Kailey Kroeker

developing the plan

kaileykroeker — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 18:15:16 +0000

Based on security and safety issues, the primary goals of my supermarket architecture are to achieve an increased presence of people in the store (eyes on the street mentality), expansive view points for the employees of the supermarket, an increased transparency of the entire process of the supermarket (from delivery to shelves) and the people involved in this process, and an increased sense of community and ownership for the supermarket. The first change initiated was to allow the delivery truck to enter into the centre of the store. By doing this, the employees stocking the shelves have a minimal distance to lug the boxes of food items from delivery to the appropriate location in the store. Additionally, the shoppers in the supermarket can immediately experience “delivery day” and be aware of the process through the presence of the delivery truck.

rethinking the aisle

kaileykroeker — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 17:08:56 +0000

Before winter break I did a schematic plan of the store, wherein the presence of people replaced the security cameras. First locating where the people should be in the supermarket to minimize pockets of unprotected space, the shelves were then shaped to create nooks. These nooks were intended to offer places of semi-privacy for people to feel more comfortable as they shop and converse with other shoppers. The following are a plan and section/elevation of the schematic plan.

films3

kaileykroeker — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 01:14:54 +0000

Duration: 21.0 sec

Subject: Person One purchases bananas, milk, and eggs. Person Two purchases 2 cans of soda and toilet paper. Person Three purchases 1 can of soda.

films2

kaileykroeker — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 01:07:09 +0000

Duration: 7.0 sec

Subject: Person selects bananas, drops them by accident, picks them up and continues shopping.

films

kaileykroeker — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 00:23:44 +0000

stills

kaileykroeker — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 15:20:07 +0000

The following are stills from the video I took while grocery shopping in Pal’s using a shopping cart. Each series is of a distinct moment of friction that I experienced in the supermarket, and the moments I studied in the axonometric drawing.

shoppingcart

kaileykroeker — Sat, 12 Nov 2011 17:55:59 +0000

After doing the narratives, I wondered what actually influences our actions. There are internal reasons, like past experiences, and there are external reasons, like the space itself and other people you are sharing the space with. The latter references the architecture of Pal’s directly. So I decided to study the spatial conditions of the supermarket in hopes of developing an understanding of the influences of architecture present in the actions taken by the characters of the narratives. I chose to study this through the use of a shopping cart. There were moments of friction where I would cross paths with a person and become intensely aware of my presence and my surroundings. There were also territories of friction– tight spaces that would remain uncomfortable whether or not others were present. I chose to map these distinct areas in the store through an axonometric drawing. What intrigues me from this exercise is that the architecture of the store is not present until a moment of friction forces it to one’s attention.

narratives

kaileykroeker — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 21:40:52 +0000

It is clear that the people are what interest me most about Pal’s. It seems that what people shop for and how they do so have the ability to reveal much about their lives beyond the supermarket. With this in mind I’ve been mapping the site through short narratives of people I have observed while shopping or sitting on the bench across the street.

plandrawing

kaileykroeker — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 17:16:25 +0000

After noticing the visual cues in Pal’s such as the hand printed labels, the strange mix of suppliers, and the mish mash of shelves, fridges, and signs I wondered what those imperfections mean. Somehow these visual imperfections do not seem to stop people from shopping at Pal’s. In a way the imperfections in Pal’s are representative of the idiosyncratic clientele. Additionally, the specific products supplied at Pal’s somehow reveal the identities of those who are demanding these products. With this in mind I wondered if understanding the products and their placement in the store would reveal something new about who exactly shops at Pal’s Supermarket. So I went to Pal’s and spent about half an hour mapping things out roughly in my sketch book. From that I made a large plan of the store, carefully drawing all the products and shelving/storage units. I also drew in where people were moving most often in the store while I was there.

new year, new proj

kaileykroeker — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 16:34:59 +0000

It’s the start of a new school year which means a new studio project. I am pumped. I found this fabulously grungy place called Pal’s Supermarket at 619 Broadway.

I was roaming the aisles for a while, mesmerized by the handwritten labels, when I thought I should probably buy something. I knew there was something I actually needed that I forgot to get at Food Fare the day before. I couldn’t remember, so I went for the OJ and continued to roam. Butter. I suddenly remembered I needed butter. So I booked it to the corner by the milk, eggs, and margarine. Yes margarine. Only margarine. No butter? Excuse me? Where the butter at? How is this a grocery store if there’s no butter? I decided to ask someone. The whole time I had been in the grocery store, there was this really old, “rough-around-the-edges” guy slowly (and I mean sloooooowly) carting out crates of 2 L pop bottles. He was about to dive into the back for the next crate so I quickly asked him. “Do you have butter?” His response: ”Butter. You want butter. You want butter. Okay. Butter. Okay. Right. Right in the corner over there. Where the cashier is. Ask the cashier. He’ll give you butter.” My response: wtf?? I was sure he was making a fool of me. I could’ve sworn he was smirking. Was I going to ask the cashier for butter? Hahahahahaha! no. Buyin butter from behind the counter like it’s a pack of cigarettes?? No way. Can’t be real. So I went to the checkout and bought my OJ. All was dandy as I pushed the door open to leave, still chuckling about the old man pulling my leg about butter, when I looked to my left and saw a glass-front fridge full of butter. I stopped in my spot and literally LOL-ed. It’s real! Now I know that at Pal’s Supermarket, you have to ask the cashier if you would like to purchase the following: a block of butter, fancy cheese, or pre-packaged, ready-to-eat cheeseburgers (in packs of two).

This butter story is the start of my studio project. I went back the next day to buy butter. I don’t think people buy butter very often because Raman (the receipt told me this was the cashier’s name) had to phone to the back to ask for assistance in scanning/pricing this block of precious, valuable butter. But I got it. I know have my very own block of Pal’s Supermarket butter. I assure you, not many people can say that.

Here are some pics of the place. I’ll probably start figuring out the names of all the cashiers who work there by obsessively going there and buying groceries at all times of the day until I have all the information (or they begin to suspect me). I’m hoping the strange clientelle will distract them from suspecting me, the innocent blond girl buying ingredients to make a black forest cake… Enjoy. I also conveniently have a sound clip of the butter conversation. I will clip it soon and maybe add it.