Interrogative Design as a Means for Confronting Hostile Architecture

This practice-based research considers how, in the context of homelessness, people struggle to inhabit and shape space to connect with their surroundings and establish a sense of place. Focusing on the situation of homelessness in London, the research investigates spatial design as a form of interrogative design applied to the issue of homelessness. The thesis interrogates hostile design by exploring the theoretical underpinnings of ‘affordance’ theory and its implications for understanding the phenomenon of so-called ‘hostile’ architecture; it examines possibilities to shed light on the complex interplay between human perception, environmental affordances, and social control. Here, the body is seen as a critical location of our connection and expression of our sociality.

Homelessness is a multifaceted concept, and people neglect the vulnerability associated with a population that is disproportionally impacted by social, economic, political and environmental agendas in London. Focusing on the physical and psychological relation with space, negatively impacted by hostile architecture, the research aims to conduct an anonymised inventory of private domestic rituals, necessarily carried out in public through drawings, maps and photographs of traces of inhabitation. This research engages spatial conditions that push the boundary of public space, using temporal edifices and social narratives. The research will draw on the various notions and typologies of hostile design, in order to highlight the dehumanising nature of such designs in the built environment and the repercussions of designing public space with social exclusion in mind.

Examining the intersection of hostile design, homelessness, and the blurred divide between public and private space in London, the research uses practice to confront this boundary, shedding new light on how urban environments impact vulnerable populations. It seeks to counter effects of hostile architecture on the homeless through interventions that transform negative design into affordances. This utilises drawing as a core method to my practice, allowing me to capture and communicate the complex intersections between public and private spaces, and the impact on people who are homeless. This references the notion of the ‘squatters handbook’, which offers historical and practical perspectives on how individuals might interact with urban environments in order to counter hostile design and claim their right to public spaces. This approach adds to knowledge by providing a creative lens through which to evaluate urban dynamics; it also emphasises the importance of artistic methods in addressing social issues and effecting meaningful change.

My research demonstrates how design and co-creation can intervene to amplify the voices of people with lived experiences of homelessness, that are often not heard, making visible the advocacy needed for this sort of social mobility. This challenges the perception of homelessness and invites the public to renegotiate their perception of homelessness by confronting the boundary between public and private spaces.