Constructing agency 2018-2020

underground

Studio Shajay Bhooshan

Tutor Alicia Nahmad Vasquez

Team Zhiming Wang (China), Mingming Wang (China), Rui Zhao (China), Weiqi He (China)

The current project attempts to address mental and physical health problems caused by social isolation in contemporary urban contexts. The team aims to create a model for an urban density in London through the production of alternative living solutions that enhance communal interaction, while using the existing infrastructure of the city.

During the research stage, we observed a high demand for housing close to some of London’s underground stations. For our project, we chose 22 currently disused stations in London’s Zones 1 and 2, which we consider that can offer a great opportunity to generate more living space within the existing urban fabric but without disturbing it. Further, we believe that the activation of the existing network system contains possibilities for the circulation of living units between the different sites that can address the dynamic needs of contemporary living in an essential way. At the same time, however, the design had to take into consideration all the constraints of such a defined space; the lack of natural light, the restricted access, and the limited living area.

We addressed the scarcity of light, by introducing fibre optic cables into the deep tunnel for any daily needs of housing. To tackle the restricted access, we decided to use the existing tracks to transport any off-site fabricated elements to the site during construction and facilitate the circulation of any other recourses at a later stage. Finally, the design focused on the production of reconfigurable furniture and spatial arrangements that could generate compact spaces but, at the same time, encourage their shared occupation. The several communal functions were to be determined by the users, themselves thus generating an underground living community that follows intensive codes of interaction.

Our overall intention is to create a game-like design process, which can provide a platform for open negotiation between users, developers and the other actors involved. This process will assist users to customise their homes and to detect, explore and connect any user with potentially same interests and demands.