19 research outputs found
Notation timelines and the aesthetics of disappearance
No full textContemporary cities are frequently surrounded by transitional landscapes: ambiguous lands, non-places on the urban edge, commonly experienced under the condition of speed. Although variously shaped by processes of urbanisation, logistics of road engineering, safety and ownership, and local people's lives, for travellers such landscapes are usually perceived in a state of disappearance. This condition presents a major challenge for the traditional methods used in architecture and urban design. For designers interested in the organisation and design of such mobility routes for the engagement of the traveller, a method of scripting based on notation timelines would provide a helpful supplement to traditional master plans. This paper explores the development of such a method and its roots in time-based arts, such as dance, music and film, as well as in the recent history of architecture and urban design. It does so through the presentation of an experimental study based on a real route, the train journey from London to Stansted airport
Short-Term Projects, Long-Term Ambitions: Facets of Transience in Two London Development Sites
No full textAlternative Urbanism in the Historic City Centre: A Transnational Perspective on Theory and Practice
No full textHistoric city centres are characterised by the tension between the local, represented by authentic spaces of everyday life, and the global, responding to the needs of tourism industry and capital flows. Under the neoliberal paradigm, state-led urban regeneration projects often benefit developers and private investors with little regard to the socio-economic dynamics of existing communities. Recently, this approach has been challenged by alternative practices of placemaking that represent a transition from top-down imposition of urban change to the co-production of space. Such practices are characterised by a more temporary, flexible and tactical approach to the design of space. They represent a collective desire that involves several actors, from local residents and business owners, to civil society organisations and design professionals in the role no longer of the exclusive author but as facilitators and mediators of change. Observing the development of such practice in the western world, and the corresponding theorisation attempts developed mostly by western scholars, this paper looks further to its applications in the global South, with evidence drawn from empirical research in London, UK and Cairo, Egypt. The paper suggests that alternative urbanism may be indicative of a longer-term transition towards a more equitable urban planning practice.publishedVersio
Transitional landscapes : an investigation into motion perception and its implications for landscape design
No full textEThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo
Fencing in and weeding out:Curating nature at former nazi concentration camp sites and mass graves in Europe
No full text
Rethinking the waste of planetary urbanization for urban challenges: Potential, Strategies and Governance in Terrain Vague projects
No full textGame changer? Planning for just and sustainable urban regions, Paris, 8-12th July 2024Planetary Urbanisation puts pressure on undeveloped spaces in cities. Although perceived as wastelands, such spaces are of unacknowledged socioenvironmental value. Conceptualised as Terrain Vague, they have potential to address social and ecological urban challenges. This paper demonstrates how the Terrain Vague can be activated through alternative repurposing strategies and governance. We present three case studies indicative of diverse strategies adopted from different European contexts: Porto Healthy Corridor, a nature-based solution part of URBINAT research project; R-Urban (2013-2017), a community garden in Colombes, near Paris, managed as Urban Commons; Cody Dock, a community-led regeneration and river revitalisation project in London. The analysis shows how rethinking the waste of planetary urbanization can support the circular economy, biodiversity, urban ecology, community development and climate sustainability.
Keywords: wastelands, strategies of repurposing, socioenvironmental value, urban commons, urban ecologypublished versio
