Reimagining Public Spaces is a workshop that intends to give students agency over the crafting and use of a public space- in this case, the public walkway along the Providence River.
We will explore how spaces can evoke feelings, memories, or promote causes by looking at examples of self- or collectively-generated spaces created with simple materials. Students will be given “space” to design and construct a site-specific installation for public engagement using the categories of Art + Expression, Safety, Gathering + Seating, and Play / Fun.
By taking time to assess and intervene in a public space, students may gain greater spatial awareness and interest in participating in local place-making.
Impact: We want the students to feel that they have the capacity to exert agency and control over the spaces that they experience, or to begin to imagine how certain spaces may better serve the needs of the people that use them. In creating their installation, we hope that they will have fun experimenting with common materials and feel pride in creating and displaying work in a public forum. Students will learn how to work collaboratively and engage in critical conversations to allow for quick design solutions. By presenting their work to the class they may become more comfortable practicing public speaking and self-critique about the process.
Materials Provided:
The students then got to making, playing, and exploring- followed by sharing! Here are some results:
FOR ART/EXPRESSION
FOR PLAY/FUN
FOR GATHERING/SEATING
FOR ART/EXPRESSION
FOR PLAY/FUN
FOR GATHERING/SEATING
After the workshop, we reached out to the students to get their feedback
Pedagogy: We believe in collaborative and participatory design that prioritises process over product and creates space for play. We see teachers as facilitators and reject top-down teaching methodologies in favour of one that values mutual respect and knowledge sharing--learning with and from one another. Through active participation and experimentation, our workshop empowers students to imagine, reimagine, and gain agency over spaces that they occupy in the world and the tools to implement that change.
This Project was a collaboration with Leigh Miller, student at RISD