In Balzac's Human Comedy, not a man, not a place, not a landscape comes into being, into prose, without its own particular soundtrack. From the noises of everyday objects to the bustling Parisian streets, from the screams of the swine to the sigh of…
Through artistic means, this research deals with the notion of 'Auditory Spatial Awareness' as initially developed by Barry Blesser and Linda-Ruth Salter in "Spaces Speak are you listening, experiencing aural architecture" published at the MIT press…
The sonic niche is a design tool I first conceived for the project Soundscapes Oltrarno, in its "digital" version, where we can see it realized through the application of "Spot Sounds" and the use of new digital technologies. I subsequently theorized…
Visual representations and emphasis of the individual hide the complexity of the urban collective actions. Social and natural rhythms compose the immediate, intuitive expression of urban ambiences. In this artistic research project the intention is…
Understanding graffiti and other non-verbal communication as a form of ambiance may open professionals to more participatory methods, deepening the quality of the city for the user. This project offers an approach for planners and designers to learn…
As an architect and urban planner, the fact of considering each major city as a potential metropolis raises several questions: some cities have a marketing and political issue; the rest require a spatial planning strategy... From which basis should…
Contemporary Western architecture occasionally seeks help from the visual arts. This relationship, which at times can be very intense, allows for hybrids that transform our perception of architecture. The encounter between the academic disciplines in…
This article aims at discussing the role of atmospheres in recent French urban renewal operations, mostly focused on the demolition of the "grands ensembles", large housing units built from the 50's until the end of the 60's. Along with the economic…
This paper examines the role of expectation of two different aspects of urban ambiance (smell and sound), on people's experiences and perceptions of urban environments. It draws from two separate sensewalking studies of English cities. The first,…
The international community takes up arms more and more frequently against loss or failure of a district or a building where the atmosphere is typical of a historical identity. As a memorial relic, the atmosphere and its urban or architectural…
According to what the American artist Robert Smithson means by his use of the concept of entropy in the case of his analysis of the phenomenon of modern suburbs, the present discussion will explore his critique of the suburban landscape and the…
The history of window display in France during the fifties and sixties tells us about the creation of strong relationships between this decorative art and theatre. Although decorations and classical principles of composition inherited from the old…
In these large urban development strategies, Morocco has often accompanied the promotion of these new urban projects images of medinas moods. This approach is taken to extremes, when blazing new medinas are projected in the new towns (Tamesna (2005)…
Two years ago I lived for 11 months in the 17th floor of a high-rise building in Shanghai. My bedroom had a small bow window, a privileged observatory; wherefrom everyday I looked at the city. From there, there wasn't architecture anymore, there…
This paper examines the hybrid condition of Taipei's built environment within its socio-cultural context and daily activity of the city. It also points out certain forward-looking policies adopted by the City Government that over the last decades…
The social demand of city dwellers concerns safer and sustainable urban spaces. This expectation directly challenges all the actors involved in city-making, urban planners and architects. However, safety is currently not considered as an essential…
In recent years, the Canadian Centre for Architecture (CCA) has set to question at the assumptions on which architects operate. We have embarked on the study and revision of an undeclared territory of false assumptions, preconceptions, and attitudes…
Place of memory but also of history, the Algerian old towns are characterised by a traditional urban structure, a powerful commercial device of old vocation, the lot associated to a big sense of community. Today, while construction develops along…
Stations, airports, subways, ports, as forcedly loaded with people and therefore with potential clients, are attracting more and more commercial activities, overturning the relationships where the commercial dimension almost justifies the…
Often, when we choose buildings to be categorized as heritage, it is the building as a whole that calls for protection and not only some specific detail that is worth preserving. In this case, the values of the building not only relate to the…
