The Observer Effect | Brighton, UK | Unit 21 | 2021

In physics, the observer effect is the disturbance of an observed system by the act of observation. This is often the result of instruments that, by necessity, alter the state of what they measure in some manner.

This project attempts to embrace the uncertainties of observation through developing frameworks that transform records of everyday presence into a spatial form. Zoom calls and archived material are fed into live feedback loops which allow participants to transform and manipulate geometry in real-time, resulting in a collaborative and participatory architecture where observers make meaningful and traceable contributions to the built environment.

These frameworks are first applied to a Cultural Center in Brighton. Aiming to contribute to projects that continue to elevate the everyday, the proposal houses internal and external events, community space, studios for local artists and craftsmen, and an archival offshoot of the Mass Observation Project. This is a unique national life writing project which continues to be one of the major repositories of longitudinal qualitative social data in the UK.

Project Overview – The Observer Effect

This films details the concept of an imagined storyboard of schemes and the ways in which presence has influenced the architecture.