The Urban Nomad Shelter uses a self-conscious "design culture" aesthetic (think Target or Ikea) to re-brand the homeless and re-map urban real estate. The neon-colored cocoons work like soft pushpins on a city plan, making it impossible not to see the homeless and not to see them as human. As Kennedy put it, "The design makes a complex issue visible with the added virtue of operating on multiple platforms."
As easy as it is to ridicule the idea of 're-branding' the homeless, it makes good sense....take your average rational homeless person, give them a makeover and an outfit from the Gap and voila, you've got John or Jane Citizen.
In a time where respectable businessmen with cellphone ear buds look like ranting streetcorner lunatics, the reality that we're all human beings is underlined even more boldly.
Beyond suggesting market possibilities, the larva-like shelter subtly makes the point that this is transitional housing—so transitional that it doesn't allow for any kind of personalization. These walls would collapse if you tried to pin anything on them.
As a big metaphor buff, I really like that part about larva and transition.
Helping a homeless person think of their situation as a developmental stage instead of an end result, even on a highfalutin' metaphorical level, can only be good.
I think they're a bit optimistic about the shelters being personalization proof...the human need to imprint on their environment isn't going to be denied because the house will collapse on your head if you tack a picture to the wall.
But overall, a pretty snazzy implementation of a necessary item.
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