Navigating the City

Kevin Lynch – The Image of the City

Kevin Lynch describes his interest in the structure of the Amercian city but more so the way this structure and the layers are percieved by its inhabitants.  He explains that the most important issue in creating and renovating a city is how it will affect the mental image of the city civilian.  Lynch addresses that there is no true instinct of way-finding and that only with the organization of physical and sensory clues will there be direction.  Lynch first recognizes the importance of the “public image” which are the commmon mental pictures hosted by many of the city civilians.  When assessing the mental image of city like Lynch is he accounts that it is more helpful to look at the public image first because from one individual to another the mental images can vary greatly. we drew out our maps many of us put the Sears Tower aka Willis Tower as a point.  This could be looked at as a public image. Many of us also recognized the grid format of Chicago’s layout and the lake front which I think both could also be looked at as public images.  Some other examples would probably be the transit lines and major intersections such as belmont and halstead that hold a large significance. So as Lynch goes on to say these public images exist because they have “imageability”. Lynch describes imageability as having ” that quality in a phsical object which gives it a high probablity of evoking a strong image in any given observer.”  Imageability of cities is what Lynch mainly wants to focus on in his book. Many of the things that were placed on our “maps of Chicago” and that described in our “routes to work” fall under Lynch’s five elements of the city image.

These elements are: paths, edges, districts, nodes, and landmarks. Each of these elements interact with one another and layer to become one big city image. As Lynch stated, “Districts are structured with nodes, defined by edges, penetrated by paths, and sprinkled with landmarks”.  Below are short descriptions of the elements and there relations to things we pointed out in our  exercises.

This is a photograph that Terry Evans took that I think does a great job at showing many of the elements

Paths- The channels which the civilian moves upon. Many of us mapped out streets and maybe train lines that are significant to our city image.  This could also include city walkways and alleys.  This element is often very significant to most civilians.

Edges- Some sort of boundary that is usually formed by a line on the map. They could be penetrable and can also distinguish between regions. The lake front of chicago would qualify, which was on most of the maps the class made. Lynch actually references Chicago’s lake front as a defining edge (p.66) that he believes most of Chicago’s residents would draw on a map of chicago.

Districts- Sections of the city where the civilian would be able to enter inside of mentally.  Districts have qualities that distiguish itself from the rest. Neighborhoods were placed on some of the maps which I think could be defined as districts (Boys Town, China Town, Greek Town, Wrigleyville, maybe even the Buisness District.)  This could also be a park, such as Millenium Park or one of the beaches of Chicago.

Nodes- Points of focus that a civilian can enter and are identifiers on paths.  When some talked about a specific cross section of a street such as “Six Corners” in Wicker Park or Madison and State this can be looked at as a node. It could also be the start to an “El” line.

Landmarks- Usually physical objects that are external.  A point of reference such as a building, sign, statue. Sears Tower is a major landmark that many people marked on their map.  A landmark could also be something as minimal as a red bench that one passes at the corner of a street every day.

Each of these elements make sets of images that overlap and join to create a whole image.  I think it is safe to say that in an area where there is an abundance of strong elements overlapping is going to have more imageability  than one that is more sparse and has elements that conflict.

DeCerteau – Walking in the City

DeCerteau’s reading has similar apects to Lynch’s but he takes Lynch’s ideas and dives a little deeper (most of the time he was diving a little too deep for me).  As the title may reveal DeCerteau is more interested in the pedestrian’s experience of the city.  He talks about the major difference of being in a high rise and looking down at the city and being on ground level navigating the traffic and activating all the senses.  He believes if you are in a high rise there is no way you can experience the city because you are completely removed (by possibly hundreds of feet).

Like lynch DeCerteau taps in on city planning and having a concept for a city that will make it possible and work for the people (who ultimately make a city).  Unlike Lynch DeCerteau seems to doubt that a concept city could work and he says that it is currently decaying.  I found some of the requirements of a concept city that he described to be interesting:

“The production of its own space (un espace propre): rational organization must thus repress all the physical, mental and political pollutions that would compromise it” and “finally, the creation of a universal and anonymous subject which is the city itself”.  I can see exactly where these come into play in a city and how they can work but also become problematic.  The anonymity of the city is something that people can love about the city and others may loathe about it.  Since there are so many people eveyone blends into a whole but at the same time there can be a major disconnect.  For example, the facts that most people who live in the city do not even know their neighbors.