Rationale Booklet - HIVE. Rowan Furlong UNSW

7/28/2019 Rationale Booklet - HIVE. Rowan Furlong UNSW

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a sense of place

modular system

hive

Rowan Furlong


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rouse hill regional parkRouse Hill Regional Park is located in Sydney's northwest. Originally owned

by the Rouse family who lived atop the hill in a farmhouse for 8 genera-

tions, it is now a partial park park historical site. There is ample space

with facilities including barbecues amenities, extensive playground, some

eating areas, and many walks and trails.


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heritage parkCastle Hill Heritage Park is located in Castle Hill. Once home to a lunatic as-

sylum it is now a lush strip of park running down into a valley. There is

plenty of space and facilities including barbecues, toilets, eating areas, site

information, and bushwalks.


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bella vista farmBella Vista Farm is located in Bella Vista near Norwest. This site was once

a farm that commanded many hundreds of hectares. There are tours that run

every week that take a look inside the old farmhouse and homestead. In

terms of the park, there are not as many facilities as my previous two

sites. There is one barbecue, two eating areas and wide open spaces.


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ideation/inspirations


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ideation/inspirations


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rationaleParks in the northwest region are characterized by vast, expansive spaces. My three sites all

display cultural heritage, as they were originally farms or homesteads surrounded by hectares of

farmland. In each of my sites there are signs that narrate the history of the area and its uses

from colonial times to the present day, however, the narration ends there. The existing park

furniture makes attempts to centralize and focus these massive areas but seems to fail. Throughmy site analysis and through talking to people at the parks I determined that there is a lack of

connectedness between the furniture and the cultural significance of the land. The furniture also

does not endeavor to connect people through this rich tapestry of Australian rural culture. The

Hive modular system resolves this issue. The design is inspired by the honeycomb structure of a

beehive. Bees are known to be excellent communicators and are dependent on this communication to

survive. The Hive modular system seeks to increase sociability by changing the way people

interact with park furniture. By positioning the hexagonal tables in a honeycomb structure, a

central communal space is created in the middle of the cluster of tables. This creates a space

where strangers will constantly be walking by each other, therefore increasing chances of

socializing. This area could also bring together children from different families as a contained

play area, prompting the respective adults to interact. The hexagonal tables also have a dropped

6th side that allows for many functional purposes. This creates another area in which families

could put eskies or a place kids could park their bicycles. For accessibility, the entrance to

this area has been designed to accommodate the minimum width for wheelchair access as well as a

wide turning circle.

As well as increasing sociability, the Hive modular system connects to its environment in order

to enhance a sense of place. This is done through its metaphorical shape and the materials used.

The main table and seat are made from ironbark timber. Ironbark trees are found all along the

east coast of Australia and are an excellent native hardwood. Ironbark timber was used to build

many of the farms and homesteads, which occupy my three sites. Furthermore the pollen from

Ironbark trees is extremely important in the production of native honey. It is this narrative

that Hive modular system presents that would give a park a sense of place.


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technical drawing

Rationale Booklet - HIVE. Rowan Furlong UNSW

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