My project began with my interest in the objects and pieces of equipment that people use in the street and in small shops every day
‘Through Istanbul’s turbulent history, the city have changed drastically. Many objects that are carried and used on a one to one basis have however remained the same. It is poignant perhaps to look at old photographs of Istanbul and mourn the loss of many of intimate local urban environments, swallowed by the cities massive expansion. But many of these objects endure. In a sense, the knife sharpeners, food sellers, shoe shiners, ottoman tea distributors, blind men with scales and the intricate packs people carry create an intimate architectural environment unique to Istanbul alone.”
How could architecture stem emerge from a person’s body, what kind of forms and functions could it pursue and how could this translate into the urban environment of Istanbul.
My First step was to look at different pieces of equipment that people use, and speculate on possible systems which could be attatched to the body, first for purely aesthetic purposes and then to collect.
Survival kits, water, solar and metal collectors were all designed and a number built to a 1:1 scale.
The building was to be a hub were these body modification’s would be specified, built and tested in a ‘market of the future’ scenario. People would navigate the structure, which itself would have a number of systems based on the collectors which would be constantly evolving, the water collection was suggested on the north west facade but other systems would be introduced over time.
Inside it contains a number of shops and clinics in which different artisans, shopkeepers and surgeons perform a range of alterations from the small to the extreme.
Its aim would be to create a new and constantly changing class of inhabitants in the city. Those with new equipment and ‘mods’ would invigorate the street level environments in Istanbul, referencing the equipment from the past and moving it into a uncertain future
Mark Simpson
UnitSix 
