Sexing up the city in the international beauty contest: the performative nature of spatial planning and the fictive spectacle of place branding

2013 ◽  
Vol 84 (2) ◽  
pp. 251-274 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip Boland
2017 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 109-120
Author(s):  
Cecília Avelino Barbosa

Place branding is a network of associations in the consumer’s mind, based on the visual, verbal, and behavioral expression of a place. Food can be an important tool to summarize it as it is part of the culture of a city and its symbolic capital. Food is imaginary, a ritual and a social construction. This paper aims to explore a ritual that has turned into one of the brands of Lisbon in the past few years. The fresh sardines barbecued out of doors, during Saint Anthony’s festival, has become a symbol that can be found on t-shirts, magnets and all kinds of souvenirs. Over the year, tourists can buy sardine shaped objects in very cheap stores to luxurious shops. There is even a whole boutique dedicated to the fish: “The Fantastic World of Portuguese Sardines” and an annual competition promoted by the city council to choose the five most emblematic designs of sardines. In order to analyze the Sardine phenomenon from a city branding point of view, the objective of this paper is to comprehend what associations are made by foreigners when they are outside of Lisbon. As a methodological procedure five design sardines, were used of last year to questioning to which city they relate them in interviews carried in Madrid, Lyon, Rome and London. Upon completion of the analysis, the results of the city branding strategy adopted by the city council to promote the sardines as the official symbol of Lisbon is seen as a Folkmarketing action. The effects are positive, but still quite local. On the other hand, significant participation of the Lisbon´s dwellers in the Sardine Contest was observed, which seems to be a good way to promote the city identity and pride in their best ambassador: the citizens.


2013 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-50 ◽  
Author(s):  
Evinç Doğan ◽  
Ibrahim Sirkeci

This study examines the ways in which the city image of Istanbul is re-created through the mega-events within the context of the European Capital of Culture (ECoC) 2010. Istanbul “took the stage” as one of the three ECoC cities (Essen for the Ruhr in Germany and Pécs in Hungary), where the urban spaces were projected as the theatre décor while residents and visitors became the spectators of the events. Organisers and agents of the ECoC 2010 seemed to rebrand Istanbul as a “world city” rather than a “European capital”. With a series of transnational connotations, this can be considered as part of an attempt to turn Istanbul to a global city. In this study we examine posters used during the ECoC 2010 to see whether this was evident in the promoted images of Istanbul. The research employs a hermeneutic approach in which representations, signs and language are the means of symbolic meaning, which is analysed through qualitative methods for the visual data (Visual Analysis Methods), namely Semiotics and Discourse Analysis. The analysed research material comes from a sample of posters released during the ECoC 2010 to promote 549 events throughout the year. Using stratified random sampling we have drawn 28 posters (5% of the total) reflecting the thematic groups of events in the ECoC 2010. Particular attention is also paid to the reflexivity of the researchers and researchers’ embeddedness to the object of research. The symbolic production and visual representation are therefore investigated firstly through the authoritative and historically constituted discourses in the making of Istanbul image and secondly through the orders of cultural consumption and mediatisation of culture through spectacular events. Hence enforcing a transnationalisation of the image of the city where the image appears to be almost stateless transcending the national boundaries. Findings and methodology used in this study can be useful in understanding similar cases and further research into the processes of city and place branding and image relationships. 


2019 ◽  
Vol 34 (4) ◽  
pp. 419-437 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roberto Rocco ◽  
Luciana Royer ◽  
Fábio Mariz Gonçalves

2013 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Willemien Van Niekerk

It is highly likely that hazards and extreme climatic events will occur more frequently in the future and will become more severe – increasing the vulnerability and risk of millions of poor urbanites in developing countries. Disaster resilience aims to reduce disaster losses by equipping cities to withstand, absorb, adapt to or recover from external shocks. This paper questions whether disaster resilience is likely to be taken up in spatial planning practices in South Africa, given its immediate developmental priorities and challenges. In South Africa, issues of development take precedence over issues of sustainability, environmental management and disaster reduction. This is illustrated by the priority given to ‘servicing’ settlements compared to the opportunities offered by ‘transforming’ spaces through post-apartheid spatial planning. The City of Durban’s quest in adapting to climate change demonstrates hypothetically that if disaster resilience were to be presented as an issue distinct from what urban planners are already doing, then planners would see it as insignificant as compared to addressing the many developmental backlogs and challenges. If, however, it is regarded as a means to secure a city’s development path whilst simultaneously addressing sustainability, then disaster resilience is more likely to be translated into spatial planning practices in South Africa.


2020 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mihai Stelian Rusu

AbstractAs toponymic means of inscribing urban space, street names have been addressed mainly by human geographers, who have articulated the field of critical place-name studies. In this paper, I continue the endeavor started in the previous issue published in Social Change Review of reading street names through sociological lenses. Whereas in the first part of this two-part contribution the analysis was made from functionalist and conflictualist perspectives, this second and final part employs social constructionism and the utilitarian theoretical tradition in making sociological sense of street nomenclatures. First, conceiving of street names as forming discursively constructed linguistic landscapes, the paper shows how urban namescapes – the “city-text” – are written, erased, and rewritten to reflect the shifting political powers. Second, the paper examines the neoliberal processes of place branding and toponymic commodification by which street names are turned into sought-after urban commodities with transactional value on the real estate market. The paper concludes by inviting sociologists to join the conversation on street names, which should become an important topic of sociological reflection.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-4

Placemaking is an inclusive approach to the planning, design, and management of public places by which people create and/or recreate places. In the context of the Arab cities, placemaking projects are often envisaged to transform communities’ spaces into lively and attractive places; to enhance quality of life and opportunity for existing residents. It also aims to (re)create a distinct sense of place or place branding at large. Exploring how contemporary Arab cities have framed placemaking processes within the contemporary urban conditions, and sometimes the threats to the quality of the city, are helping in creating healthier, equitable, and humane public places. Such challenges and opportunities of these processes is a core component of this special edition of The Journal of Public Space, which discusses various aspects of placemaking in Arab Cities, ranges from creating, enhancing, adapting and developing attractive and efficient public places in Arab Cities. In this context, academic papers and viewpoints have manifested a variety of perspectives, theories and practices of placemaking concepts, methods, recent challenges and possible solutions. They portrayed several tools on establishing and revitalizing public places starting from governmental toolkits, reaching unplanned activities fostering community engagement in placemaking.


Jurnal Patra ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 127-137
Author(s):  
Maysitha Fitri Az Zahra ◽  
Ully Irma Maulina Hanafiah ◽  
Febri Toni Setiawan

Batik, which is rich in symbols and philosophies for the Indonesian people, has now been recognized by UNESCO as a Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The beginning of the emergence of batik in Indonesia is in the city of Solo, and comes from the Pajang kingdom 400 years ago. With the passage of time, batik continues to grow and produces various variations and innovations, from raw materials to the drawn motifs. However, it is very unfortunate that not all of the previous heritage batik can be maintained. Recently, there has been a batik museum created by individuals or institutions, but in the design, some interior elements are less than optimal in their arrangement. So they don't affect the batik stored or on display. In this research, focus of the discussion is on standardization which discusses spatial planning, facilities, collections, lighting, ventilation, acoustics and museum security, which are combined with local wisdom of Surakarta architecture, so that the data becomes a batik museum with character and can preserve the stored batik. This research uses a case study of the Surakarta batik museum, and the final results of this study can be used as a guide for designing a museum with fabric materials in it.


2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (7) ◽  
pp. 449
Author(s):  
Massimiliano Pepe ◽  
Domenica Costantino ◽  
Vincenzo Saverio Alfio ◽  
Maria Giuseppa Angelini ◽  
Alfredo Restuccia Garofalo

The aim of this article is to provide a dedicated approach to the realisation of a CityGML model for the valorisation and the conservation of existing cultural heritage. In particular, for the ancient city of Taranto (Italy), several levels of details (LODs) have been built. CityGML models in LOD1 for the most representative periods were realised, which were characterised by urban changes from the mid-1800s until today. To achieve this aim, great importance was devoted to the process of integration of the different file formats. A geographic information system (GIS) approach has been put in place for the construction of the CityGML model in LOD1. In addition, the study also focused on the realisation of a CityGML model in LOD3 of a bridge of a particular historical and architectural interest, called “Ponte di Porta Napoli”, also situated in the city of Taranto. In the latter case, the CityGML model was realised starting from the geomatics survey. Therefore, the project structured in this way represents an important tool for the sharing of (georeferenced) territorial information. The CityGML models represent a valid support for spatial planning processes and measures for the protection, monitoring and conservation of urban elements.


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