PowerStructures

PowerStructures is a project that focuses on the urban form of regulations and explores the relationship between regulations and urban design. The project introduces a Tangible Regulation Platform, a physical-technological apparatus that exemplifies the effects of the law on a designated territory. The platform provides a common ground for discussion and decision-making among planners, designers, stakeholders, and communities, offering a transparent process of regulation-based urban design.

The development of the platform involved an observatory study, comparing its usability to more traditional methods of design and collaboration. The study included community members who discussed and performed design alternatives for a specific site, using both the platform and traditional pen-and-paper methods. The study helped establish a workflow and enhance the capabilities of the tangible multilayered design platform.

For more information, you can access the paper and the MIT thesis related to the PowerStructures project.