SENSORIAL STRATEGIES IN THE DESIGN OF PUBLIC

Abstract

The present paper wishes to establish new criteria regarding the aesthetic revitalisation of public means of transport in the big cities of Romania, using the principles of sensorial design. Unlike France, country in which the public transport systems in big cities have been reconfigured and permanently improved by adopting new technical solutions, new materials and upholsteries, in Romania, the rough economic context from the last decades led to the purchase of used vehicles from the West; fact which gradually led to the increase of the aesthetic level of pollution in big cities. Taking into account that in the near-by future one cannot see any financial solutions for renewing the vehicle parks, in Iași, the TRAMCLUB NGO initiated the project “The aesthetic revitalisation of RATP [1] Iași public means of transport”, in partnership with RATP Iași and two private companies as sponsors. The project foresees the aesthetic integration of means of transport in the urban aesthetics through a chromatic unification and increasing the quality of the travel experience by adopting a unitary upholstery resistant to wear and with a high level of washability. With the support of the Faculty of Visual Arts and Design (“G. Enescu” University of Arts, Iași), a workshop for students of all study years was organised, with the purpose of choosing the best version of chairs reupholstering, in full accordance with the new visual identity.

Keywords

• Public transport
• Ecology
• Urban aestetics
• Upholstery
• Textile materials