Within our proposed theme: ‘Cultivating Possibilities’ and by using ‘live’ projects, Studio 4 went through a journey of observing, mapping, making and testing to create responsive architectural proposals. All are meant to explore the possibility of empowering communities and stitch their fragmented spaces.

The challenging nature of the context calls for an alternative design approach; one, which is critical and responsive to the socio/political and cultural conditions. Oscillating between ‘Cutting’ and ‘Breathing’ student tried to re-read the surface and re-draw it adding the missing layers below, above and in-between. The projects vary with speculative and pragmatic nature, all however, tried to bring forward the voice of the ordinary people, while celebrating the informal and their daily life. Consequently, notions such as invisibility and subversion were used to inform the projects. These include Guerrilla Seeding, Birds’ Living Room, Textile Farm, Digital Archive and Women’s Heaven amongst many other themes.

The key themes of the urban design studio revolve around master planning complex urban sites, in the context of real planning, economic, environmental, social and ecological issues. The theme for the studio this year has been the revitalisation and rendering as coherent, an edge of centre site of some 50 hectares in the west of Oxford City. The sub issues have been to do with creating a believable, and buildable place that is well connected and integrated into its historic and not so historic physical location. It takes on board the ambitions of the local authority to create a vibrant and mixed use, forward looking urban quarter with a distinctive and attractive identity.