Emily Bell

McDonough also points out the reversibility of the positions of the pursuer and pursued. McDonough calls this a “mutual choreography through the city,” propelled by a shared desire for the other. This would be followed in the 70’s by a favor of automotive over pedestrian access, a turning away from the street, and massive structures forming micro-universes in the city and abolishing public... more

Mitchell, Howell, and Hutchinson talk about ways public space comes to be “owned” or occupied and the sociopolitical relations which play out in the ownership of public spaces- It seems in the writing of Howell and Mitchell, the ownership comes from a passive use according to demand, and in the case of the volleyball players or skateboarders, their need for a public space is being well... more

Our readings this week have brought up interesting questions regarding “public space” in the city- can the public claim space in the city, and is a space ever really public? In the case of the People’s Park viewed conjointly with Hutchinson’s Waiting Bus, it seems both authors are touching on a similar concept of segregation within so-called public zones, and the displacement of these groups... more

This week our readings delve into growth and social organization of the city- the city as a phenomenon. There are the conditions of extension, succession, concentration and decentralization as terms used to describe the physicality of the city timeline, as fi the city is a body of its own. These studies are made more interesting by the incorporation of the human condition- Harvey asks the... more