Tina Hovsepian of global architecture firm Callison was driven by the need to help homeless individuals in Los Angeles when she designed the first prototype for the "Cardborigami" shelter during her fourth year at USC's School of Architecture. Cardborigami, which has grown into a non-profit organization, provides temporary housing for the homeless as part of a process to help them gradually overcome their state of homelessness.
The Cardborigami shelter balances innovative design and functionality. The application of traditional origami techniques onto cardboard gives the shelter a beautiful form. Before its modified origami form, the shelter was originally a re-design of an Air-stream trailer. "The idea is to deploy a trailer to a disaster site where mass shelter is needed, then the trailer expands to 20 times its length and twice its width to provide instant space," Hovsepian explained over email. "The form was then revised and re-scaled to fulfill its potential as a portable alternative to transitional shelters for the urban homeless."
Hovsepian chose standard cardboard because of its durable structure and weather-resistant qualities. According to recent studies, the shelter is able to withstand high winds and is flame-retardant, but can't handle large spills without water-resistant treatment. Hovsepian said she is currently searching for viable water-proofing solutions, which has been her biggest challenge. The shelters can be recycled and replaced once they wear out after a month or two.
Hovsepian stressed that the shelters are designed to be temporary because they are the first step in a process she and the Cardborigami team developed to help homeless individuals reintegrate into society in a positive, supportive way. Through Cardborigami and the help of other organizations, they have access to finding permanent homes and job-training programs. She also added that the shelters aren't simply distributed on the streets. Instead, they are only being used on the private and secure properties of Cardborigami's partner organizations.
Cardborigami also aims to redefine society's negative perceptions of the ongoing issue. "I have had the fortune to engage in dialogue with a diverse array of homeless individuals throughout Los Angeles and Las Vegas. My observation is that there seems to be a general misconception about the homeless population which permeates our society like a powerful force—that of ignorance and denial," Hovsepian wrote.
"A general reaction I have heard often is: 'they are all addicts and they should just get a job.' The reality, however, is that each individual's story is different and the circumstances that lead to homelessness could happen to anyone. Because the individual differences among the homeless population is greatly overlooked, different approaches are not implemented effectively. Cardborigami aims to fill that gap."
To date, the project has received positive feedback and garnered international attention.
Last month, Hovsepian received a $10,000 Annenberg Grant to support Cardborigami's mission of raising awareness and bringing hope to those in need.
Cardborigami is set to implement its program in the near future at a new homeless shelter at L.A.'s Skid Row. The group also plans to eventually sell the shelter to the general public to ensure financial self-sufficiency in addition to the grants and donations the group receives.
For those in the L.A. area, Cardborigami will be assembling a few shelters at the Callison L.A. office on Aug. 14 at 4 p.m.
For more info on Cardborigami, click here or here. You can also follow them on Facebook or Twitter.
22 Comments
This is absolutely absurd. Why not just make a big cardboard origami sign that says "I'm a bourgeois architect who doesn't give a shit about the homeless." And what asshole would give this a grant? really? Wow
Homeless people can find their own cardboard boxes to sleep in.
Everyone involved with this shit should be ashamed.
I think the big cardboard origami sign should say "Like my parents totally pay for all of my living expenses and I'm like, totally, you know, interested in like, helping the homeless and stuff." Are the individuals involved aware of something called the "tent". The "tent" probably costs half as much as this cardboard box and will not melt in a rain storm.
.
Rich little brats Exploiting the homeless. What a stupid project. Cthulhu, good point. A small tent costs about 30 bucks. I say these shit heads go live on skid row for a couple weeks as part of their site research.
On a side note, I think this exposes a much larger phenomenon in the current academic realm. A sort of delusion of grandeur regarding the reach, scope, and effect of architecture. The idea that architecture must be about anything but architecture. Architecture cannot solve the worlds problems, but it may be able to persuade society into a better direction. Architectures greatest power lies in its ability to inspire and enlighten individuals and societies. To act as a symbol of human achievement and hope. it is never a means of change, but it can act as a catalyst. Architectures effect on social and cultural movement is and has always been indirect. Perhaps this generations culture of instant gratification is incapable of embracing this reality. Or perhaps academia is hiding this fact because it is too hard for most students to achieve and generally cannot be taught. maybe its just too unacceptable in a culture where everyone gets a trophy. This indirect effect is where the architecture happens. If we try to circumvent this and force a direct effect we usually achieve neither.
I have to comment again because this project continues to bother me on so many levels. The first picture with the separated races, whether on purpose or not, and whether any of them are actually homeless or not - just awful. But naive faux pas aside, architecturally, this thing looks like a giant bed bug and it doesn't even look like it would fully cover a sleeping adult.
Thanks all for already voicing my thought - "uh, why not just a tent?" I hope you all saw the "P.A.D.S." for the pneumatically acuuated depoRable structure." Yep - that was the typo, deplorable when they meant deploYable. Excellent mistake.
Bizarrely, this isn't for the homeless, but meant as some sort of magic radiation protection device.
I had the same reaction as everyone else at first, but after looking at their website I've decided that if the goal is to raise awareness of the problems and pique people's interest to apply their imagination or any effort at all, they are doing an ok job. They need to state more clearly their intent. They are doing fine at raising awareness and they have good intentions.
I agree that architectural design is not always needed, and in this case it seems too complicated and time consuming for somebody needing shelter before the sun sets in 6 hours to fold and cut a bunch of cardboard sheets to make this thing, definitely find a tent. If its handed out, fine, I could see that. Is it belittling to give somebody who may sleep in cardboard another peice of cardboard? questionable, but my guess is that most would appreciate the shelter more than a refrigerator box...perhaps its too conspicuous for the vulnerability of the streets though..idk.
Broader system design thinking should be applied too, she's partnering up with homeless shelters, and learning the logistics of this dillema, so there may be some great opportunities to grow or completely alter this design into something impactful.
At least she's doing something I say, which is better than most. Nobody gets it perfect on the first try.
Call this; Extreme Cardboard Home Makeover.
This thing is wrong on so many levels, it's hard to know where to begin.
Bricks,
This has less to do about bringing awareness to the homeless and more about a shameless attempt tomarket ones self as a compasionate designer. I'm Sorry, but if your not aware of the homeless problem in the United States, LA, or Skid Row for that matter, you need to climb out of what ever rock you are living under.
The big problem isnt that some one is designing a more aestetically pleasing box for the homeless (which by the way is on par with designing a better watermellon for black people to eat, horribly horribly wrong). Its that there are actual services and groups that lobby on behalf of, provide counsiling, and create housing opportunities for people in need. This just takes funding away from programs that actually make a diiference.
This person shouldn't be allowed to work as an architect. She should quit her job, and spend the rest of her life making trinkets with a hot glue gun.
I'm not even going to comment on the box other than to ask if these people seriously think a bulky, hard to transport, probably takes time and patience to assemble, cardboard box is realist
What most homeless people really need is as follows, at least from my experience. A warm, water proof jacket. Good water resistant footwear. Wool socks. A decent pair of warm, water resistant gloves. A good warm beanie. Cans of sterno fuel would be a much appreciated warmth giver and way to heat food or water. Good quality dog and or cat food is a much needed item for the homeless. My younger sis is homeless and cares for a colony of feral cats. And yes, tents are also a much needed item, as well as warm blankets or sleeping bags. While I think the card origami people's heart may be in the right place I really don't think a cardboard box will work. I go to homeless camps for a variety of reasons and when it is wet and cold like it is right now it is absolutely horrible in some spots. Then let's throw in lots of mud and debris. Rubber boots are also something useful.peace.
Most of my comments about this project reflect those previous; that privileged designers creating aesthetically pleasing "solutions" to entrenched, societal issues is at best naive and at worst pointedly elitist. First of all, tents already exist, and they are better than this design, in which cardboard is a comically useless material for the realities of homelessness beyond the cardboard box structures already created, and leaving a gaping opening on one end severely limits the warming and privacy capacities of the shelter. If the intent is to "raise awareness", then that highlights another classic elitist fallacy of those in higher education attempting to solve the issues of people they don't understand at all: people are aware of homelessness. If you were to see this tent vs. another on the street, how exactly would this one raise more awareness than the visibly homeless person already was?
Additionally, I want to note that the design is exactly the same (although less detailed) as an undergraduate project I completed with three colleagues at MassArt about a decade ago. Ours was smaller, intended only for one sleeping occupant, included a folding platform to lift it, didn't use cardboard due to its flimsiness in wet conditions, and folded into a compact backpack with a zippered door for closure. We also had enough awareness to realize that homeless people would be an unlikely main audience for such a product, so we marketed it as an emergency shelter for hikers and skiers, a festival tent, amongst other uses. We used the same origami folding method for this product.
This type of project is why people is why people don't perceive architects as being fundamental to shaping society: because so many designers think change comes from making a pretty object, rather than delving deep into the complex and nuanced issues and combining spatial design with policy, with social change, and with civic action.
Excellent ...
Bravo for giving it the old college try - architecture is about creative, and perhaps provocative, thinking and providing some (initially always undefined) benefit - it is stated "they are only being used on the private and secure properties." - the geometric shape is intriguing especially with the artistic flair - perhaps these could be accordion-like thus easily transported - cardboard is a recycled material and can be plasticized to protect against the elements ...
Great Job on a Novel Concept - your heart is in the right place my friend - and f*ck the rest of you worthless architectural critics ...
You realize that you got sucking into a thread from an article posted in 2013?
Wow - my old friend OddArchitect is all over the place - I thought it was from an article posted in 2012 - where do you hail from anyway? ...
When something pops up I'll comment on it if I can add something to it. My personal info is in my profile.
Where are you from?
New Laguna, NM - a Pueblo Indian Reservation 36 miles west of Albuquerque on I-40 - previously of Santa Fe, home of the mud huts in the desert ...
Cal Poly Pomona, Glen Small and Ahdi Lahti studio (1971)
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