Adaptive Cities: Temporary Interventions and Flexible Public Furniture Design

Varga, Péter István (2024) Adaptive Cities: Temporary Interventions and Flexible Public Furniture Design. In: P/References of Design. Cumulus conference proceedings series, 1 . Cumulus Association, Moholy-Nagy University of Art and Design Budapest, Budapest, pp. 1843-1852. ISBN 978-952-7549-02-5

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Abstract

In my presentation, I focus on temporary urban interventions and flexible street furniture, deliberately narrowing down the topic of adaptive cities. Through the examples of temporary interventions, the changing needs of urban activities can be well examined while also presenting the possibilities and tasks of design in street furniture design in an environment where changing usage needs appear. These changing needs are increasingly colliding with inflexible urban systems and infrastructures, often generating strong conflicts (cycling vs car driving vs. pedestrian traffic; parking vs. green space; weekday/weekend vs. working time/ leisure time; tourism vs. locality, etc.). In my presentation, through a current case study (Valyó Quay project in Budapest) along with a few examples from the international context (Supermanzana Barcelona), I present the city-shaping possibilities of temporary interventions and the changing needs appearing in cities. Among these, highlighting cycling, I present street furniture systems from our design studio, where the basic principle of the design concept was adaptability to changing needs (VELÓ and MONÓ bicycle storage systems; LENA bicycle lane separator). These products were invited to the Dutch Design Week in 2023, where they made a successful debut in the Mobility Expo section. The message of my presentation is dual: 1. 2. Traditional urban planning tools are now inadequate for handling the rapidly changing needs and phenomena that arise in cities. We need tools and systems that allow space for dynamically changing activities in the city, i.e., they are flexible and adaptable. This also poses new challenges for street furniture design: we need a design mindset and public furniture solutions that can handle the rapid changes in needs and uses in public spaces.

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