Lift New Parliament
WAG entered the recent Architecture Foundation run competition ‘Lift New Parliament’. We were not shortlisted unfortunately - though you can vote for the four that were here
-should we be there?
The early WAG studies were researched and developed by Yonca Ersen, whilst the teams’ broader conversations included Aran Chadwick of Atelier One, John-Paul Frazer and Filip Visnjic.
WAG LIFT PARLIAMENT COMPETITION STATEMENT
We started to think about this competition at the same time as we were developing our practice website as a blog. These two processes mutually fed each other, and the following text is based upon the dialog produced as our conversation expanded to include specialists, engineers and artists as required.
Upon reading through the brief a number of issues initially stood out… primary perhaps was the need for us to develop a proposal that was essentially and necessarily open and in fact even incomplete (perhaps incompletable?) - a framework interface structure that the LIFT directors and seekers could easily imagine occupying, adapting, directing, driving…
It seemed to us that a highly flexible structure and organisation was required, and we soon found ourselves working with the concept of building as an urban scale puppet theatre. This idea has been very productive for us throughout the ensuing process, provoking questions such as: Is the building the puppet or theatre? What is the status of the occupants? Who directs? Where does the stage end? This model helped to articulate the relationship of the parliament-machine to the various sites it might find itself performing upon and within. We decided at an early stage that the different sites should be occupied as found ‘readymades’, passing below and into the Lift Parliament. Each site provides the conceptual and literal ground of each new parliament (rather than always having a new floor covering over each site).
We started to develop diagrams of a grided ‘scaffolding’ framework held up on two towers (with the two containers acting as base supports), which would act as marionette cradles, with cable structures suspending adjustable and programmable architectural elements (rigid floors, flexible floors, fabrics forming walls and roofs..)… producing some kind of cross-choreographing architectural theatre of space and event… We brought in engineers expert in deployable and moving structures, and also re-started some previous collaborations with media interface artists to think about how such an urban-architectural machine might be programmed and driven, through a mix of web based and physical on site interfaces. At this stage other conversations included environmental consultants and theatre practicioners.
As we developed our sensitivity to the brief it became clear that different levels and types of flexibility were required, as were different kinds of fixed and controlled spaces. Perhaps most importantly, we began to understand that there were different kinds of public space required. Our current scheme reflects this stage in our thinking, and defines four distinct hierarchies of LIFTspace. The most secure and private are the inner LIFT operations (including ticketing, LIFT-IT hub, LIFT-café (inc kitchen)), which are located within the storage containers. Next in the hierarchy are the ‘managed’ public spaces (for events such as debates, meetings, film screenings etc) located at the upper platform level. Access to the spaces on this level are ‘controlled’ by a large lift platform (which can also be used in other ways for LIFT ‘performances’) and by a staircase. This level sits within a space is defined by a panelled-over space-frame roof, and enclosed by a wrap around screen that can take projections. Hung from the space-frame roof are projectors, lighting, and fabrics which can be dropped to act as partitions, as well as other user driven components. Adjacent to the platform level, but still enclosed by the screens and space frame is a double height space that can be used for installations, performances etc. The city and public pass below and through this space at ground level, and loosely within the overall space defined by the roof wireless internet is publicly available and Bluetooth messages are sent to the phones of passers-by. At night the stair can lift up and the platform can be raised to secure the upper level., and the wrap around projection screens create a glowing billboard-object hovering.
