Community Engagement and Public Interest Design |
We call ourselves community engaged designers, but throughout the whole time we never thought of our ritual. And the ritual was listening. The plain simple act of listening and understanding that the person who was talking have knowledge beyond us. And as designers we have to take these stories and re-convey them in ways that others can understand the importance of them and maintain them.
Tommy CheeMou Yang, BSAS 2017 |
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Washington Park Collaborative is a consortium of upper level art, architecture, dance and design studios that explore how multidisciplinary design practice can engage professionals, academics and local cultures and communities. Our collaborators and participants include the Wisconsin Humanities Council, Quorum Architects, Washington Park Partners, Office of Undergraduate Research, UWM, Milwaukee Public Library (Washington Park Branch), Urban Ecology Center, Our Next Generation, and Express Yourself Milwaukee, Amaranth Café, AWE Inc., Habitat for Humanity, BLC field school, neighborhood residents and business owners, UWM, UW Madison and MIAD faculty and students. In Fall 2014, participating sister studios included ARCH 645/845, URBPLAN 858: Citizen Architect Studio (Arijit Sen, Instructor), DANCE 491: Repertory/Student Choreographer (Simone Ferro, instructor) and FA255/355/455 Public Art: Social Practice (MIAD; Jill Sebastian, instructor). This trans-disciplinary, multi-campus collaboration is associated with the Buildings-Landscapes-Cultures field school. Buildings-Landscapes-Cultures serves students enrolled in the Architecture and Art History doctoral programs at the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee and Madison campuses, respectively.
A Focus on Social Design Amaranth Cafe and Bus Stop Coffee Shop act as important public spaces within the Washington Park Community
by Claire Olson
Victor Papanek [1] once said “design has become the most powerful tool with which man shapes his tools and environments—by extension, society and himself.” Papanek, a controversial figure in sustainable design, argues that the role and responsibility of the designer is to develop a design process that contributes to improving human wellness, well-being, and livelihood. Social design introduces a new way of thinking about design as an architectural and social process that is mindful of the role of the designer in society and the ability of design to bring about social change. Such design thought is a modern response to social unrest and inequality, climate change, and increasing depletion of the world's natural resources. Papanek’s theories reject unsustainable design practices and encourage a dialogue between designer and user. Design has the ability to influence behavior and create public space through architectural and anthropological principles. Social design asks us to think critically about public space and the role the designer plays as an instigator of interaction and social well-being in such spaces. Social design has the ability to bring together a community or group of people and unite them under one project, creating a dynamic and interactive piece of architectural art. Instances of social design involve multiple working parts, theories, and perspectives. As a design process, social design can be broken down into separate theories of space in an effort to define what is public and what is a “third space’.” Public space is typically defined as “all areas that are open and accessible to all members of the public in a society.” While access to public spaces is unrestricted in theory, social and cultural standards play a large part in deciding what space is accessible to which members of the public. Social hierarchies can also limit how accessible a public space is to all members of a society. Successful public spaces foster communication and conviviality within a social network. Third spaces are sites that establish a sense of community. They are places of “other” interactions, outside of work and the home.[2] Third spaces are sites of human interaction and such places help sustain a sense of community. Third spaces typically include coffee houses, bars, parks, and restaurants—traditional places that have value in a community as places that provide relief from social heirarchy and class differences and where communion and togetherness may be developed. Christopher Jennette argues that distance between members of a society facilitates the maintenance of social relationships and “people can be sociable only when they have some protection from each other."[3] A third space provides these “other” locations that allow alternate forms of social relationships to flourish while also allowing for a locale away from home and work. [3] Hannah Arendt argues that the idea of public space is contextual and defined by moments; she focuses on the existence of a “public realm.” [4] Through Arendt’s reasoning, space is created whenever interaction takes place. Through conversation and engagement members of a society have the ability to reproduce the public realm and establish it through the habitation of space. The labeling of such spaces as public or private depends on the context, activities, and situation. Convivial conversations in a cafe produces a public space that is both momentary and contextual. In this case, the public realm manifests through conversation. Public space produced during a conversation, is both temporary and defined by the actions of those involved. [5] These ideas of public spaces, third spaces, and public realms are essential to defining the visceral characteristics of successful social design. It is essential to incorporate possibilities of naturally occurring, and unintended, interactions when we think of social design. A case can be made for the success of such public or third spaces in creating an atmosphere where these types of interactions are possible. The Washington Park Collaborative explored interdisciplinary social design practice by engaging local residents, professionals, businesses, artists, and students of art, dance and architecture. The first of its kind, the Washington Park Studio sought to provide solutions to major social problems, explore neighborhood needs, and respond to the dreams of residents through art and design ideas. Initial research conducted in class and on site consisted of an analysis of statistical and GIS data, historical records, and in-person testimonies from residents of the neighborhood. The participants worked through multiple iterations, moving from the macro to the micro geographies and working through a series of design solutions that involved constant collaboration and re-thinking of the term “community based design.” Local knowledge was gathered and analyzed for potential site-specific design interventions. Students presented their ideas and solicited feedback from to a panel of community mentors, business leaders, and architects from Quorum Architects. Collaboration between community members, designers, and organizations led to the development of innovative theories and design ideas geared specifically to the conditions of this neighborhood. The Washington Park studio epitomized the idea of working social design. This project closed the gap between social practice and design theory. Students produced design ideas that could encourage new social and economic bonds, revolutionize the way we think about design and architecture, and empower community residents.
Citations1. Papanek, Victor, and R. Buckminster Fuller. Design for the Real World. London: Thames and Hudson, 1972.
2. Soja, Edward W. Thirdspace: Journeys to Los Angeles and other real-and-imagined places. Oxford: Blackwell, 1996. 3. Jennette, Christopher J. "Cultivating a Common Ground: Community Gardens as Urban Infill in Springfield, Massachusetts." Landscape Architecture & Regional Planning Masters Projects. Paper 31. 2010. 4. Arendt, Hannah. The Human Condition. University of Chicago Press, 2013. 5. For more regarding this topic, see practice theory, symbolic interaction, and structuration. |
 
Images from the February 2015 Milwaukee City Hall exhibition, opening reception, recitals, and roundtable discussion.
Video by Milan Outlaw
Site Specific exhibit locations
PROJECTS
A. Absent 1623 N 35th St, Milwaukee, WI 53208 Student Name: Andi Bissen, Sophia Nord, Zach Schorsch, Melissa Vesel Type: Dance Recital B. Skewed Cornerways 1647, N. 35th Street, Milwaukee Student Name: Gabby Kay DeKok, Alexa Noll, Kristina Krueger, Nicole Spense Type: Dance Recital C: Dimensional Reflection 3329 W Lisbon Avenue, Milwaukee Student Name: Angel Alexander, Sarah Draper, Miranda Heavener, Caroline Seigworth Type: Dance Recital D: Harmonic Convergence 3421 W Lisbon Avenue, Milwaukee Student Name: Tori Diny, Flauntajia Harris, EJ Holmes, Mina Na Type: Dance Recital E: Bowling Again 3136 W Lisbon Avenue, Milwaukee Student Name: Cassie Rogala Type: Public Art F: Take a Look 3096 West Lisbon Avenue, Milwaukee Student Name: Tyler Mills Type: Public Art G: Beyond this Form 3301 W Lisbon Avenue, Milwaukee Student Name: Luke Arndt Type: Public Art H: Seeds of Growth 3329 W Lisbon Avenue, Milwaukee Student Name: Robert Matthiesen Type: Public Art I: Golden Doors 1627 N 37th Street, Milwaukee Student Name: Kelly Stamper Type: Public Art J: Golden Doors 1631 N 37th Street, Milwaukee Student Name: Kelly Stamper Type: Public Art K: Golden Doors 3801 W Sarnow Street Milwaukee Student Name: Kelly Stamper Type: Public Art L: Unnoticed Impressions 1727 N 35th Street, Milwaukee No: 13 Student Name: Riley Niamey Type: Public Art M: Community Pillars 3421 W Lisbon Avenue, Milwaukee Student Name: Anthony Mau Type: Public Art N: Bespeak and Engage 4015 West Lisbon Avenue, Milwaukee Student Name: Amanda Stein Type: Public Art O: Untitled 3421 W Lisbon Avenue, Milwaukee Student Name: Carson Braun Type: Public Art P: Vocabulary List 3939 West Lisbon Avenue, Milwaukee Student Name: Margaret Halquist Type: Public Art Q: Architecture and Urban Design Exhibition 3421 W Lisbon Avenue, Milwaukee Student Name: Kasey King, Claire Olson, Milan Outlaw, Thomas Brown, Rafael Ferreira, Hillary Byrne, Hebah Abu Baker, Ashley Pollex, Michael Babbits, Hyrom Stokes, Richard VanDerWal Type: Architecture
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