Rebuilding Place in the Urban Space

"A community’s physical form, rather than its land uses, is its most intrinsic and enduring characteristic." [Katz, EPA] This blog focuses on place and placemaking and all that makes it work--historic preservation, urban design, transportation, asset-based community development, arts & cultural development, commercial district revitalization, tourism & destination development, and quality of life advocacy--along with doses of civic engagement and good governance watchdogging.

Friday, February 10, 2017

Next week is Phoenix Urban Design Week

-- Phoenix Urban Design Week
-- "Phoenix Urban Design Week 2017: Here's everything you need to know," Phoenix New Times
-- "Roosevelt Row murals," Phoenix New Times

El Mac and David Choe mural near Second and McKinley streets. Photo by Lynn Trimble, Phoenix New Times.

Yes, Phoenix and its metropolitan area is a poster child for sprawl.  That being said, there is enough going on there to keep a traditional urbanist occupied for awhile, from various urban design and transportation initiatives in Tempe, the light rail system, the Roosevelt Row arts district in Phoenix, and many other elements, such as a regional bike trail system or the Phoenix Biotechnology Campus and initiative.

I like the idea of an "Urban Design" week as opposed to an "Architecture Week," because you get place into the picture, and aren't solely focused on "the buildings."  What people call "historic preservation" I argue is the nexus of place, architecture, and people.

-- Arizona Latino Arts & Cultural Center, Alley of the Arts mural
-- Roosevelt Row temporary street art
-- alley and public art walking tours
-- Local First Arizona, Cultivating Temporary Uses forum

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5 Comments:

At 12:18 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

decent well made art- and not just garbage done by school kids- can bring in tourist dollars and is attractive and can add to a city. sadly, many places wish to save money by having school kids do public art - this is a feel good measure- robs real professional artists of work opps, and results in crappy and low quality public art. Philly's mural arts program gets around this insidious trend in a unique way- placating the feel good types who think this is a good idea- but having professional artists do the design and oversee kids who just help out and learn from them.

 
At 2:15 PM, Anonymous Richard Layman said...

there was a not very well thought out article within the last 10 days on GGW about how WMATA should put murals on all its blank walls.

Besides the fact that public art is more than merely murals, the first thing that went through my mind is that there are a lot of lousy murals, many of which don't involve professional artists.

 
At 3:48 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

that is the problem- in the US fine arts has been degraded to the point where many people do not understand that it is a real business/occupation and that in order to get real quality you must pay for it. Too many people are taught to disregard fine arts or relegate it to a hobby or something people do as a pastime for relaxation. Mount Rushmore was not conceived and carved by children or by amateurs- and one should never expect to get quality of this sort for nothing.

 
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At 4:07 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

looks like Phoenix is trying to do the right thing after such a long neglect of their center city and the role of mass transit

 

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