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

Lost and Found Fence

Fence as makeshift and adequate lost and found center.

Lost and Found Fence
Lost and Found Fence

Materials: Fence

Location:
Akishima, Tokyo

Construction Site Locker in Bag

Plastic bag on the hook of a retractable gate serves as a locker for security guard of construction site.

Lost and Found Fence

Materials:
Plastic Bag, Hook
Location: Shibuya, Tokyo

Emergency Kit Storage in Hook and Tape

Train station emergency kit stored on a hook and secured with tape.

Emergency Kit Storage in Hook and Tape
Emergency Kit Storage in Hook and Tape
Emergency Kit Storage in Hook and Tape

Materials: Hook, Tape
Location: Shibuya, Tokyo

Laminated Station Information

Various laminated station posters.

Laminated Station Information
Laminated Station Information
Laminated Station Information
Laminated Station Information
Laminated Station Information
Laminated Station Information

Materials: Laminated Paper
Location: Shibuya, Tokyo

Storing Cabbages, Drying Shoes

Metal window ledge provides ample space for both storing cabbages and drying shoes.

Storing Cabbages, Drying Shoes
Storing Cabbages, Drying Shoes
Storing Cabbages, Drying Shoes
Storing Cabbages, Drying Shoes

Materials: Window Ledge
Location: Nagoya, Aichi

Wire Pot Plant Hangers

Wire twisted into pot plant holders to decorate roadside residential fencing.

Wire Pot Plant Hangers
Wire Pot Plant Hangers
Wire Pot Plant Hangers
Wire Pot Plant Hangers
Wire Pot Plant Hangers
Wire Pot Plant Hangers

Materials: Wire
Location: Nagoya, Aichi

Carpark Greening in Breeze Blocks

Breeze blocks that form the edging of a carpark double as sturdy plant pots.

Carpark Greening in Breeze Blocks
Carpark Greening in Breeze Blocks
Carpark Greening in Breeze Blocks
Carpark Greening in Breeze Blocks
Carpark Greening in Breeze Blocks

Materials: Breeze Blocks
Location: Nagoya, Aichi

Flying Fox Duct Tape Fix

Flying fox in a playground casually fixed with duct tape.

Flying Fox Duct Tape Fix
Flying Fox Duct Tape Fix
Flying Fox Duct Tape Fix

Materials: Duct Tape
Location: Nagoya, Aichi

Support and Barrier

A construction of traffic cones and barriers held together with wire and plastic twine supports an old awning and cordons off the unused shop front.

Support and Barrier
Support and Barrier
Support and Barrier
Support and Barrier
Support and Barrier

Materials: Plastic Twine, Wire, Traffic Cones, Traffic Barriers,
Location: Nagoya, Aichi

Protecting the Flowers in Plastic Bags

Plastic bags protect tropical plants from the bitter Nagoya winter.

Protecting the Flowers in Plastic Bags
Protecting the Flowers in Plastic Bags

Materials: Plastic Bags
Location: Nagoya, Aichi

Parking Aid in Electrical Tape 2

Yellow electrical tape on a pesky brick provides ample parking direction for this apparently very tricky driveway.

Parking Aid in Electrical Tape

Materials: Electrical Tape
Location: Nagoya, Aichi

Parking Aid in Electrical Tape

Yellow electrical tape on a pesky brick provides ample parking direction for late night maneuvers.

Parking Aid in Electrical Tape
Parking Aid in Electrical Tape

Materials: Electrical Tape
Location: Nagoya, Aichi

Station Notification in MS Office

Signage warning of possible platform dangers – created in MS Office.

Station Notification in MS Office

Materials: Laminated Paper
Location: Nagoya, Aichi

Station Notification in Laminated Paper

Laminated paper sign notifying passengers of a service that allows you to search train timetables on your mobile phone.

Station Notification in Laminated Paper
Station Notification in Laminated Paper

Materials: Laminated Paper
Location: Nagoya, Aichi

Yaki-imo Lamppost Signage

Yaki-imo (roasted sweet potato) advertisement on lamppost. Constructed of a cardboard box, plastic twine, and wire ties.

Yaki-imo Lampost Signage
Yaki-imo Lampost Signage
Yaki-imo Lampost Signage
Yaki-imo Lampost Signage
Yaki-imo Lampost Signage

Materials: Cardboard Box, Plastic Twine, Wire
Location: Kunitachi, Tokyo

Park Map Notifications

Park map amended with laminated signs notifying users of changes to park access during park renovations.

Park Map Notifications

Park Map Notifications

Materials:
Laminated Paper
Location: Higashimurayama, Tokyo

Trees Support Pots Support Trees

Mature trees support their still-potted adolescent friend.

Trees Support Pots Support Trees
Trees Support Pots Support Trees
Trees Support Pots Support Trees

Location: Shibuya, Tokyo

Originally posted on Tokyo-DIY-Gardening.org

Towering Tethered Sunflowers

As I rode my kick scooter across Tokyo from Shibuya to Ochanomizu, on the way to the Tokyo Mapping Workshop in the heat of summer I turned a corner in a deserted backstreet and ran straight into these monsters…… so tall they need to be tethered to the chain link fence for support as they wither.

Towering Tethered Sunflowers
Towering Tethered Sunflowers
Towering Tethered Sunflowers
Towering Tethered Sunflowers
Towering Tethered Sunflowers

Materials: Plastic Twine
Location: Shibuya, Tokyo

Lots more Tokyo sunflowers [HERE] and on Tokyo Green Space [HERE]

Originally posted on Tokyo-DIY-Gardening

Laminated Signage

Laminated signage in an inner city apartment complex.

Laminated Signage
Laminated Signage

Materials: Duct Tape, Laminated Paper
Location: Minato-ku, Tokyo

Simple Riverside Pots

A simple example of how you can extend your boundary right across to the other side of a narrow road simply by lining up 10-20 pots along the crash barrier.

Simple Riverside Pots
Simple Riverside Pots
Simple Riverside Pots

Location: Shibuya, Tokyo

Originally posted on Tokyo-DIY-Gardening.org

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]