On the Way to the Sea by Derman Verbakel Architecture

Tel Aviv studio Derman Verbakel Architecture have installed a series of archways and mobile furniture between the city and the sea in Bat Yam, Israel.

Called On the Way to the Sea, the project comprises a series of fixed arches around which canopies and clusters of benches and tables on wheels can be arranged to facilitate social gatherings.

The project was designed for the Bat Yam Biennale of Landscape Urbanism.

Photographs are by Yuval Tebol unless stated otherwise.

The information below is from Derman Verbakel Architecture:

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On the Way to the Sea

Elie Derman, Els Verbakel
Derman Verbakel Architecture

“On the way to the sea” transforms the space that lies between the city and the sea to a place of its own rather than an in-between passage. The way to or from the sea passes through the site but the movement from point A to point B is not the purpose. A series of frames carefully positioned between city edge to sea shore host public activities, creating a new use for this in-between space.

The installation invites inhabitants and passers-by to intervene and create opportunities for events and unexpected interactions by manipulating different elements integrated within the frames. In the gap between city and sea, the project encourages collective and individual interactions that range from urban events to beach activities.

A series of fixed frames containing movable elements creates a basic infrastructure in which users have the freedom to alter the urban space and fit it to their own private uses. Within the same frame, users can make changes to create very different situations and even fulfill the desire for a private space in the public domain.

Starting at the city edge, visitors can start engaging with the space through an entrance ramp at the individual scale, leading to a balcony facing the street, followed by an “unfolded” living room constructed of elements that can be used as walking surface, table or chair.

Starting from this more intimate apartment layout that faces the street, the installation then transforms towards the beach into a series of more public spaces such as ‘picnic on the lawn’ – a flexible structure with movable benches and tables turning around an axis, allowing for different seating arrangements and shaded ‘urban rooms’ that can be used for birthday parties or other social events.

At the interface between the project and the beach, an open terrace offers views to the sea, providing shade and reclined seating facing the horizon. Together, the elements create a micro-climate where people can meet, play, eat, talk or just hang out, thereby producing a platform for a wide range of possible interactions, from daily uses to special events.