A taste of transience

Abstract

Increasingly, our complex cities are made up of more mobile and less location-dependant companies, inhabitants and visitors. This has led to unprecedented and unpredictable demands for novelty and variety. The impact of this ever-changing demand is particularly evident in the hospitality industry where the cost of entry is high. One of the more notable challenges of the industry is its transience and the pressures to be differentiated from other establishments. However, restaurant facilities are relatively fixed and limit restaurateurs’ flexibility to experiment with ideas and gain exposure.

This thesis explores how a city can maintain its vitality through the facilitation of temporary dining experiences, encompassing performance, exhibition and a sense of event. It explores how reconfigurable textile architecture can relate and respond to the constantly changing nature apparent in the hospitality industry. The ‘pop-up’ – a term used to define the temporary occupation of a space for only days, weeks or months at a time – is investigated as an important addition and opportunity for bringing attention to neglected and undiscovered places.

The combination of rigid pragmatics with mobility and ephemerality are tested in a series of design experiments. Underused locations explore the most flexible manifestation of a designed dining experience, temporarily theatricalising the city.