Patricia Vallejo Arroyo
RECALIBRATING THE URBAN EXPERIENCE: INFRASTRUCTURE EXPOSED
The intricate transportation systems produced by changes in the technologies and cultures of mobility have generated interstitial spaces that are either neglected or underutilized. These interstices become problematic ruptures in the physical and social fabric of the city and are simply an unnoticed backdrop to our everyday urban life, despite their tectonic richness. This thesis attempts to rethink the abundant layers and textures of our infrastructure as components of a new urban intervention that can unify and serve the communities it now fractures.
My thesis focuses on the Broadway Junction subway station in Brooklyn, New York, which features both elevated and underground subway systems, and dense road and pedestrian traffic. By introducing an Active Urban Fitness Complex into this already intricate site, the infrastructure's tectonics as well as its inherent lighting qualities are showcased and enhanced to create a richer experience of the city. The design allows users to move through the structure and gain different vantage points they would otherwise miss, and also exposes the transportation system, by providing a connection between subway, street and elevated train levels at the site.
My thesis focuses on the Broadway Junction subway station in Brooklyn, New York, which features both elevated and underground subway systems, and dense road and pedestrian traffic. By introducing an Active Urban Fitness Complex into this already intricate site, the infrastructure's tectonics as well as its inherent lighting qualities are showcased and enhanced to create a richer experience of the city. The design allows users to move through the structure and gain different vantage points they would otherwise miss, and also exposes the transportation system, by providing a connection between subway, street and elevated train levels at the site.
