'Responsive City' proposes a new way to inhabit and change the density of cities, where the boundaries between social distancing and daily inhabitation start to overlap and interact with each other. This project is particularly focused on the notion of 'overlooking'. The interpretations of overlooking, that is, how overlooking can both mean 'to provide a view of' and 'to oversee' (as in not seeing), are translated into social interactions and architecture.

With a starting point in Alton Estate, south west London, the project inhabits a gap site around existing slab blocks built in the 1950s. As physical and mental aspects of life become more disconnected from their surroundings, this project speculates on what it means to inhabit transparency and how this notion can help to connect individuals. As a result, the project creates an ecosystem of overlooking and a housing typology that stems from its immediate surroundings.

Does considering transparency in all stages of the process create stronger bonds between the inhabitants? Does it help build a stronger community and create a stronger connection to the surroundings? Does it help nurture an environment which is more responsive to both social and environmental changes?