Karlis Kukainis
"Barraspeak" democratic discussion centre
Merging between the Barras and "Discussion" markets
Traditional civic forum reinterpreted into an urban democratic civic typology using the stimulating environment of Barras market and the instant knowledge-sharing abilities of the online civic space.
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Reinterpret a traditional civic forum into a new urban democratic civic typology using the casual, diverse and stimulating environment of the Barras Market and the instant knowledge and opinion sharing as well as connectivity abilities of the online civic space. A new civic typology enables the public to be directly involved in the wider range of formal civic discourses ranging from politics and economics to environment and culture. The building is arranged around four main functionalities. Firstly, inspired by the success of democracy festivals of Northern Europe a “Discussion market” with a series of expandable spaces on the ground floor provides a place not only for talks and discussions that can be streamed but for most of the time are occupied by educational activities or booked for coworking purposes. Secondly, the main performance hall mainly designed for conferences, talks and presentations, can also act as a multifunctional space for many other activities acting as a new cultural node in the diverse network of event spaces in Glasgow. Thirdly, these spaces require an administrative support entity, that curates the events and manages these spaces. Therefore, the administration is supplemented with the Institute of Investigative Journalism and Discussion in collaboration with the University of Glasgow. The institute would help to support the curation of the events in the “Discussion Market” and the factuality of the information, as well as help expand the institution’s agenda of critical thinking, objective opinions and research-based decisions to the wider public. Finally, a mediatheque (media library) that can collect and archive the discussions and plethora of other materials in different media regarding civil liability, politics, economics, history, science and international relations for any member of the public to use. By retaining the historic market’s spirit a civic urban building is introduced that supports research and educational possibilities on daily basis. Meanwhile, it provides a forum for civic discussion in the centre of the politically active city of Glasgow on a weekly or monthly basis opening up as a market and creating a network of inviting spaces for these conversations to take place. This creates an engaging, permanent and direct discussion between the public and the state, businesses and politicians.