New Designers 12: Spatial Design

ARTS THREAD looks at the talent on offer from Spatial Design at New Designers this weekend.

Christopher Hall, a graduate of Ravensbourne, took a new look at retirement homes. ‘To stop elderly being forced to move away from their family, an ecological tower constructed from shipping crates has been designed to allow for low cost housing units to be placed on abandoned or unused sites in cities. The building incorporates underground charging and parking for electric cars to create a completely ecological and sustainable design.’

Chris’s Iris vs Public project aimed to ‘demonstrate a new way of working and learning for a modern digital advertisement agency. The building has beehive hexagons passing through which demonstrate the areas for the company in question, IRIS to use as their main work areas whilst the rest of the space is completely open plan for the public to interact and work alongside the digital firm.’

From Birmingham City University, Natalie Fordham has designed an innovative centre to break the boundaries between locals and tourists. ‘Leave Your Mark is my signature project, targeting an issue I am very passionate about, ethical tourism. Simply not enough tourists are practicing responsible travel, which is having negative social, cultural and environmental impacts on countries that depend on tourism across the globe, specifically Jamaica.’

Daniel Atkins, Plymouth University graduate, has designed Off the Land, a project to tackle the main issues of rural living within the South West of England, looking at affordable, sustainable and customisable housing. Key factors considered were low household incomes to high priced living, the rapid growth in population and the rise in CO2 emmmisions.

Laura Kettle, who studied Interior Architecture & Spatial Design at De Montfort University, also won the New Designers IDA/Gensler Award 2012 for her Cinema.r, where the A and R represent augmented reality, a technology that enhances real surroundings with digital images on a handheld screen.

‘My idea is to get the cinema experience back to the exciting event it used to be in the old days when film-goers would walk into a cinema decorated on the theme of the film and the whole evening was a thrill for the public.

‘When the film Shanghai Express was released in the 1930s, the cinema was transformed into a train station and the public were given tickets that looked like train tickets when they came in. They had full-on experiences and my design restores that idea but with the very latest technology. I designed a see-through screen that cinema-goers would hold and look through before the film starts. It transforms the real space around them through digital images on their screen so that they can explore scenes from the trailers of the film they’re about to watch.’

Annabel Sharratt from Liverpool John Moores University, has designed the concept for Gallery Ten – a live/work art gallery housing ten artists for two years at a time. ‘The gallery has temporary and permanent gallery spaces, artists studios and accommodation for artists and staff as well as a cafe and gift shop. The idea behind the gallery design came from the works of the photographer Mark McGowan. The theme of photography and cameras has been used throughout the design, from the architecture of the building through to the use of lighting and reflection.

‘The theme of movement evolved from camera lenses and shutter speeds which was then manipulated into the design via the solar shading, versitile moving gallery screens and the extruding bedroom pods. The colour scheme also evolved from the work of McGowan, in particular his work ‘caught by the river’ and ‘dodgy alley’, these photographs are both grey scale with either a flash of bright orange or vibrant blue. The grey background colour of the concrete and stone has been chosen to allow the art work to stand out against the plainer backdrop.’

American Intercontinental University’s Erica Deam showcased a residential project designed for Marylebone High Street in London. ‘The clients are a couple in their early 30’s relocating from Colorado. Both are highly successful furniture designers seeking a space that can function as their home, design studio and public showroom. They desire the nature, solitude and space of rustic mountain living paired with a more modern style for life and work in London. In order to address my clients’ needs in the identified space, I used topography to challenge the traditional concept of a lateral apartment.’

Christopher Hall
Natalie Fordham
Daniel Atkins
Laura Kettle
Annabel Sharratt
Erica Deam