scholarly journals Propositions for the Aesthetic Continuity of Urban Landscapes

SAGE Open ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 215824402094185
Author(s):  
Hyejung Chang
Keyword(s):  
Everyday Life ◽  
Urban Landscape ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Spiritual Experience ◽  
Shared Environment ◽  
Urban Landscapes ◽  
Irreversible Loss ◽  
The Aesthetic ◽  
Ethical Significance

While many global societies have undergone radical transformations, places have suffered from the irreversible loss of public memory. The value of continuity in the urban landscape has gradually declined due to the culture of “avant-gardism.” This article explores the enduring values necessary for human cohabitation and aesthetic qualities inherent in the rapidly changing urban environments of today. It draws attention to the ethical significance of continuity as the whole notion of “place” hinges, and argues that the experience of urban continuity in everyday life is an intrinsic and instrumental factor for our sense of identity, well-being, and belonging. Continuity, as predicated on human existence, is essential for the evolutionary, ecological, cognitive, cultural, and spiritual experience of the shared environment. The proposed dimensions of an aesthetic continuity are intended to provide a normative and pragmatic framework useful for application to placemaking in ever-changing urban environments.

scholarly journals Towards Psychosocial Well-Being in Historic Urban Landscapes: The Contribution of Cultural Memory

Urban Science ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 59
Author(s):  
Fatmaelzahraa Hussein ◽  
John Stephens ◽  
Reena Tiwari
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Memory ◽  
Urban Landscape ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Heritage Conservation ◽  
Urban Landscapes ◽  
Review Of Literature ◽  
Mind's Eye

A crucial element in the human search for well-being is achieving a sense of identity within, and belonging to, the landscape in which we live. Landscape should be understood as not only the visible environment but the affective values we attach to it and how we shape it in our mind’s eye. These inner reflections of our landscapes constitute one of our richest archives, in particular, in terms of creating and passing down to future generations our cultural memories. The current paper is a review of literature on the concepts of urban heritage conservation, and, in particular, the development of the historic urban landscape (HUL) approach, with reference to the role and contribution of cultural memory and its presence in the urban landscape. We also investigate how the notions of place attachment and identity interrelate with cultural memory to elucidate how such interrelations can contribute to human psychosocial well-being and quality of life (QOL). This review points to the neglected role of cultural memory in the maintenance of psychosocial well-being in HULs, a topic which requires further research to deepen our understanding about its importance in urban environments.

scholarly journals The co-optation of sensibility and the subversion of beauty

2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 9-26
Author(s):  
Arnold Berleant
Keyword(s):  
Everyday Life ◽  
Aesthetic Judgment ◽  
Social Analysis ◽  
Sense Experience ◽  
Political Criticism ◽  
Political Implications ◽  
The Aesthetic ◽  
Aesthetic Sensibility ◽  
Mass Marketing ◽  
Ethical Significance

The aesthetic analysis of everyday life has developed an important body of work whose significance extends beyond the academy. Because of its ubiquity in experience, aesthetic sensibility has many manifestations, both overt and concealed. This paper examines some largely hidden ways in which taste and aesthetic judgment, which are manifested in sense experience, have been subtly appropriated and exploited. I identify and describe such procedures as the cooptation (or appropriation) of aesthetic sensibility, a phenomenon that has consequences damaging to health, to society, and to environment. These practices are a form of negative aesthetics that distorts and manipulates sensible experience in the interest of mass marketing and political control. Such practices have great ethical significance and carry social and political implications that suggest another role for aesthetics, a critical one: aesthetics as an instrument of emancipation in social analysis and political criticism.

scholarly journals Effects of Spatial Elements of Urban Landscape Forests on the Restoration Potential and Preference of Adolescents

Land ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 1349
Author(s):  
Linjia Wu ◽  
Qidi Dong ◽  
Shixian Luo ◽  
Wenyuan Jiang ◽  
Ming Hao ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Blood Pressure ◽  
Urban Landscape ◽  
Visual Stimulation ◽  
Linear Regression Analysis ◽  
Quantitative Relationship ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Recovery Potential ◽  
Restoration Potential ◽  
The Impact

City green space can promote people’s health and aesthetic satisfaction; however, most extant research focuses on suburban forests and urban parks. Urban landscape forests have important ecological and aesthetic value for urban environments. This study conducted a visual stimulation to examine the impact of four common spatial element combinations in urban landscape forests on teenagers’ recovery potential and preference. The results indicate that urban landscape forests had positive physiological and psychological effects on adolescents, including decreased blood pressure, improved heart rate, reduced anxiety, and improved recovery ability. Diastolic blood pressure relief performance was better among males than females. In addition, a stepwise linear regression analysis was performed to explore the quantitative relationship between spatial elements and recovery and preference values. The results demonstrate that water elements were a significant predictor in the quantitative relationship between spatial elements in landscape forests and restoration and preference values. Terrain, flower, and shrub elements did not have a significant effect on overall restoration and preference values. This study highlights the intervention value of urban landscape forests in promoting the health and well-being of adolescents, with implications for future planning and design of urban landscape forests.

scholarly journals Assessing Urban Landscape Variables’ Contributions to Microclimates

2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tammy E. Parece ◽  
Jie Li ◽  
James B. Campbell ◽  
David Carroll
Keyword(s):  
Urban Landscape ◽  
Time Of Day ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Urban Landscapes ◽  
Landscape Variables ◽  
Rural Landscapes ◽  
Air Temperatures ◽  
Spatial Dimensions ◽  
Urban Heat ◽  
Mean Square Errors

The well-known urban heat island (UHI) effect recognizes prevailing patterns of warmer urban temperatures relative to surrounding rural landscapes. Although UHIs are often visualized as single features, internal variations within urban landscapes create distinctive microclimates. Evaluating intraurban microclimate variability presents an opportunity to assess spatial dimensions of urban environments and identify locations that heat or cool faster than other locales. Our study employs mobile weather units and fixed weather stations to collect air temperatures across Roanoke, Virginia, USA, on selected dates over a two-year interval. Using this temperature data, together with six landscape variables, we interpolated (using Kriging and Random Forest) air temperatures across the city for each collection period. Our results estimated temperatures with small mean square errors (ranging from 0.03 to 0.14); landscape metrics explained between 60 and 91% of temperature variations (higher when the previous day’s average temperatures were included as a variable). For all days, similar spatial patterns appeared for cooler and warmer areas in mornings, with distinctive patterns as landscapes warmed during the day and over successive days. Our results revealed that the most potent landscape variables vary according to season and time of day. Our analysis contributes new dimensions and new levels of spatial and temporal detail to urban microclimate research.

scholarly journals Exploration and Analysis of the Aesthetic Cognitive Schema of Contemporary Western Urban Landscapes

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (10) ◽  
pp. 5152
Author(s):  
Shan Gao ◽  
Songfu Liu
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Analysis ◽  
Formation Mechanism ◽  
Urban Landscape ◽  
Schema Theory ◽  
Cognitive Map ◽  
Urban Landscapes ◽  
Cognitive Schema ◽  
Aesthetic Perception ◽  
Intrinsic Mechanism ◽  
The Aesthetic

The multidimensional iterative composition of urban landscapes and the formation mechanism of the aesthetic perception dimension are elucidated. The cognitive schema theory aims to reveal the intrinsic mechanism of urban landscape aesthetic activities. Using London as an empirical case to explore the representation and structure of urban landscape aesthetic, a cognitive schema, the cognitive map of its urban landscape, was constructed based on the qualitative analysis of the texts derived from travel notes. Eight aspects of urban landscapes, together with 21 representative concepts of cognitive schema closely related to aesthetic perception, indicate the structures and approaches people perceive in urban landscapes. This article provides experience and reference for urban landscape enhancement and related practices in China by studying the contemporary Western urban landscape.

scholarly journals Designing Resilient Cities that Work for Women, Too

2020 ◽  
pp. 169-187
Author(s):  
Jessica L. Barnes
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Urban Design ◽  
Urban Landscape ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Current Evidence ◽  
Urban Landscapes ◽  
Disaster Resilience ◽  
Negative Outcomes

Abstract Urban landscapes can—and do—influence multiple aspects of our lives, including our overall quality of life and disaster resilience. Research has confirmed that some populations experience negative outcomes in disasters at least partially attributed to poorly designed urban environments; and women's and girls’ resilience in particular can be impacted by their experience of the urban landscape. In response, urban designers have an opportunity and an obligation to incorporate gender-sensitive design approaches in all of their projects to ensure the whole community has access to the benefits of urban landscapes. This chapter examines current evidence and strategies for successful urban design that supports resilience in women and the cities they occupy.

Urban landscapes and public health

2018 ◽  
pp. 240-246
Author(s):  
Timothy Beatley ◽  
Cecil Konijnendijk van den Bosch
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Urban Landscape ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Urban Landscapes ◽  
Community Gardening ◽  
Health Concerns ◽  
Nature And Culture ◽  
Green Urbanism ◽  
Health Promoting ◽  
Therapeutic Settings

Increasing urbanization patterns have resulted in significant and serious environmental health concerns (e.g. caused by a lack of physical activity). Urban planners face the challenge of developing healthy, resilient, and sustainable urban environments. This chapter addresses this challenge from an urban landscape perspective, promoting a socioecological approach, and recognizing that landscapes are shaped in close interaction between nature and culture—with cities being an ultimate example of human shaping and impact. It provides examples of how urban landscapes have contributed to better public health, from urban agriculture and community gardening, to therapeutic settings and urban wildscapes. Landscape-related approaches such as green urbanism, urban resiliency, and biophilic urbanism are introduced and examples are offered of how cities have worked with these. Suggestions are provided for the planning and development of health-promoting urban landscapes.

scholarly journals Cultural Memories for Better Place Experience: The Case of Orabi Square in Alexandria, Egypt

Urban Science ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fatmaelzahraa Hussein ◽  
John Stephens ◽  
Reena Tiwari
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Heritage ◽  
Cultural Memory ◽  
Urban Landscape ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Data Interpretation ◽  
Urban Landscapes ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Place Experience ◽  
Need To Evaluate ◽  
Management Plans

Globalization is associated with significant transformations in city forms and cultural and social performances. Governments and cultural heritage organisations increasingly appreciate the importance of preserving diverse physical cultural heritage through rehabilitation and the implementation of conservation plans. Nevertheless, there is a need to evaluate whether these plans understand the importance of cultural memory in societies, as well as how it affects the human psyche. Utilizing Orabi Square, which is one of the richest Historic Urban Landscapes (HUL) in the metropolitan city of Alexandria in Egypt, this study aims to answer the question; to what extent does Historic Urban Landscape (HUL) management present a situation that maintains cultural memory and achieve psychosocial well-being? The research explored the site’s old and new conditions and place experience, applying a qualitative approach through onsite face-to-face semi-structured interviews combined with data from a Facebook group—Alexandria’s Spirit. The QSR Nvivo12 analysis program was used for the data interpretation and for charting the intangible values accompanying cultural memory such as emotions and behaviour. The study indicated that cultural memory is an affective catalyst for emotional attachment to place and is an important factor informing sense of place. Based on our study, inclusion of cultural memories should be an integral element in the future management plans of Orabi Square to enhance place experience and psychosocial well-being.

The Aesthetic versus the Political

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Weijie Song
Keyword(s):  
Cold War ◽  
Everyday Life ◽  
Urban Landscape ◽  
The Political ◽  
Modern Times ◽  
Everyday Objects ◽  
Material Basis ◽  
Industrial Civilization ◽  
The Aesthetic ◽  
The City

This chapter addresses how Lin Huiyin, a female poet and architect, carries out modernist, impressionist, and urbanist mappings of Beijing’s everyday objects, imperial relics, and socialist sites from the post-Warlord Era to the high Cold War years. In her literary writings of the 1930s and her failed project of urban planning of the socialist capital in the 1950s (against Maoist and Stalinist propaganda), Lin deliberately juxtaposes the pastoral and the counterpastoral, the threatening and disturbing images of modern industrial civilization and the lyrical and aesthetic items in everyday life. Imperial palaces and other grand buildings still dominate the urban landscape of Beijing. However, in Lin’s poetics and politics of daily objects, the sensuous, superfluous, and aestheticized things constitute the cultural texture and material basis of the city, which outlive historical transformations and political turbulence and protect Beijing from the “gust and dust” of modern times.

scholarly journals Defining and Managing the Historic Urban Landscape: Reflections on the English Experience and Some Stories from Liverpool

2015 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 9-35 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olivier Sykes ◽  
Carol Ludwig
Keyword(s):  
Urban Landscape ◽  
Economic Value ◽  
Urban Environments ◽  
Planning System ◽  
Urban Landscapes ◽  
City Development ◽  
Urban Heritage ◽  
The 1960S ◽  
Development Perspective ◽  
Static Concept

The period since the 1960s has been characterised by growing societal concern with urban heritage protection and the development of legislative, fiscal and urban planning instruments that seek to ensure the protection and enhancement of historic buildings and environments. International organisations such as UNESCO and European level documents such as the European Spatial Development Perspective (ESDP) have stressed the cultural and economic value of the ‘wise management of natural and cultural heritage’. Since the 1970s many cities have sought to redefine and regenerate themselves through a revalorisation of their past and the protection and enhancement of their historic urban landscapes. Urban heritage has thus often come to be seen as a component of the territorial capital of places, and often had a symbiotic relationship with the objective of urban regeneration. However, urban heritage is not a static concept and ideas about what constitutes heritage, the value of different historic urban environments, and the contribution they can make to city development and regeneration continue to evolve. This paper reflects on this evolution in the context of the English planning system and illustrates some key trends and issues surrounding urban heritage through a consideration of recent and ongoing heritage related planning episodes in the northern English city of Liverpool.

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