Overview

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about Urban Mirror
02:22

About Urban Mirror

Inspired by Corn Market Street’s vibrant and important history. Urban Mirror creates a space and place to welcome and host people. When considering this work, the architects, plattenbaustudio, thought of a table, a simple and universal form of architecture. Seen from a distance or above, the tabletop shines with the reflective qualities of water, connecting it with the rich mercantile and maritime history of Cork City. This reference to water is a nod to the history of this plaza. Locally known as Coal Quay, this area once was a working quay on a channel off the river Lee before it was infilled

The curvilinear and organic form of the tabletop is made of highly polished stainless steel. Suggesting the waterbody that was once here. This table is cleverly designed and can host up to fifty people. The seating is clustered around the curves, so it is social and welcoming groups and comfortable for individuals to enjoy too. As Urban Mirror on a slope, the chair heights vary with the typography so it can welcome people of different heights from low chairs to countertop heights, accommodating pushchairs and motility aids. Underscoring its function as a welcoming and special place of gathering for all.

The table is illuminated at night by a warm yellow globe light just like a pendant light in a dining room. The globe is rough in texture, like a paper lantern or moon. It’s designed to be something you can see from a distance in daylight. It’s like a dropped pin on the map of the street. At night Instead of the sky being the roof of over the table, the light glows almost like a ceiling. It is a place to be social, rest and relax.

“What we’d all noticed was that a lot of the street – and the pavement, with the outdoor cafes and so on – was very monetized. You had to be able to buy a cup of tea or a coffee to be able to sit at those spaces. So Urban Mirror was an offering to the city, a place where anybody and everybody can sit.

The globe light is like one of those old-fashioned pins you’d stick in a map, as if to say, we are here. By night it illuminates, so you can see it from all around.”

plattenbaustudio

The Artist

plattenbaustudio

plattenbaustudio is an architecture duo, based in Berlin, and has a strong connection with Cork. They focus on the design of architectural projects parallel to their architectural drawing and research work. Their primary interest lies in the everyday interaction between people and space. Their approach to architecture is guided by critical observation. Part of their studio is dedicated to developing contemporary architectural drawing, and they use drawings as tools to study, communicate, and design for the complexities of the built environment. Their practice is also active in the academic world, and they regularly work with universities to connect directly with students and staff through workshops, research, and teaching. They have given workshops at the Cork Centre for Architectural Education (CCAE) at University College Cork. This dialogue between practice and academia allows them to broaden their knowledge base and consistently update and build upon their insights and understanding of architecture. They are constantly curious about the built environment and how people use it to inform their work, from built projects to drawing projects. Plattenbaustudio projects are grounded in context and attempt to highlight the user at every point, to make architecture that is place-specific, playful, and responsive.

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