A short walk above the warren

Amsterdamse Hogeschool voor de Kunsten (AHK)

2016

The objective of this studio was to design a space for biodiversity, where animals and people benefit from each other. After visits to the site and research I learned that business activity is key in this area, in the 463 business establishments 2,835 people operate, most of these working people work in industry or consultancy and research, there were only 115 inhabitants in the area (on the year of the project, 2016). As an area with so many working people, I wanted to create a space to inspire them to get away from the hectic and busy office life by providing a space where they could go for a short and enjoyable walk. Walking is proven to be really good for working people. It has been studied that walking improves working memory, which is important for reasoning and learning, but even 5 minutes outside engaged in some sort of physical activity improves self-esteem and mood.

The species chosen was the rabbit, once a source of meat, during the last 30 years or so, this species is being neglected and the population of rabbits has been expanding in uncontrolled environments. However, despite the issues involving rabbits, people love them, there are over 709 million domesticated rabbits in the world. Rabbits have become the third most popular pet after cats and dogs. In this sense, this project was meant to allow people to look at rabbits with different eyes, by putting rabbits in the spotlight and creating a place dedicated to them, people are encouraged to interact with rabbits in a different way and a new consciousness of how to deal with a problem is arisen.

The total length of the walkway is 305 meters and it raises with a slope ratio of 1:20 until it gets to the highest point: 8 meters high. The average speed of a person walking is 1.4 m/s, which means that the total course could be done in approximately 4.5 minutes. The walk starts on the northern side of the site and the first thing people will experience is the contact with rabbits, so they start the walk happier and the office stress goes way at this point. Then as they walk, it has been studied that after a short time walking people start to perceive things differently, it’s been said that people start noticing new things and this is the second part of the walk, these areas can be used for several things, people can relax there on a sunny day or have a picnic, for instance. Finally, we get to the highest point of the walk and there, people can see the beautiful view of the Ij and that’s the end of the walk. The last structure also works as a shelter for people waiting for the ferry and a landmark feature that stands out from its near environment, visible from long distances. Creating a recognizable mark for boats and ferry boat users.

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