The Streetscape Territories Research Project (KU Leuven, Department of Architecture) organized a research workshop on Touch-down Infrastructures in New York during September the 28th, 29th and 30th at the Flanders House. We focused on two specific case studies as part of our ongoing research project: the area around the Port Authority Bus Terminal and the area around the landing of the Brooklyn Bridge in Lower Manhattan. The objective was to obtain some additional information about the immediate perception of these infrastructures within the streetscape, apart from our first analytical and graphical approach (see previous posts)
To start the workshop, we provided the participants (Thomas Geldof, Gitte Schreurs, Nikki Schotte, Sophie De Pourcq and Bahareh Rezaee) our preliminary mappings and results, together with some reflections on related research topics. The participants were then asked to produce a photographic analysis, focusing on the transversal experience  of the mentioned Touch-Down Infrastructures, highlighting their many adjacencies, proximities, scale contrasts and spatial qualities. Apart from that, they provided a series of photographs and videos that represented the view on the infrastructure from an adjacent interior space.

During the research workshop we also invited a panel of distinguished guests and experts (Ana Panelba, Didem Ozedimir and Christina Serifi) to the table to criticize and help rethink future steps in the research process. Due to their different backgrounds, experience and approaches, we came to new interesting research questions that made us rethink our future research methods and perspectives.

We now plan our next research seminar in New York, early spring 2016 to continue the on site sessions and present some additional outcomes to some local experts. We’ll keep you updated!

(all pictures by the participants)