BRC Transitional Shelter
Client
Bowery Residents’ Committee (BRC)
A prototype furnishings system for one of New York City’s largest providers of shelter and services to the homeless.
For nearly 50 years, BRC has worked to break the cycle of homelessness in New York City. They help people reclaim lives lost, restoring hope and dignity by offering opportunities for health and self-sufficiency.
Project Brief
A furnishings system for BRC’s purpose-built transitional shelters, the project seeks to balance the seemingly oppositional needs of privacy, health, and safety and seeks to afford clients a sense of individual space and agency, while affording staff supervision and visibility.
Design Approach
A flexible frame acts as an armature for a mix of opaque and transparent panels that demarcate space and also ensure a higher degree of partitioning between residents. Simple materials and construction techniques ensure that residents enrolled in building maintenance programs are able to repair the system as needed.
Design Advocates Team
Studio Fōr: Fauzia Khanani, Adina Bauman, Laney Vela
Michael K. Chen Architecture: Robinson Strong, Michael Chen
Ladies and Gentlemen Studio: Dylan Davis, Jean Lee
Overlay Office: Abby Coover Hume
Office of Tangible Space: Michael Yarinsky
Worrell Yeung: Max Worrell, Jejon Yeung
Project Dates & Status
STUDY
July 2020
Final / Latest Deliverable
Spatial Principles
Aggregates
