URBANFRAME

Project Description: 

​

Over the last ten years, the development and broad adoption of web-based mobile platforms for social interaction have led to the existence of now familiar non-physical places of gathering. Among these, Facebook Walls, Twitter feeds, and Linked-in Profiles, are each visited by millions of users daily. Though not a replacement for the coffee shop, town square, or shopping mall, these new public centers, and the infrastructures and interfaces that make them possible, raise new questions about the role that the physical form of cities will play in our evolving human inclination to meet, gather, and socialize. In considering the relationship between physical and non-physical settings, it is clear that developers of digital platforms and the mobile apps that facilitate their use have, as a means to relevance and coherence, not only built theiir “places” on the generic conventions of urban space, but tied them to site specific detail of the physical places we know. Yelp, xxx, and other more advances forms of augmented reality…. The digital world is fast, anonymous, far reaching… For a variety of reasons, the physical environment has yet to exhibit similar adjustment to meet the advantages and unique capacities of the digital space.

Design Brief:

A deployable prototype that encourages new communities online and in multiple cities

Functions equally well for one or many.

Built from freely available online directions

Easy for a novice to build using minimal materials.

Easy to transport and set upIs safe and durable