KARAOKE COURT 

>Bartlett School of Architecture
>Semester-long




Based on Jack Tan’s project of the same name, the Karaoke Court uses the Inuit tradition of the Song Duel, where the outcome of a legal dispute is based on karaoke performances. Transforming the legal environment into an organic space where we feel comfortable, the project undermines the authority of the courtroom, deconstructing its clinical solemnity and hierarchical architecture.










CARDBOARD

In collaboration with Clara Lyckeus.
Experimenting with discarded cardboard boxes, we sought to design seating under 2 kg CO2e that could be easily assembled and dissembled by the public, while also encouraging collaborative effort between members of the audience. Our final design encompassed our main objectives: it took up near to the entirety of the cardboard sheets widely discarded from local shops, was composed by two of the same pattern and was a comfortable and durable seat. It is 100% recyclable and didn’t use any type of adhesive.



Final Design








MANUFACTURE

In collaboration with Clara Lyckeus.
At the 200-model scale for the event, we sought to mass manufacture the design by attaching a drag blade to a CNC machine. Using a laser-cut stencil to teach the folding process, the assembly became a 10-minute process and involces the audience in the construction of the Karaoke Court.  As they leave the evnt, they can easily deassemble and recycle their seat. The cardboard many times came soiled or bent. This influenced its ability to handle large amounts of weights and led us to introduce weaving into our design.




Manufacture testing process and tools



LIGHTING

In collaboration with Alex Savova.
The lighting was scripted inspired by Tschumi’s screenplays. The architect believed that architecture did not exist without events, actions, and activity. We expanded this philosophy to design the relation between the audience and space through strategic interations between lighting and furniture.


Lighting concept models





STAGE DESIGN


Illustrations of final possible seating arrangements based on courtroom design and indigenous song duel practices. These render explore of the unconscious hierarchies the different organizations create and how they influence the nature of the event.


Concept render of possible seating arrangements of the final event.




No final event images are available as the Karaoke Court was postponed
due to COVID-19 related event restrictions.