the first floor. However, the arrangement of the seating are more private as most of them are individual tables. As a result, this actually creates a more intimate environment because only one groups of friends occupies one whole table. When I went up, I felt that the atmosphere was louder and people were having much more fun. Also, since the tables are much smaller compared to the ground floor, they are easily movable which allow people to create their own kinds of table arrangement based on how large the groups are. Ultimately, this creates a more flexible environment for the users to be in which allow them to feel more in control on the space.
BALCONY TABLES
The other thing that is interesting on the top floor are the tables at the balcony. These seating are the most private among all of the others because is a one sided table. Usually, couples or groups of three will ended up sitting at this area because it is only ideal for a small number of people. What made this seating arrangement more intimate that the other is that the only view they have is the big space below and nothing much is interrupting them except for the people sitting beside them. However, overall it is quite a private place to be at and I believe conversations are more personal and relaxed at this area.
SEATING ARRANGEMENT
THE VIEW
From my ethnography study of the Mackie Mayor market, I realized the importance in creating a dining space that is capable of catering different types of users. Initially, I always thought having long tables are the best because it was easy and it foster conversations to occur. However, not everyone like to sit with others and some people like to dine their food privately. Therefore, I hope to bring change the dining space in my new restaurant to a more equalized space, so that everyone can enjoy in eating there.
IN CONCLUSION
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