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Invisible City In-Between

Project details

Programme

Cluster RC11

Year 1

This project is rooted in a profound grasp of architectural and urban design history. Invisible City In-Between envisions the city as a vibrant and ever-evolving entity engaged in an enduring conflict between two contrasting perspectives: the top-down and the bottom-up. This dichotomy, stemming from divergent schools of thought, is perceived as a universal urban archetype.

Taking inspiration from Italo Calvino's acclaimed work, "Invisible Cities," and harnessing the power of machine learning, an innovative design methodology has been forged. This approach facilitates a design workflow navigated primarily through text, enabling designers to fluidly oscillate between these two distinct schools of urban theory.

Notably, Invisible City In-Between not only provides a platform for transforming abstract sentiments into tangible design elements but also offers a dynamic arena for exploring the ever-shifting conflicts within cities. Reflecting the essence of the project's title, the project resonates with the themes explored in Calvino's book. It unveils the potential for 55 unique urban iterations within an instant, demonstrating the captivating interplay of urban dynamics in real-time.

Students

Dongchen Du B-Pro Urban Design Silver Medal
Ruijia Xiong B-Pro Urban Design Silver Medal

complexCITY: Research Background

In 1961 Jane Jacobs presented a conflict between top-down modernist urban planners and bottom-up urban activists like herself. Likewise, this project conceives the city as a process of conflict between these two perspectives.

MYTHodology: Deconstruction of Invisible City

Within the composition of the Osmanlı minyatürü in Istanbul, an imagery emerges wherein Kublai Khan and Marco Polo engage in deliberation concerning ongoing events.

MYTHodology: Creating Two Personas

Using self-organizing maps (SOM), two personas were developed: Kublai Khan, influenced by 60 top-down theoretical works, embodies governance in urban planning. Marco Polo, shaped by 60 bottom-up works, represents diversity and complexity.

MYTHodology: SOM Visualisation

The two results can represent the combination of the top-down and bottom-up development process of the city, and at the same time, the appearance of the city constructed from different perspectives can be understood.

MYTHodology: Prototype and City

The ongoing interplay between the two perspectives can be seen as urban prototypes. Through a conversation with two personas, we are able to project the context of Istanbul onto our urban prototype.

MYTHodology: Replacing Input Texts Via Two Personas

In the design process, designers can choose replacement text from either Polo or Khan, forming new text infused with their respective biases. This text then becomes the foundation for subsequent design procedures.

MYTHodology: Replacement Result

Through this dynamic interplay, we craft a replacement paragraph tailored to Istanbul's essence which retains the chosen persona's essence, generating an extended and seamlessly integrated narrative.

datASSET: Complexity and Contradiction in Urban Space

‘Then equilibrium must be created out of opposites. Such inner peace as men gain must represent a tension among contradictions and uncertainties […] A feeling for paradox allows seemingly dissimilar things to exist side by side." Robert Venturi.

datASSET: Text Data Matching

Three crucial elements define an urban scene: Setting name (typology), actors (program), and scene form (appearance). The previously acquired replacement text will act as a bridge, connecting and harmonising these three elements within our design.

datASSET: Urban Typology

A comprehensive range of names of building typologies was collected from a specialist website. For each typology, a precise definition was crafted. This allows for seamless matching with the input text based on similarity.

ddatASSET: Programme on Site

Using Venturi's principle that programmes define spaces, Istanbul's street life is studied through documentaries. An action classification model in employed to identify activities in these videos and correlate them with a description library.

datASSET: Video Classification Model and Moodboard

The classification model evaluations actions without an understanding of what the video is about, so the result sometime is not always accurate. Video can also be linked into another library of art videos to be used as a moodboard.

datASSET: Host Architect Selection

A city like Istanbul is a canvas of diverse narratives where architects act as storytellers. With a whole database of all the descriptive text paired with images from different architects, an architect can be chosen as ‘host of design’.

datASSET: Elements of Architecture

The architectural elements will be organizsd by Istanbul SOM and reclassified. Under each category, Istanbul groups similar architectural features. Through these groupings, the intended affordance of each element can be inferred.

datASSET: Affordance, Elements and Culture

Architectural elements harbour diverse affordances, intricately linked to local culture. By leveraging Istanbul's SOMs perspective, the specific affordances inherent in various architectural elements within the city can be unveiled.

datASSET: Defining Affordance

Through Istanbul's perspective, it can be observed how elements are applied in various ways. For instance, Istanbul views the stairs in the original project as a roof, as it groups those elements together with all the roofs found in Istanbul.

inVISIBLE CITY: Large-Scale Design

inVISIBLE CITY: Application to Large Scale

By integrating tools with a generative artificial intelligence engine and geolocated data, an alternative version of a city tied to a personal memory can be generated. This concept echoes the idea of the 55 invisible cities found in Calvino’s book.