Urbanism intended as a spatial-oriented professional practice and theoretical reflection has changed. New ways of conceptualising, describing and modifying EU cities and territories result from transformed urban conditions, both physical and immaterial. Is a new generation of Urbanistic Projects emerging as a consequence of these changes? “Urbanistic Projects. Next Generational Paths” is a research initiative with the aim of better understanding emerging urban issues and practices from a European perspective. The “Urbanistic Projects” research was organised as a series of seven dialogues between a Scholar and a Practitioner. This book, following the structure of these dialogues, is meant to scan the stratified field of experiences, with the aim of revealing issues, tools and alliances, and detecting elements of continuity and novelty. Not to be intended as a fixed definition, four qualities of UPs were introduced as a working hypothesis: - The UP is plural: it implies a multiplicity of approaches, different modes of description, design and interventions in the urban and territorial physical space. - The UP is selective: strategic places, programmes, actors, and design solutions are chosen as the driving component of a vision extended to the wider portion of a city or a territory. - The UP is integrated: it combines diverse spatial and temporal scales: from small to large and from short-term to long-term; it combines different materials (for example, built-up and open spaces); different functions (for example, living and working) and different rationalities (for example economic, social and ecological). - The UP is reflective: it imports or invents ideas or concepts as lenses through which to see, describe and interpret reality in order to construct hypotheses of modification through design experiments. The UP is not a mere application of existing knowledge – rules of composition, functioning and aesthetics – but rather a critical practice that can produce new knowledge, where ideas or concepts are developed through projects. In other words, projects become a “testing ground”, a moment of control or advancement of the underlying theoretical issues. The seminar series In preparation for the seminars, the overarching theme was presented to the participants and delimited in a loose manner, with the aim to remain open to the unexpected and preserve the kaleidoscopic nature of UP experiences. The understanding of contextual conditions was a necessary step to questioning the characteristics of UPs, therefore the event was structured around seven dialogues between a Scholar and a Practitioner whose activity focuses on the same EU country. The polarisation of roles between practitioners and scholars was not always obvious since many scholars were also practitioners and vice versa, but this confrontation has become a cognitive strategy to explore the link between ways of thinking (producing ideas, images, models or concepts) and ways of doing (representing and transforming reality through projects). In order to investigate the “next generational paths”, the practitioners selected for the seminars are founders of studios mainly established less than 10 years ago, which have already achieved international recognition through competitions or awards. In their experiences may be found innovative approaches in response to recent societal issues. Each dialogue consisted of three moments: firstly, the practitioners described the most exemplary contextual projects; secondly, the scholar, as an observer, placed them in a wider theoretical perspective; and lastly, the dialogues took the form of shared reflections. The dialogues followed a common interpretative framework provided to participants prior to the event, in order to make the products that emerged more comparable. The framework was based on the evaluation of three elements considered essential for understanding and evaluating the UPs: Issues: the participants were asked to investigate the emerging themes and challenges of societal relevance that are orienting the urbanistic projects or that are promoting new conceptual frames and practices, thus building a fertile ground for new concepts; Tools: each dialogue highlighted both conceptual and operative tools, such as images, concepts, models, strategies, and materials that UPs use to understand, describe, interpret conceptualise and design the new reality of cities and territories; Alliances: the role of forces conditioning the process of design and implementation of UPs has been examined from an institutional, economic, and cultural point of view. The dialogues were streamed online and screened at the University of Florence's Department of Architecture and the Oslo School of Architecture and Design in September, October and November 2021, creating a bridge between the two Universities promoting the event. The participants selected were Ido Avissar and Benoît Barnoud (France - 28th of September 2021), Sabine Müller, Andreas Quednau and Urs Kumberger (Germany - 5th of October), Ellen Braae, Sofie Yde and Martin Hjerl (Denmark - 12th of October), Álvaro Clua and Samuel Llovet (Spain - 19th of October), Fabiano Micocci and Konstantinos Pantazis (Greece - 26th of October), Joachim Declerck and Ward Verbakel (Belgium - 2nd of November), Taneha Kuzniecow Bacchin, Timur Karimullin and Timur Shabaev (The Netherlands - 9th of November). The book The book was initially conceived as an instant book to be produced and published immediately after the seminars ended. Although the publication took place a year later, the book retained the original aim to report the dialogues as they unfolded during the seminars, thus preserving asymmetries between chapters. After the introduction, the first part of the book investigates ideas and concepts developed by a series of ancestors, a group of European “reflective-practitioners” who founded and constructed the UPs as a way of thinking and as a field of practices, defining the roots of the discipline. The second part of the book contains seven chapters, each consisting of three parts, which take up and expand on the parts in which the seminars were organised. In the third part, three articles describe and cross-analyse the issues, tools and alliances that emerged during the seminars, trying to build a common interpretative framework between the various projects and narratives that emerged from a European perspective. The last chapter opens up new perspectives for work and research.

Urbanistic Projects. Next generational paths: A European Perspective / Carlo Pisano; Giambattista Zaccariotto. - STAMPA. - (2023), pp. 1-256.

Urbanistic Projects. Next generational paths: A European Perspective

Carlo Pisano;
2023

Abstract

Urbanism intended as a spatial-oriented professional practice and theoretical reflection has changed. New ways of conceptualising, describing and modifying EU cities and territories result from transformed urban conditions, both physical and immaterial. Is a new generation of Urbanistic Projects emerging as a consequence of these changes? “Urbanistic Projects. Next Generational Paths” is a research initiative with the aim of better understanding emerging urban issues and practices from a European perspective. The “Urbanistic Projects” research was organised as a series of seven dialogues between a Scholar and a Practitioner. This book, following the structure of these dialogues, is meant to scan the stratified field of experiences, with the aim of revealing issues, tools and alliances, and detecting elements of continuity and novelty. Not to be intended as a fixed definition, four qualities of UPs were introduced as a working hypothesis: - The UP is plural: it implies a multiplicity of approaches, different modes of description, design and interventions in the urban and territorial physical space. - The UP is selective: strategic places, programmes, actors, and design solutions are chosen as the driving component of a vision extended to the wider portion of a city or a territory. - The UP is integrated: it combines diverse spatial and temporal scales: from small to large and from short-term to long-term; it combines different materials (for example, built-up and open spaces); different functions (for example, living and working) and different rationalities (for example economic, social and ecological). - The UP is reflective: it imports or invents ideas or concepts as lenses through which to see, describe and interpret reality in order to construct hypotheses of modification through design experiments. The UP is not a mere application of existing knowledge – rules of composition, functioning and aesthetics – but rather a critical practice that can produce new knowledge, where ideas or concepts are developed through projects. In other words, projects become a “testing ground”, a moment of control or advancement of the underlying theoretical issues. The seminar series In preparation for the seminars, the overarching theme was presented to the participants and delimited in a loose manner, with the aim to remain open to the unexpected and preserve the kaleidoscopic nature of UP experiences. The understanding of contextual conditions was a necessary step to questioning the characteristics of UPs, therefore the event was structured around seven dialogues between a Scholar and a Practitioner whose activity focuses on the same EU country. The polarisation of roles between practitioners and scholars was not always obvious since many scholars were also practitioners and vice versa, but this confrontation has become a cognitive strategy to explore the link between ways of thinking (producing ideas, images, models or concepts) and ways of doing (representing and transforming reality through projects). In order to investigate the “next generational paths”, the practitioners selected for the seminars are founders of studios mainly established less than 10 years ago, which have already achieved international recognition through competitions or awards. In their experiences may be found innovative approaches in response to recent societal issues. Each dialogue consisted of three moments: firstly, the practitioners described the most exemplary contextual projects; secondly, the scholar, as an observer, placed them in a wider theoretical perspective; and lastly, the dialogues took the form of shared reflections. The dialogues followed a common interpretative framework provided to participants prior to the event, in order to make the products that emerged more comparable. The framework was based on the evaluation of three elements considered essential for understanding and evaluating the UPs: Issues: the participants were asked to investigate the emerging themes and challenges of societal relevance that are orienting the urbanistic projects or that are promoting new conceptual frames and practices, thus building a fertile ground for new concepts; Tools: each dialogue highlighted both conceptual and operative tools, such as images, concepts, models, strategies, and materials that UPs use to understand, describe, interpret conceptualise and design the new reality of cities and territories; Alliances: the role of forces conditioning the process of design and implementation of UPs has been examined from an institutional, economic, and cultural point of view. The dialogues were streamed online and screened at the University of Florence's Department of Architecture and the Oslo School of Architecture and Design in September, October and November 2021, creating a bridge between the two Universities promoting the event. The participants selected were Ido Avissar and Benoît Barnoud (France - 28th of September 2021), Sabine Müller, Andreas Quednau and Urs Kumberger (Germany - 5th of October), Ellen Braae, Sofie Yde and Martin Hjerl (Denmark - 12th of October), Álvaro Clua and Samuel Llovet (Spain - 19th of October), Fabiano Micocci and Konstantinos Pantazis (Greece - 26th of October), Joachim Declerck and Ward Verbakel (Belgium - 2nd of November), Taneha Kuzniecow Bacchin, Timur Karimullin and Timur Shabaev (The Netherlands - 9th of November). The book The book was initially conceived as an instant book to be produced and published immediately after the seminars ended. Although the publication took place a year later, the book retained the original aim to report the dialogues as they unfolded during the seminars, thus preserving asymmetries between chapters. After the introduction, the first part of the book investigates ideas and concepts developed by a series of ancestors, a group of European “reflective-practitioners” who founded and constructed the UPs as a way of thinking and as a field of practices, defining the roots of the discipline. The second part of the book contains seven chapters, each consisting of three parts, which take up and expand on the parts in which the seminars were organised. In the third part, three articles describe and cross-analyse the issues, tools and alliances that emerged during the seminars, trying to build a common interpretative framework between the various projects and narratives that emerged from a European perspective. The last chapter opens up new perspectives for work and research.
2023
978-88-229-2133-8
1
256
Goal 11: Sustainable cities and communities
Carlo Pisano; Giambattista Zaccariotto
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