FIXES

Non-Intentional Design: Investigating alterations of space/objects at the public/private boundary in suburban Tokyo, Japan. A resource by a-small-lab.com. Contact: Chris Berthelsen chris@a-small-lab.com

Tokyo Local Fruit Study


東京の地元で出来た果物を食べたり、育てたり、分け合ったりしていますか。地元で取れた、非商業の果物に関する話を集めています。あなたの話を聞かせてください。
アンケートは:こちらへ

Do you eat, grow, or share local fruit in Tokyo? We are collecting stories about Tokyo local, or non-commercial, fruit. Please share yours.
Click here to start survey

Image: Jess Mantell. Project partners: Jess Mantell and Jared Braiterman.

Sink with Peg

Peg transforms hose and basin into stable sink for store cleaners in central Tokyo.

Sink with Peg
Sink with Peg
Sink with Peg

Materials: Peg, Basin
Location: Shibuya, Tokyo.

Watch out for kids!

Sign collaged from reflective tape cautioning motorists to watch out for kids at play in suburban Tokyo.

Watch out for kids!
Watch out for kids!

Materials: Reflective Tape
Location: Akishima, Tokyo.

Park Bench in Plastic Twine

Park bench constructed from household seating and plastic twine.

See “Bus stop chairs are gifted, unmatched, and spontaneous” for an insightful take on the subject (on Tokyo Green Space).

Park Bench in Plastic Twine
Park Bench in Plastic Twine

Materials: Plastic Twine
Location: Akishima, Tokyo

Hose Storage

Functional adaption of park tree for maintenance equipment storage in a run-down apartment complex just off the high-fashion avenue of Omotesando.

Hose Storage
Hose Storage

Materials: Tree
Location: Off Omotesando, Shibuya, Tokyo

(Originally posted on Tokyo-DIY-Gardening.org)

Simple Clothes Hanger Garden

Laundry poles resting on a makeshift wooden frame on the ground floor of an old apartment complex just off the high-fashion street of Omotesando provide support for a hanging garden construction of twisted clothes hangers and simple potplants.

Simple Clothes Hanger Garden
Simple Clothes Hanger Garden
Simple Clothes Hanger Garden
Simple Clothes Hanger Garden
Simple Clothes Hanger Garden

Materials: Laundry Pole, Clothes Hangers
Location: Just off Omotesando, Shibuya

(Originally posted on Tokyo-DIY-Gardening.org)

No Playing in Board and Marker

Wooden sign on suburban shopping street reminds children not to play on the staircase. It’s dangerous.

No Playing in Board and Marker
No Playing in Board and Marker
No Playing in Board and Marker

Materials: Wooden Board, Marker
Location: Kunitachi, Tokyo

Taxi Driver Smoko Spot

Thick tar soup in generic paint can. Evidence of smoko time at the local taxi stand.

Taxi Driver Smoko Spot
Taxi Driver Smoko Spot
Taxi Driver Smoko Spot

Materials: Can
Location: Akishima, Tokyo

Control Your Pets in Board and Marker

Very direct way of letting local pet owners know how the doings of their dogs are viewed by residents of a small apartment complex.

Cute dog sign adds the finishing touch.

Control Your Pets in Board and Marker
Control Your Pets in Board and Marker

Materials: Board, Marker
Location: Akishima, Tokyo

PET Bottle Plot

PET plastic bottles form vegetable plots in West Tokyo.

It’s interesting to see a material that usually acts as a pest deterrent incorporated into the construction of the garden.

PET Bottle Plot
PET Bottle Plot
PET Bottle Plot
PET Bottle Plot
PET Bottle Plot

Materials: PET Bottles, Metal Straps
Location: Kokubunji, Tokyo

(Originally posted on Tokyo-DIY-Gardening.org)

Informal Florist

Bouquets in milk cartons, on sale for 100 yen on the side of the Tamagawa Josui walkway in West Tokyo. Relaxed, honesty-box style informal florist makes a delightful addition to an afternoon stroll.

Informal Florist
Informal Florist
Informal Florist

Materials: Milk Carton
Location: Kokubunji, Tokyo

(Originally posted on Tokyo-DIY-Gardening)

No Parking Collage

“No parking” sign + prevention fashioned out of breeze block, wire, metal grill and ubiquitous no-parking sign.

No Parking Collage
No Parking Collage
No Parking Collage
No Parking Collage
No Parking Collage
No Parking Collage
No Parking Collage
No Parking Collage

Materials: Wire, Breeze Block, Metal Grill, No Parking Sign
Location: Nagoya

Step Up in Concrete Blocks

Over 1/2 a meter ‘step up’ to the front door eased with concrete slabs.

Influence of the ‘flat plot at all costs’ ethic in full effect.

Step Up in Concrete Blocks
Step Up in Concrete Blocks
Step Up in Concrete Blocks
Step Up in Concrete Blocks

Materials: Concrete
Location: Nagoya

Breeze Block Trees

Judging from the bottles concreted into the ends of the breeze block planters, these trees have been here for decades.

They seem to have adapted their growth to the cramped residence while becoming large enough to provide a modicom of privacy and shade. Fresh pruning evidences ongoing care and attention.

I’m impressed that large plants could be grown in such an unforgiving, soil-less environment.

Breeze Block Trees
Breeze Block Trees
Breeze Block Trees
Breeze Block Trees
Breeze Block Trees
Breeze Block Trees

Materials: Breeze Blocks, Bottles
Location: Minami-ku, Nagoya

(Originally posted on Tokyo-DIY-Gardening.org)

Play Ball

Painted plate in inner-city residential street.
Play Ball Tokyo via @oylintokyo
Materials: Paint
Location: Ueno, Tokyo

(Courtesy of Oyl in Tokyo (@oylmiller))

Slim Flower Garden

A line of bricks provides just enough space to add color to a bleak footpath.

Signs of life.

Slim Flower Garden
Slim Flower Garden
Slim Flower Garden
Slim Flower Garden
Slim Flower Garden
Slim Flower Garden


Materials:
Brick
Location: Minami-ku, Nagoya

(Originally posted on Tokyo-DIY-Gardening)

Blue Tyre Bumpers

Cut-off tyres guard against parking mishaps.

Blue Tyre Bumpers
Blue Tyre Bumpers
Blue Tyre Bumpers
Blue Tyre Bumpers

Materials: Tyres
Location: Nagoya

Curbside Tiered Garden

Curbside tiered garden constructed on a base of two step benches, secured with breeze blocks and wire.

While making delightful use of the only outdoor space on the cramped corner plot (molded right to the edge), this garden guides visitors to the desired approach to the front door and presumably cuts down on hit-and-run pamphlet deliveries.

Curbside Tiered Garden
Curbside Tiered Garden
Curbside Tiered Garden
Curbside Tiered Garden
Curbside Tiered Garden

Materials: Step Bench, Wire, Breeze Blocks
Location: Nagoya

Polystyrene Planting

Disintegrating polystyrene planters provide a colourful point of integration between the residence, plot and street.

Flexible, tiered, lithe.

Polystyrene Planting
Polystyrene Planting
Polystyrene Planting
Polystyrene Planting

Materials: Polystyrene boxes
Location: Nagoya

Raised Garden

This raised empty plot supports a host of edibles, in a garden constructed from pots, old metal shelving, rags, netting and all kinds of junk.

Raised Garden
Raised Garden
Raised Garden
Raised Garden
Raised Garden
Raised Garden

Location: Nagoya, Japan

Dog Enclosure in Wire Rack and Breeze Block

The dog has the run of the yard – kept in check with wire racks on the gate and a breeze block for stability.

Dog Enclosure in Wire Rack and Breeze Block
Dog Enclosure in Wire Rack and Breeze Block
Dog Enclosure in Wire Rack and Breeze Block

Materials: Wire Rack, Breeze Block
Location: Nagoya

Step-up in Breeze Blocks

Easier access step created with breeze block and concrete.

Step-up in Breeze Blocks
Step-up in Breeze Blocks
Step-up in Breeze Blocks

Materials: Breeze Block, Concrete
Location: Nagoya

Clotheshanger Storage in String

Clothes hangers stored outside on a piece of string hung from the rafters. Compact, convenient.

Clotheshanger Storage in String
Clotheshanger Storage in String
Clotheshanger Storage in String

Materials: String
Location: Nagoya

Parking Fix in Cone and Wire

Problematic barrier post made more visible by affixing an old traffic cone with wire.

Parking Fix in Cone and Wire
Parking Fix in Cone and Wire
Parking Fix in Cone and Wire

Materials: Wire, Traffic Cone
Location: Nagoya

Roof Tile Planter

This circular planter in front of an apartment complex is constructed of traditional Japanese roofing tiles.

Light on the ground and easily dismantled yet with more presence and permanence than the usual plastic planter box.

I love the reuse of traditional housing materials in the grounds of one of the symbols of Japanese homogenous mass-produced housing. I wonder if the tiles came from a house that originally occupied the land (and if the owner now resides in one of the apartments).

Roof Tile Planter
Roof Tile Planter
Roof Tile Planter
Roof Tile Planter
Roof Tile Planter

Materials: Roof Tiles
Location: Nagoya

Thanks to the URBAN DESIGN Lab 西村・北沢・窪田 都市デザイン研究室, Department of Urban Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo for making this a featured resource of their lab [LINK]

Mega-Cities: Design Anthropology and Urban Landscapes
I'm delighted and honoured to have my FIXES work included in Jared Braiterman's Tokyo University graduate seminar on mega-cities.
You can download the syllabus [HERE]


Vision Plus 2010
Thanks to the organizers of the conference for selecting this project as a featured resource, even though I was not able to attend.





Article: Small Places of Anarchy in the City: Three Investigations in Tokyo on This Big City

Article: The Non-Intentional Landscape of Tokyo - read at This Big City

Tokyo Green Space from @jbraiterman is a great inspiration [LINK]

Urban Bricolage by @ehooge is an inspiring site on a related theme [LINK]

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