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

Parked Bicycle Stabilisation System

Particularly intricate stabilisation system for parked bicycle. Prevents the bicycle blowing over in the wind, or being toppled by other errant parkers. It also provides a central stable element to prevent the whole row of cycles from falling in a strong wind.

A laundry pole is fixed to the parking structure with bungee cords at the top end. The bottom is stablised with breeze blocks and blanket scraps. The bicycle is attached to the makeshift structure with another bungee cord. The number written on the breeze block denotes the owner’s apartment number. I’m not sure of the function of the pegs and gloves.

Materials: Breeze Blocks, Bungee Cords, Blanket Scraps, Gloves, Pegs
Location: Setagaya, Tokyo.

This example is a note for a pamphlet on “Hand Made Aspects of Mass Produced Housing”. Subscribe to my somewhat-frequent letter HERE if you want to keep in touch easily.

Drying To Recycle in Pegs and Hangers

To recycle your plastic, you need to dry it. To dry it you need pegs and clothes hangers.

Drying To Recycle in Pegs and Hangers
Drying To Recycle in Pegs and Hangers
Drying To Recycle in Pegs and Hangers

Materials: Pegs, Clothes Hangers
Location: Akishima, Tokyo

Glove Drying in Hanging Pegs

Rubber gloves hung out to dry on hanging pegs attached to a gate in Sendagaya.



Materials: Pegs
Location: Sendagaya, Tokyo

Plastic Bag Storage in String, Pegs, Clip and Bag

Plastic bags are stored in a cloth bag which is fastened to string with a clip. The bag is suspended from the roof of the apartment complex bicycle parking shed and secured (to guard against the wind) by pegs.
P1110427
P1110428
Materials: String, Pegs, Clip, Bag

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]