psychogeography

psychogeography
[urbansquares.com definition]
the subjective analysis of neighbourhood behaviours related to a geographic location. a chronological process based on the order of appearance of observed topics with a time delayed inclusion of other relevant instances.

lake shore woonerf, toronto, ontario
gardiner expressway is running on top of lake shore boulevard, along the lake ontario shore, parallel to the railway trucks. small city airport is nearby on one of the islands in the harbour and airplanes are very frequent. main downtown residential area is in the other side of the tracks and large supermarket centre and harbourfront art and entertaining centre closer to the lake, so there is a lot of pedestrian traffic here too.

there is one significant manipulation done to this panoramic image. can you guess what it is?

this site is naked, all the traffic regulating signs are removed, as our contribution to the one of the most revolutionary ideas in contemporary urban planning, initiative called woonerf, or shared space, or naked street, or home zones.

idea is to introduce traffic calming zones by removing all traffic signs, lights, markings, signage and barriers, reducing the normal implied priority given to motor traffic, reintroducing eye contact between all the participants. social contact and self control instead of restrictions, as shown by trials all over europe, are showing significant reduction in traffic frequency, speed, noise and injuries. of course we do not think that this idea is realistic in this particular transportation jam but implemented in mixed urban residential areas is showing that it is one of the very few things we can do to bring back to health our aging cities.

ps. can you guess how many traffic regulating elements visible from the spot are removed from this panorama? 15? 30? wrong, there were 85 of them?!?!?!

impressions - bowmanville psyhogeography walk - june 3, 2006

bowmanville is secluded, even a hidden place. last 13 years I was wondering in a circle of 400 km around toronto and I never passed trough the bowmanville? first impression on this rainy saturday morning was sense of being somewhere else almost like stepping out of this time. immediately sense of not belonging here also developed. I have visited over one hundred cities with more than one million inhabitants and countless smaller cities and towns in four different continents. in most of them you have something in common with the place, something you can connect to. in bowmanville it was just like being in the museum with some unreal people (wax museum?).
I still tried to use my usual way of observation and analysis in order to interpret urban language of the place. results you can see in this PDf document (http://www.urbansquares.com/images/recources/bowmanville.pdf), but somehow I have a feeling that I am missing something that in this situation I do not understand it. is there some other dialect used here. even in small towns in england (I have visited couple of them), where I had similar feeling of not belonging, there was something to connect to: pubs, friendly people, historic architecture, tradition, understanding of tourist needs and curiosity, appreciation for our money etc. in bowmanville whole atmosphere is aiming towards isolation and distance from the surrounding world, they do not envision newcomers or tourists as a potential. according to the new study published for biennale of architecture in rotterdam, holland, july 2005, tourism is the biggest and fastest growing industry. socio-cultural and direct economic impact of tourism can be the only available way to preserve existing historic neighbourhoods.
based on a past as a reference point and inspiration, the only way to look at the future (in my modest opinion) is to keep city as alive as possible. way to do it is to use existing urban texture and ambiance, past experiences and observations to encourage and orchestrate development of urban society.
one can compare city to the living organism and best way to keep it healthy is to treat it like one. there is an issue of connectivity and identity. how does the downtown drift into the neighborhoods? where is the centre - heart of the city. redevelop old market square in the case of bowmanville. sociability is the basis of many of the activities and events that make social life on the square joyful and meaningful. in these sociable interactions people do not encounter each other in terms of specific roles, as for instance employer-employee, or cashier-customer, but as complete human beings. the status of each, their social or economic position, knowledge or fame is not as important as personal qualities. in this sense sociability makes for more democratic relations.
if these important social functions of the square are not understood, and if mechanisms are not found to protect the traditional multi-functional character of the square, a powerful context for socialization, acculturation, and democratization of society will be lost. respecting the principles of sustainability, democracy and social justice is essential for city’s livability factor.
how to achieve all of this, well, I am leaving that for some other interested people, I am just the urban enthusiast, observer and psychogeograhy walker.
a.j. toronto, august 2006.
ps. observation of one other participant of this walk that bowmanville is not actually the city or town, that it is more like urban setting or field is one of the possible explanation for unique atmosphere within this place?

Danforth Avenue

With the example of Danforth Avenue, between Westlake and Victoria Park, we will show you how simple and easy it is to create an urban space that stands out and creates an unique sense of belonging, something you can truly call your own.

We believe we can create sense of fun and excitement in our urban spaces? Our solution is simple. We are offering the following “Urban Renewal Kit”, consisting of several basic components/ideas (soon to be available in your local Urban Depot store?!), designed to improve your local square, street, block, or neighbourhood, and to create an irresistible urban “package” where tourists and locals alike would love to congregate.

The parts of the “Urban Renewal Kit” are listed in no particular order, with brief explanations of how they might work. Some of them are illustrated in more detail in accompanying panels, where the possible areas of implementation are shown, and others are almost self-explanatory. None of them are extraordinary or even complicated; while the creation of extraordinary architectural spaces requires feats of heroic proportions (and larger than life architects), great urban spaces need only a common will, time and perseverance.



Here are the “parts”:

Sidewalk Canopies Cost: Medium Installation: Medium
Install sidewalk canopies along both sides of the main street, connecting and unifying various styles and sizes of buildings. Canopies to be made of light steel construction, covered with semi-transparent white plastic.

Street Canopies Cost: Low Installation: Easy
Install fabric canopies across the main and side streets, at varying intervals, stretching the light gage cables from second or third storey opposing buildings.

Raised Crossroads Cost: Low Installation: Medium
All side street crossing to be raised to the same level as sidewalks and paved in the same way. It adds to the security of pedestrians and slows down motorized traffic.

Sidewalk Patterns Cost: Low Installation: Medium
Install pavement pathways in dark brick laid in a simple fish-bone pattern, in contrast to the white canopies above. Define edges of streets with flower planters, in white or very light grey concrete, similar to those existing throughout Toronto.

Movable Parks Cost: High Installation: Difficult

Movable Piazzas Cost: High Installation: Difficult

Water Features Cost: Medium Installation: Medium

Public Art Cost: Low Installation: Low
Anywhere, even in the smallest places (think of Alexander the Great in the Greek part of Danforth), including murals on underutilized facades.

Coloured Facades Cost: Low Installation: Easy
Paint building facades in similar colours (blue to green, or red to orange to yellow) in order to distinguish the blocks and unify various building styles. Tread lightly here and offer façade improvement grants; you’re dealing with private property and public pride.

Kiosks Cost: Low Installation: Easy
Install kiosks and lockable vendor stands on available empty areas between buildings and at parking lots along the property lines (new piazzettas and squares), to add content and life to the neighbourhood. Create possibilities for lower income families (present in large numbers in this community) to start their small business.

Parking Trellises Cost: Low Installation: Low
A parking lot without urban furniture is a crime. Allow for the replacement of certain percentage of parking spots with planters, tree islands and information booths, require some parking spaces and walkways to be covered with trellises, encourage change of levels to create dynamic spaces.

Green Walls Cost: Low Installation: Medium
Plant shrubs and climbers along streets between sidewalks and roadways. Climbers to be supported by wires stretched on light steel frames installed parallel to the street. This can be installed with or instead of sidewalk canopies.

Public Washrooms Cost: Medium Installation: Medium
To create truly memorable local attractions, install free-standing public washrooms. Sponsor design competition to select the most daring and exciting ones; possibilities are so much greater than with the bus shelters.

Where to start?

Create a central focal point, ceremonial, social, public square. Proposed location is the intersection of Main Street and Danforth Avenue, appropriately renamed "Danforth Main Square". Sociability is the basis of activities in a neighbourhood. Events in a square make social life joyful and meaningful; people interact not in terms of specific roles in life but as complete human beings.

What to do after?

Purchase a number of parts, based on the budget available. Install. Enjoy. Repeat whenever money becomes available.

Danforth Team, 2006 Orphan Spaces Initiative, organized by DX and City of Toronto, reinterpretation of underutilized public spaces throughout the city of Toronto.

The term "border" always has negative connotations for me. It has an underlying meaning of separation. This example is a stretch of Leslie Street, one of the main Toronto arteries. It is almost three kilometers long and I am calling it "the faceless street". This image emphasizes the impression of separation and detachment of people from each other and prevents us from being complete human beings. It is a part of an active search and continuous observation (psychogeography) that I am conducting with the goal to expose significant successful and not so successful sides of the modern city.

All over Toronto, and for that matter, in the most North American cities, you can find examples like this one. It is a terrible consequence of the zoning system still in use instead of the proper urbanistic principles of city planning. It is really hard to fix problems like this one, but I think that awareness is very important in order to avoid this and similar situations. Sociability is probably the most important attribute of urban life and if we want to keep cities alive, every effort to make them joyful and meaningful and contribute to the connectivity and identity of the neighborhoods, is essential in the development of community, culture and democracy.

A grand space in Grand Street, in the city with a grand name, Paris, Ontario

Someone in this tiny town of 9,500 inhabitants had the grand idea to create this open, social space by stealing exactly eight parking spots from Grand Street, the main shopping area. He or she selected a spot at the intersection of the main street and a pedestrian pathway, connecting a larger parking space in front of row of buildings. A couple of benches, some potted bushes and flowers, and there it is– almost a public square. Even on this summer, Sunday afternoon there are few people using it. Many of the square's amenities are missing, and the space is not clearly defined, but obviously it was needed.

Hardly noticeable at first glance, there exist signs indicating that the square is used by the "wrong" people. Two very shy, little stencil designs and a few traces of urban art are immediately targeted by a reprimanding tone: "Please use garbage cans, its your town!" On the other side one more, very serious, street sign with official colours and design states: "No skateboarding".

Is there any way we can guess the next move? Does this look like a chess mach? Can we interpret this chain of urban messages that the square itself is sending as a signal that there are needs in Paris that are not being met?

The square of Alexander the Great

On the corner of Danforth and Logan Avenues, in the middle of Greek town, there exists a small, public space with all the elements of a traditional European square. It seems that traditional habits and needs are still alive, even after a couple of generations. All the services, comforts and resources necessary are there. Let's list them: One monument of Alexander the Great, a significant Greek historical figure; one backdrop with vines, a reminder of the grapevines of the Mediterranean; one fountain with running water, an important sound during summer nights; a few patios where one can have a bite or refreshments; a few quite comfortable benches where people can exchange experiences and ideas; a couple of mature trees to keep cool under that protect from the elements; dozens of people (even at 1 o'clock in the morning) and some visitors from "out-of-town" seen here leaving after a well deserved rest.

An excellent example of how with little effort, a very pleasant urban space can be created when the community is willing to pay attention to the messages sent by their city.