Like the hard surfaces of streets and sidewalks in an urban environment, the vertical and horizontal surface area on the outside of urban buildings contributes to the constant heating of large cities around the world....Like the hard surfaces of streets and sidewalks in an urban environment, the vertical and horizontal surface area on the outside of urban buildings contributes to the constant heating of large cities around the world. However, little is done to design this surface to benefit the public sphere. Instead, the facade of a building performs either as a component that focuses only on the quality of comfort for interior occupants, while ignoring effects on the exterior of the building, or as an identifiable aesthetic for the building＇s owners, This essay proposes the rethinking of the building facade as a steward of outdoor pedestrian welfare, and the conception of public health as an added function of the building envelope- a concept that may fall into the jurisdiction of public works. If the huge total surface area of a city＇s buildings is thought of as part of the city＇s infrastructure, then its public contribution may not only make outdoor areas comfortable, clean, and enjoyable, but also help to alleviate the bigger problem of rising temperatures in cities.展开更多
This paper is born from the intimate belief that solutions for the future are to be found in the past. No transformation is irreversible enough to destroy the experiences of the past, unified as a core in tradition. T...This paper is born from the intimate belief that solutions for the future are to be found in the past. No transformation is irreversible enough to destroy the experiences of the past, unified as a core in tradition. Those come into light whenever the proper conditions are created. From the point of view of architecture, representation is the basis for the transmission of knowledge, ideas, feelings, etc. The method of the paper is to put in antithesis two concepts which define the present world of representation： real （associated to transcendent revelation） and virtual （understood as result of human imagination）. An itinerary through the philosophy of Plato and Plotin, ancient Greek, Byzantine, Gothic architecture, etc., is proposed, until encountering the moment of the death of revelation and the birth of the arbitrary, which is connected to the supremacy of the image. This journey through aesthetic conceptions brought major changes in art and society during the centuries. Recuperation of the involvement of all human senses into perception of space and understanding of the built environment of life as revelation, and not as a simple interface of images, may lead now to a revolution of urban spirit, based on a relationship with the city inspired from the values promoted by Socrates and later developed into Christianity, that proved their permanence across the millenniums.展开更多
The aim of this essay is to understand the relationship between the media and the city. It is based on qualitative text analysis of theories and arguments from within urban sociology and media and communication. Two q...The aim of this essay is to understand the relationship between the media and the city. It is based on qualitative text analysis of theories and arguments from within urban sociology and media and communication. Two questions are posed：（1） what assumptions are the relationship characteristics between the media and the city based on？ and （2） what communicative changes in the relationship between the media and the city are historically noticeable？ The results are that： （1） the characteristics of the relationship between the media and the city are based on the assumption that the role of the media in society is closely intervened with the rise of the modern city and the urban society; and （2） four phases of communicative changes up until today are noticeable. First-hand experiences decreased and second-hand contact became more common, more shallow and rational due to the population sizes of the modern cities. The first-hand experiences continue to decrease but also the second-hand experiences. The latter is due to the increased importance of visual representations, and that the perceptions of the city became more important. As consequences people no longer always know from where their experiences steam. The implications of the characteristics of the relationship between the media and city are further discussed in terms of the importance of public spaces and public places.展开更多
文摘Like the hard surfaces of streets and sidewalks in an urban environment, the vertical and horizontal surface area on the outside of urban buildings contributes to the constant heating of large cities around the world. However, little is done to design this surface to benefit the public sphere. Instead, the facade of a building performs either as a component that focuses only on the quality of comfort for interior occupants, while ignoring effects on the exterior of the building, or as an identifiable aesthetic for the building＇s owners, This essay proposes the rethinking of the building facade as a steward of outdoor pedestrian welfare, and the conception of public health as an added function of the building envelope- a concept that may fall into the jurisdiction of public works. If the huge total surface area of a city＇s buildings is thought of as part of the city＇s infrastructure, then its public contribution may not only make outdoor areas comfortable, clean, and enjoyable, but also help to alleviate the bigger problem of rising temperatures in cities.
文摘This paper is born from the intimate belief that solutions for the future are to be found in the past. No transformation is irreversible enough to destroy the experiences of the past, unified as a core in tradition. Those come into light whenever the proper conditions are created. From the point of view of architecture, representation is the basis for the transmission of knowledge, ideas, feelings, etc. The method of the paper is to put in antithesis two concepts which define the present world of representation： real （associated to transcendent revelation） and virtual （understood as result of human imagination）. An itinerary through the philosophy of Plato and Plotin, ancient Greek, Byzantine, Gothic architecture, etc., is proposed, until encountering the moment of the death of revelation and the birth of the arbitrary, which is connected to the supremacy of the image. This journey through aesthetic conceptions brought major changes in art and society during the centuries. Recuperation of the involvement of all human senses into perception of space and understanding of the built environment of life as revelation, and not as a simple interface of images, may lead now to a revolution of urban spirit, based on a relationship with the city inspired from the values promoted by Socrates and later developed into Christianity, that proved their permanence across the millenniums.
文摘The aim of this essay is to understand the relationship between the media and the city. It is based on qualitative text analysis of theories and arguments from within urban sociology and media and communication. Two questions are posed：（1） what assumptions are the relationship characteristics between the media and the city based on？ and （2） what communicative changes in the relationship between the media and the city are historically noticeable？ The results are that： （1） the characteristics of the relationship between the media and the city are based on the assumption that the role of the media in society is closely intervened with the rise of the modern city and the urban society; and （2） four phases of communicative changes up until today are noticeable. First-hand experiences decreased and second-hand contact became more common, more shallow and rational due to the population sizes of the modern cities. The first-hand experiences continue to decrease but also the second-hand experiences. The latter is due to the increased importance of visual representations, and that the perceptions of the city became more important. As consequences people no longer always know from where their experiences steam. The implications of the characteristics of the relationship between the media and city are further discussed in terms of the importance of public spaces and public places.
