Crafts Market Co-Design Project
What is the Crafts Market Co-Design Project?
The WCQ Crafts Market Co-Design project aims to bring together the diverse local community of Waterford’s Cultural Quarter to collaboratively envision and design a flexible ‘pop-up’ weekend crafts market.
This project is part of the Irish Architecture Foundation’s Reimagine Programme – with key local partners including the Waterford City & County Council, WIT School of Architecture and their students, the Waterford Area Partnership and a commissioned co-design and architecture team.
It is envisioned that the crafts market would pop-up to take place on a small section of O’Connell Street that is currently pedestrianised at the weekends, to further encourage activity in the area that celebrates the Cultural Quarter’s rich diversity and supports local shops and businesses.
Community engagement experts Connect the Dots and architect and designer Rae Moore, of Atelier Rae Studio, have been commissioned to lead the co-design process on this project. WIT Architecture students are deeply involved through their research of market design precedents and the development of concept designs and prototypes in communication with the community’s insights and ideas gathered throughout the process.
In Autumn 2021, the project team:
- Met 1v1 with a variety of local business, culture and community stakeholders;
- Launched a community survey that gathered over 70 responses;
- Worked with WIT Architecture students, who developed several market design ideas based on community input; &
- Hosted a tent at Winterval to gather input on market stall design ideas developed by WIT architecture students.
Storm Barra and the latest Covid surge delayed plans for other co-designing in 2021. However, the final market stall prototypes created by WIT Architecture students were photographed and are showcased on WCQ Market Stall Prototypes
We are looking for your feedback on the students’ proposals. You can tell us what you think via the survey in the link below:
https://form.jotform.com/213404157733350
In March 2022, we are planning an online community workshop to help us move the project from a set of design ideas and concepts to reality – and we need your input!
March Event Description
The WCQ Crafts Market Co-Design Project’s Community Workshop will be held over Zoom on the 21st of March, from 18:30 to 20:00.
The workshop will include a brief section of presentations on the context for the project, market design ideas and the input that we’ve heard from the community so far.
The majority of the event will then be spent in collaborative small group discussions, with the goal of settling on a shared vision for the market and working through how the market should look, work, feel and develop in reality.
You can register for the online workshop through the link below:
https://form.jotform.com/220583067232350
If you have any questions or suggestions, please email hello@connectthedots.ie. We look forward to hearing from you.
WIT Architecture – Student Market Prototype Studies
The photography and images of the students work is reflective of a successful partnership with the WIT Dept. of Architecture. The Fourth years produced 4 proposals for a market stall and built these prototypes towards the end of 2021.
We are looking for your feedback on the students’ proposals. You can tell us what you think via the survey in the link below:
https://form.jotform.com/213404157733350
All photography and proposals are credited to WIT Dept. of Architecture.
The tutors involved were:
- Dr Sharon O Brien
- Richard Kenny
- Maire Henry
The Fourth Year Students involved in the project were:
Ciaran O’Dowd | Group 1 |
Andre Adam | Group 1 |
Mark McGinley | Group 1 |
David Geoghegan | Group 1 |
Luke Kinchella | Group 1 |
Curvin Lewis | Group 1 |
Manon Gagnoux (Nancy) | Group 1 |
Louis Devane | Group 2 |
Emily Laffan | Group 2 |
Alena Staats | Group 2 |
Shane Finnegan | Group 2 |
Jack Murphy | Group 2 |
Elizaveta Fomicheva (Milan) | Group 2 |
Marina Vilicic | Group 2 |
William Burke | Group 3 |
Matthew Kamassa | Group 3 |
Oshin Lucas | Group 3 |
Natalia Sadrina | Group 3 |
Kevin Mayindu | Group 3 |
Holiniaina Andriamasy (Nancy) | Group 3 |
Heloise Roy (Nancy) | Group 3 |
Joe Kelly | Group 4 |
Neil Quinn | Group 4 |
Alan Fitzgerald | Group 4 |
Sarah Brazil | Group 4 |
Arham Sherif | Group 4 |
Louis Cattiaux (Nancy) | Group 4 |
Student Proposals
GROUP 1
WCQ Markets_Group 1
GROUP 2
WCQ Markets_Group 2
GROUP 3
WCQ Markets_Group 3
GROUP 4
WCQ Markets_Group 4
Additional student photography by WIT School of Architecture