Bridge-market: connecting the in-between: the marketplace as an articulator of public space

Abstract

The marketplace has been throughout history a powerful promotor of public space, from the beginning when trade and dealings between people were done in these special designated places it quickly became a necessity of everyday life. With the passing of time and the arrival of modernity our cities have changed, and so the way we approach the market as an everyday aspect of our lives; markets today are losing ground to more convenient ways of shopping like the supermarket or convenience store, the cultural exchange that the market provides to a community is being replaced by fast and lifeless methods of buying. The market must evolve in order to survive these changes, it has to bring more to the city than a place to buy and sell, it needs to become a new centrality where public and private spaces meet. The hybrid-building typologies have provided us with new ways of designing the city, where mixed use is key in order to promote the use of space in different ways, this diversity creates possibilities for the city to adapt and to move. In this thesis I explore the role of the hybrid space and how it can be applied to the market, taking special emphasis on the bridge-building structure and how it can create a relationship with the public and private realms and provide in-between spaces for the contemporary life. The proposal acts literally as a bridge that links a system of housing, co-working areas, commerce and public space with the Fira II building, and at its core the marketplace serves as the articulating piece for the whole project.