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

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))

In Training

Training by the train tracks. Frugal use of street furniture.

(click image for animated .gif)

In Training

Location: Akishima, Tokyo

Coin Parking BMX Training Update

As noted in Deadspace Parking as BMX Training Course these income-generating asphalt plots become obstacle courses for budding and/or PRO suburban Tokyo BMXers from 12:30am onwards. Tonight as I return in the Dark Hourz I find the same man in a different coin parking space. I wonder whether he moves around to avoid detection or whether these spaces offer a valuable diversity of terrain that I have not before detected….. I need to look at those wheel clamps, judder bars and smooth asphalts more carefully.

Deadspace Parking as BMX Training Course

We often decry Tokyo parking lot deadspace as an unimaginative and underused default money-making use for vacant lots but this stance exposes our own prejudices against concrete and blinds us to the diverse possibilities that the rugged terrain may offer.

Here, a half-empty suburban Tokyo pay-parking lot is the scene of a solo BMX training session in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

It is easier to record the remnants and artifacts of human(e) use of the city than it is to record use-in-action, but this example encourages me to spend more dark hours wandering the streets.

I wonder how these deadspaces by design are used when prying eyes are asleep: Deadspace by Design ONE & TWO on Tokyo Green Space.







The site in daylight:








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

Private Bar in Front of Station

Use the carry rack of your bicycle for a coaster, the lid of your drink as an ashtray – a simple private bar in front of the station.

Private Bar in Front of Station
Private Bar in Front of Station
Private Bar in Front of Station
Private Bar in Front of Station

Materials: Bicycle, Lid, Public Bench
Location: Akshima, Tokyo

Smoko Spot in Can

Simple smoko spot constructed from can attached to roadside barrier with wire.

Smoko Spot in Can
Smoko Spot in Can
Smoko Spot in Can
Smoko Spot in Can

Materials: Can, Wire
Location: Shibuya, Tokyo

Outdoor Smoko Spot in Can and Plastic Twine

Banned from smoking in the newly built residence (the last one burnt down) the man of the house has created a smoking area in his outdoor sink with an opened empty beer can tied to the stand with plastic twine.

Outdoor Smoko Spot in Can and Plastic Twine
Outdoor Smoko Spot in Can and Plastic Twine
Outdoor Smoko Spot in Can and Plastic Twine
Outdoor Smoko Spot in Can and Plastic Twine

Materials: Beer Can, Plastic Twine
Location: Akishima, Tokyo

Poor Shot Protection in Netting

Plastic bamboo poles and netting are used to add height to a playground/creche fence to help prevent loose soccer shots from straying onto the road.
Poor Shot Protection in Netting
Poor Shot Protection in Netting
Poor Shot Protection in Netting
Poor Shot Protection in Netting
Materials: Netting, Plastic Pole
Location: Tachikawa, Tokyo

Fishing Spot

Fishing spot fashioned by cutting through chainlink fence (entry) and repeated trips (pathway).
Fishing Spot
Fishing Spot
Fishing Spot
Fishing Spot
Fishing Spot

Materials: Wire Cutters
Location: Fussa, Tokyo

Storage Closet as Break Room

When your job perks don’t extend to a lunch room and etiquette prohibits eating on the street… This cleaner makes use of his storage closet as a smoko/lunch room. Not particularly pleasant, but needs must…
Storage Closet as Break Room
Storage Closet as Break Room

Materials: Storage Closet
Location: Shibuya, Tokyo

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]


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]

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

Article: Framework for Neighbourhood Creative Climate - read at This Big City

Tokyo Green Space from Jared Braiterman is a great inspiration [LINK]

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

Treepolis by Christoph Rupprecht inspires me with investigations into informal green space, cities, and urban ecology with a focus on Australia and Japan [LINK]

Everyday Structures by @alanwiig is another fine site in the same vein [LINK]