Everyday Urbanism: Global and Local Practices

3 units

This course explores how qualities of urbanism are shaped through the aggregation of consistent, repetitive building typologies which subsequently gain difference and character over time through occupation by varied cultures, rituals, and behaviors. Among the relevant methodologies to study the relationship between built form and urban quality are those developed by John Stilgoe, who reads the history and culture of a place in terms of repeated features of development, and Tsukamoto Yoshiharu, founder of Atelier Bow-Wow, who notes how changes in the building typologies of Tokyo have had significant impacts of the public realm of the city. Observations derived from this form of research have a direct impact on how we understand the temporal and experiential qualities of the city, and subsequently, design. Open to upper-level undergraduate students and graduate students.