A successful place grows naturally, logically and creatively out of its conditions
We firmly believe that an urban designer and master planner embodies the role of a generalist—a conductor orchestrating a symphony, rather than a virtuoso playing every instrument flawlessly. As designers, our mission is to coordinate a team of professionals encompassing transport planners, landscape architects, and experts from various disciplines. Our comprehensive understanding of each discipline enables us to navigate and amalgamate conflicting demands while prioritizing the client’s needs and the project’s overall integrity.
At Mosaic, we embrace the idea that limitations stimulate creativity. We don’t lament the constraints posed by a design problem—a small site, challenging topography, or any other obstacle. Instead, we relish such complexities, recognizing them as opportunities that demand a creatively designed solution for success. Our approach perceives constraints as avenues waiting to be unlocked.
Our Approach.
Ours is a collaborative, participatory approach that actively works through design solutions with the client, the community and other key stakeholders through workshop events.
1. LISTEN
We work proactively with our clients to help shape the brief and provide additional value at the outset.
This might include suggestions on land assembly, the core vision or project strategy.
2. LEARN
Seek to understand a design problem before chasing after solutions.
Next we learn. Mosaic has developed an evidence based place ‘Audit’ tool. The Audit is a comprehensive analysis of the site and the wider area. This encompasses assessment of access to local facilities, landscape and open space, and connectivity. The Audit is a tool developed to demonstrate the site’s inherent suitability as a sustainable location for new development or as a site for regeneration.
3. COLLABORATE
Properly gaining control of the design process involves losing a little control of the design process.
We believe in a participatory process with the client at its heart. Through a series of design workshops and events we collaborate with the:
- Client
- Consultant team
- Community
- Other key stakeholders
4. DESIGN TRANSLATION
Beauty is due more to harmonious relationships among the elements of a composition than to the elements themselves.
Our design approach translates the learning and collaboration stages to distil an overriding idea (the vision!), regardless of project scale. Often the placemaking idea is born from evidence – a response to the understanding of what is lacking physically, socially, environmentally and economically. This approach creates an undeniable rationale to decision makers and creates real places for the benefit of existing communities.
Finally, be bold! The more specific a design idea is, the greater its appeal is likely to be. Being nonspecific to appeal to everyone usually results in reaching no one.
5. LISTEN TO OTHERS
Locals always know the most about the place they live. Listen!
Once we have a draft design, we listen to others – to the client and key stakeholders. We believe in removing ourselves from prideful investment in our projects and being slow to fall in love with our ideas. We’re not afraid to ask “What if…?” regardless of how satisfied we are with a solution.
6. DESIGN AGAIN
A good designer isn’t afraid to throw away a good idea.
Once we have listened and learned from key stakeholders and the community, we design again.
As the design process advances, complications inevitably arise – difficulties in resolving movement, programme, fluctuating client requests, new understandings of old information and much more. A poor designer will attempt to hold on to a failed idea and patch local fixes onto the problem areas, thus losing integrity of the whole. At Mosaic, when complications arise we are not afraid to change or, if necessary, to abandon the idea.
7. ADVOCATE/ COMMUNICATE/ FACILITATE
If you can’t explain your ideas to your audience in terms they understand, you don’t know your subject well enough.
You may have the best design but if it is not a clear, logical and undeniable proposition then the process is a failure – and a waste of money. At Mosaic, we believe in communicating ideas simply through a clear and logical core vision. Often we refer to this as the ‘story-telling approach’ – a simple step-by-step journey which takes the reader from a problem to a rational and undeniable solution.
When telling an engaging story it is important to use everyday language. It’s easy to forget that many of our audience are not trained professionals. Some designers use overly complex, and often meaningless, language in an attempt to gain recognition and respect. We don’t.
8. DELIVER
Mosaic takes concepts through to delivery.
We often produce design codes and guides for our designs and work with the house builders and community to ensure the vision enshrined in earlier stages is delivered.
A successful place grows naturally, logically and creatively out of its conditions
We believe an urban designer and masterplanner is a generalist – the conductor of a symphony, not a virtuoso who plays every instrument perfectly. As designers, we help to coordinate a team of professionals that includes transport planners, landscape architects and specialists from other disciplines.