Felia Hanifa – Rolling Stories

initial sketches

initial sketches include most of the notable settings listed in the We, Robot gamebook under the category of “Wayfinding”

I’ve been trying to lay out my interpretation of the world map by including bodies of water/vegetation and green spaces if there are any and how i would think the city is laid out (city centers, which part of the city is planned and which parts are organic urban growth and settlement etc.)

ive also taken assumed there are parts of the city that was from the pre-robot era, if that is okay! i thought it would make sense for there to be a pre-existing settlement before the central computer was “switched on” and everyone started to live around it.

ive also tried to use some old half made unused 3d model to try and make some parts of offgrid settlements

i dabbled in it just to see if it was a viable way of going about the final illustrations of the map and environment.

overall ive been trying to layout the world map and stitching together all the sketches and edits to hopefully bring a coherent map by our next meeting! (though it wouldnt be the most pretty).

ill post the progress of the map as soon as theyre all together and clear

In developing fictional environments and settings, there comes an opportunity to approach it through applying architecture knowledge. Though speculating is a core part of the design process in architecture, the field of Speculative Architecture is not one of popularity.

Below are a few things gathered around the definition of speculative architecture:

The term “architecture fiction” is known to have been coined by writer Bruce Sterling in 2006, in referring to an architect’s speculative projects that are more alike self-expression through visual storytelling that concern the built environment.

Narrative driven projects and storytelling through architecture. Seeing as the design processes in the field also call for the ability to present, explore, and synthesize complex ideas.

Fictional architecture is the imagination and visual realization of unbuilt structures, dwellings, and urban environments. Operating between art and architecture as it gives opportunity to ponder architectural possibilities without bounds.

Speculative designs may offer visionary directions forward.

“Their subversive work guides our collective move forward, not by indicating an ideal destination, but rather by offering directions along the way.”
source: https://www.architectural-review.com/essays/speculative-design-playing-devils-advocate/8659931.article

Archigram

Archigram seems to be one of the more known example of speculative architecture, since the newsletter and illustrations that were created are mostly just radical ideas and fictional instead of being an actual built environment.

Avant-garde architectural group based in London that incorporated pop culture and advertising, new technology and neo-futurist imagery in the late 1960s. The group came about to criticize projects, write letters to the architectural press, and help each other in projects and competitions in an attempt to keep each other from the boredom of post-war London firms.
Their newsletter, which was illustrations of radical architecture ideas, were meant to re-evaluate architectural practices and it’s nature at the time. Their illustrations were made used theories of modern architecture such as Futurism, Constructivism, and Brutalism
It has been noted that due to its unfettered creativity, Archigram was usually enjoyed more by artists since most architects of the time dismissed it as fantastical.
But looking back at Modern British architecture, Archigram played a part in practicing the Brutalist style of architecture and inspired more structural and functionalist expressionism in buildings. This helped spark the more futuristic High-Tech architecture that started at the end of British 20^th Century architecture.