1,721,016 research outputs found
Transnational Architecture and Urbanism: Rethinking How Cities Plan, Transform, and Learn
No full textSince the 1990s, increasingly multinational modes of design have arisen, especially concerning prominent buildings and places. Traditional planning and design disciplines have proven to have limited comprehension of, and little grip on, such transformations. Public and scholarly discussions argue that these projects and transformations derive from socioeconomic, political, cultural trends or conditions of globalization. The author suggests that general urban theories are relevant as background, but of limited efficacy when dealing with such context-bound projects and policies.
This book critically investigates emerging problematic issues such as the spectacularization of the urban environment, the decontextualization of design practice, and the global circulation of plans and projects. The book portends new conceptualizations, evidence-based explanations, and practical understanding for architects, planners, and policy makers to critically learn from practice, to cope with these transnational issues, and to put better planning in place.
Transnational Architecture and Urbanism combines urban planning, design, policy, and geography studies to offer place-based and project-oriented insight into relevant case studies of urban transformation in Europe, North America, Asia, and the Middle East
Introduction to the special issue–cultural mega-events and heritage: challenges for European cities
No full textThe future of mega-events has never been more uncertain. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has introduced an unparalleled level of doubt regarding the kind of mega-events that will take place in the coming years. While the 2019 call for papers could not predict such a radical shock, this special issue arrives at a quite unique moment of reflection. Prior to 2020, cities were already questioning the traditional format of mega-events (e.g. Olympics and Expo) while other cultural mega-events have been spreading and gaining popularity, thanks in part to typically lower costs of infrastructures and venues, far more adaptable arrangements, spatial distribution and time frame for hosting. In these ways, they have already been demonstrating higher flexibility in which to respond to future health and safety constraints. When it comes to the relation to the existing city, cultural mega-events have been planned, implemented and studied far more than any other. By leveraging the richness of cultural mega-events, this special issue deepens the intersection between events and cultural heritage in particular. This introduction provides a theoretical framework that cuts across mega-event and heritage research fields. It introduces the questions and approaches of the following contributions, arguing that the nexus between mega-events and heritage is a key challenge for many cities in Europe and beyond
Transnational architecture and urbanism: Placing starchitecture in Singapore and Chongqing
Full text linkThe period between 1990 and 2020 witnessed an increase in transnational modes of architectural and urban design, especially with reference to prominent buildings and areas. Among these, the use of famous architectural firms has spread to globalizing cities across Europe, North America, and Asia. In many cases, spectacular buildings designed by a small set of international firms (such as Frank Gehry, Jean Nouvel, Zaha Hadid, Foster+Partners) were and still are intended to alter the fate of a city, as portrayed and promoted in “Bilbao effect” narratives. Despite the clear evidence that contradicts such oversimplified rationales, attention has been largely concentrated on generalized explanations for why urban trends occur, with limited consideration given to understanding how specific projects are planned, designed, realized, and succeed or not within their contexts. By drawing on the literature and two case studies, this paper focuses on the roles that star architecture plays in the processes of developing spectacular buildings. In the conclusions, this contribution suggests future research and decision making pay greater attention to the relations between transnational projects and the local context as well as to the urban effects of such projects rather than to focus primarily on prominent characters in the urban development play and their self-interested narratives
Heritage-led development and govenrnace networks in the historical city of Xi’an, China
Full text linkSince the 1990s Chinese historic cities started property-led regeneration initiatives to attract new investments and stimulate socio-economic growth. The fourth master plan (2008-2020) of Xi’an – the ancient capital of China – proposed it to become as “a world-famous historical and tourism city” . In particular, since the 2000s to date, an increasing number of large-scale conservation projects have been undertaken by Qujiang New District Management Committee, with the intention to “reconstructing” the city in its Tang Dynasty glory (618-906AD). This has come with heritage commodification and urban dysneyfication for cultural tourism. This paper examines the heritage-based development model in Xi’an (Qujiang New District), seeking to explain how pro-growth coalitions used heritage to stimulate development and historical city branding of Xi’an. Using qualitative data collected from published sources and interview with key stakeholders, the paper investigates the internal policy networks and land management mechanisms in the process of heritage-led development of Xi’an. While Xi’an has benefited from the Qujiang New District development model of land value aporeciation and capture, the development process had negative impact on both heritage preservation and local communities. This paper thus calls for more attention to similar processes in heritage-rich areas
The New Arab Urban: Test Beds, Work-arounds, and the Limits of Enacted Cities
No full textCities of the Arabian Peninsula have been depicted stereotypically as exceptional and futuristic: the world’s tallest building in Dubai; Saudi Arabia’s hyper cities being built from scratch; fantastic infrastructures for Qatar’s 2022 World Cup. Against such celebrations, Orientalist claims stress socio-political backwardness and inequalities, as well as cultural dependency on the West. As opposed to using the Gulf to issue judgements, urban scholars can use instances of extreme urbanization to discern trends that – for better or worse – are ascendant in other world regions as well. In particular, one can see how urban projects circulate transnationally, how physical and social structures lead to institutional work-arounds and how hybridization operates in situ. We can also learn – given the extant great capacities for capitalization and mandate – the evident limits of efforts to artificially enact urban environments and societies
Transnational mobilities of the tallest building: origins, mobilization and urban effects of Dubai’s Burj Khalifa
No full textThe media and scholarly descriptions and understandings of the tallest building in the world, namely the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, generally, have been simplified. Either celebrating or condemning it, these explanations typically stress the unique technological solutions, the symbolic and political motivations or the financial risk and economic gamble. This manuscript documents the origins–in terms of both its generation as centrepiece of the large-scale development project called Downtown Dubai and the mobilization of antecedents of Dubai’s icon (including the Kuala Lumpur City Centre, the Samsung Tower Palace Three, Seoul). Drawing on secondary data and prior research materials, the paper analyses the mobilities of architectural, engineering and real estate experts and solutions, arguing that this urban spectacle worked at multiple scales, that multiple actors embraced it for different purposes: the government celebrating the nation and the city, the developer gaining a distinct landmark in a massive development to market it internationally, enticing partners and regulators in subsequent transnational operations and the design experts testing unprecedented technological solutions. The conclusions concentrate on the diverse motivations behind this architectural piece and the importance of a place-based yet critical and multiscalar understanding of similar urban transformation processes and their uneven urban effects
Cultural mega-events in heritage-rich cities: Insights from the European Capital of Culture and broader policy perspectives
Full text linkThe European Capital of Culture (ECoC) is a well-known and long-standing European policy that annually awards the title of Capital to two or more cities that deliver cultural initiatives throughout one year of celebrations. The programme has been hosted by over 60 cities throughout Europe during the last 35 years. Some host cities have used the ECoC to develop large projects that contribute to urban rebranding and regeneration (e.g. the facilities on the new waterfront of Marseille, made for the 2013 ECoC) and, more frequently, projects that adapt existing facilities and places, or smaller scale and less spectacular interventions in the city fabric. As a wide variety of differing cities have hosted the event, the ECoC has contributed to urban transformations at different scales, often with particular reference to historic and heritage-rich settings, but also brings about long-term effects in terms of cultural facilities and venues, tourism appeal and even the intangible heritage narratives attached to places. Drawing on the HOMEE Research Project and on recent publications by the authors, this paper discusses the range of large-to-small-scale planning, the (re)generation of cultural facilities and places in historic cities and heritage-rich areas to accommodate cultural mega-events and the effects they have on host cities over time. In the conclusions, the paper expands beyond the ECoC (in the direction of sport mega-events) to consider and highlight forthcoming challenges for urban policy-making and the planning of mega-events in Europe.
What Does a Cultural District Actually Do? Critically Reappraising 15 Years of Cultural District Policy in Italy
No full textCulture-driven urban and regional strategies have grown since the 1980s in Europe and beyond. Countless initiatives for creative clusters, cultural quarters and culture-led urban policies have mushroomed since the mid-1990s. Being exceptionally rich and dense in cultural amenities and institutions, creative production and cultural consumption, Italy seemed to be the natural ground for such a cultural turn in policymaking. In fact, Italy has been the cradle for cultural districts (CDs) since the early 2000s, fostering both analytical and normative speculations and experiments. Despite this richness, a systematic study of CD policy implementation is lacking and several questions are still pending, in Italy as well as in other countries. For example, how diverse are the CD experiences being developed; and what are the aims and core activities, the urban and regional settings and development effects? This paper presents an original survey of 68 experimentations that were officially labelled as ‘cultural districts’ over the last 15 years in Italy: as such it constitutes the first attempt at a nation-wide comprehensive analysis of CD policy. Even though the major importance of CDs as an analytical tool is acknowledged, the evidence gathered in this study shows the fuzziness and inconsistencies in the implementation of CD policy in Italy. The analysis shows the uneven regional geography of CDs, stresses the large variety of contents and promoters and high rate of failure, and the limited degree of specialization and integration with cultural industries. The paper reconsiders critically the policy notion and practice of CDs in Italy and calls for further international scholarly and policy debates
Umbrellas, Incubators, Mothers and Killers: Four typologies of relationship between cultural mega-events and small and micro events in Heritage-rich European cities
No full textThis paper explores the relationship and impact between cultural mega-events and the subsequent production of other small and micro events held within heritage spaces. As with other types of mega-events, cities often turn to cultural mega-events for their perceived positive externalities and with a desired legacy that leaves a long-term impact on the city. These events generally build up and establish a strong reputation for associated network of actors that, in most cases, keep promoting smaller-scale events in subsequent years. In other cases, larger events crowd out small ones. Yet how do these cultural mega-events and all of their ‘infrastructure’ relate to and impact newly created or existing local smaller events? Additionally, what are the key impacts of continuous festivalization of heritage spaces in cities? This paper presents and analyzes four found typologies of this interaction between mega-events and small localized existing or newly created events: “Umbrellas,” “Incubators,” “Mothers” and “Killers.” We will consider in depth the European Capital of Culture program – since it has become an important cultural policy implemented across Europe for more than 30 years. “Umbrella” events encompass and include many pre-existing smaller events within the cultural mega-event. “Incubator” events also utilize pre-existing micro events, but come to enhance and grow them through the increased cultural capital, means and knowledge the mega-event brings. “Mother” events lead to the creation of new small and micro events in the city that did not previously exist, while “Killer” events have a negative impact on previously existing small and micro events. Finally, the paper theorizes on the mechanisms responsible for these typologies and their significance for urban heritage
Mega-events in Heritage-rich Cities: The HOMEE Research Project
No full textIn the past, many cities used mega-events to support their investment plans, develop tourism, or improve their competitiveness. Until recently, the focus was put primarily on creating new infrastructure for sports or culture where such events could take place. Recently, some organisers of mega-events, including the Olympics, have come to prefer using already existing facilities, revitalising them or adapting them for new purposes. For historic and heritage-rich cities this change (triggered both by cuts in city budgets as well as by a slower pace of urban expansion) represents an opportunity for development but also poses a threat to their cultural heritage that until now have been little studied. This presentation concentrates on the ongoing HOMEE Research Project, that is a three-year European research project funded by the JIPCH 2017 Heritage in Changing Environments Joint Call. It studies the relationship between mega-events and cultural heritage protection policy, as well as the impact of mega-events on heritage-rich cities. The objectives of the project are being achieved through a broad literature review and analyses of the case studies of the European Capital of Culture (ECoC) programs of Genoa 2004, Wrocław 2016, Pafos 2017, Matera 2019 as well as the Milan Expo 2015 and Hull 2017 UK City of Culture. These will serve as a basis for developing the policy guidelines offering innovative recommendations and planning tools, promoting a more sensitive approach to heritage in organising initiatives and cultural mega- events
- …
