Lucius Burckhardt writings : rethinking man-made environments : politics, landscapes & design

"Design for a democratic society was a matter of urgency in bombed-out postwar Europe. Swiss sociologist, journalist, professor and founding father of strollology Lucius Burckhardt (1925-2003) pioneered the interdisciplinary analysis of man-made environments, and thereby highlighted both the visible and invisible aspects of our cities and social relations. Acutely aware of how our interventions and decisions shape the world, and how the changing world in turn, shapes us, his life-long focus was not only the prerequisites of architecture, urban planning and design but also their long-term impact. Teaching and practice still owe much to his work. Thus, the first selection of Lucius Burckhardt's texts to appear in English, introduces his groundbreaking theory of environmental design, in retrospective tribute to a prescient thinker." Title Page 3 Copyright Page 4 Table of Contents 5 The Work of Lucius Burckhardt 7 The Car and the City 8 Democratic Urban Planning 10 Science and Design 13 The State of Architecture 14 The Process of Planning and Building 15 The Citizen and the City 17 Design Processes 18 Invisible Design 19 Open-ended Teaching Practice 20 A Problem-oriented Approach 22 Everyday Culture 23 Taking A Stroll 24 Urban Planning and Democracy (1957) 27 Ulm Anno 5. The Curriculum of the Ulm School of Design (1960) 35 Building—A Process with No Obligations to Heritage Preservation (1967) 44 How are decisions reached? 48 Overtaxed architects 51 The quest for concrete individual successes 53 Disregard of development 54 Our demand: versatile uses 56 The shifting concept of design 58 Do not patronize the user! 61 On the Value and Meaning of Urban Utopias (1968) 63 The utopian moment 63 Utopias 1958–68 66 Utopia and decision-making 73 From Design Academicism to the Treatment of Wicked Problems (1973) 77 Problem-oriented training and methodical design 80 Who Plans the Planning? (1974) 85 Defining the problem 85 Collective decisions 90 The voices of the pawns on the drawing board 95 Planning is not autonomous 99 Family and Home—Two Adaptable Systems (1975) 102 Mobile and fixed 102 Building allegedly solves problems 103 Housing is an institution 104 The wrong home set-up 105 Truce 106 Now use the hobby room 107 Housing is a language 107 A sewing machine in a symbolic grid 108 I sit here when I read 109 Presentation of self in everyday life 110 Speechlessness 110 Housing is a system 111 Carpet dealers 112 Where does one find greenfield sites? 113 Urban Design and Its Significance for Residents (1975) 115 Gardening—An Art and A Necessity (1977) 123 The necessity of dealing with nature 127 Creating robust, extensive landscapes 132 Why Is Landscape Beautiful? (1979) 133 Utility and beauty 135 The role of ruins 139 On the Design of Everyday Life (1979) 142 Design Is Invisible (1980) 153 Dirt (1980) 166 What Is Livability? On Quantifiable and Invisible Needs (1981) 170 The Night Is Man-made (1989) 179 Architecture—An Art or A Science? (1983) 189 A Critique of the Art of Gardening (1983) 195 Fake: The Real Thing (1987) 204 Aesthetics and Ecology (1990) 212 A Walk in Second Nature (1992) 226 The Sermon (1994) 232 Strollological Observations on Perception of the Environment and the Tasks Facing Our Generation (1996) 239 Wasteland As Context. Is There Any Such Thing As The Postmodern Landscape? (1998) 249 On Movement and Vantage Points—the Strollologist’s Experience (1999) 264 Biography 281 Bibliography 283 Index 287 Front Matter....Pages 1-26 Urban Planning and Democracy (1957)....Pages 27-34 Ulm Anno 5. The Curriculum of the Ulm School of Design (1960)....Pages 35-43 Building—A Process with No Obligations to Heritage Preservation (1967)....Pages 44-62 On the Value and Meaning of Urban Utopias (1968)....Pages 63-76 From Design Academicism to the Treatment of Wicked Problems (1973)....Pages 77-84 Who Plans the Planning? (1974)....Pages 85-101 Family and Home—Two Adaptable Systems (1975)....Pages 102-114 Urban Design and Its Significance for Residents (1975)....Pages 115-122 Gardening—An Art and A Necessity (1977)....Pages 123-132 Why Is Landscape Beautiful? (1979)....Pages 133-141 On the Design of Everyday Life (1979)....Pages 142-152 Design Is Invisible (1980)....Pages 153-165 Dirt (1980)....Pages 166-169 What Is Livability? On Quantifiable and Invisible Needs (1981)....Pages 170-178 The Night Is Man-made (1989)....Pages 179-188 Architecture—An Art or A Science? (1983)....Pages 189-194 A Critique of the Art of Gardening (1983)....Pages 195-203 Fake: The Real Thing (1987)....Pages 204-211 Aesthetics and Ecology (1990)....Pages 212-225 A Walk in Second Nature (1992)....Pages 226-231 The Sermon (1994)....Pages 232-238 Strollological Observations on Perception of the Environment and the Tasks Facing Our Generation (1996)....Pages 239-248 Wasteland As Context. Is There Any Such Thing As The Postmodern Landscape? (1998)....Pages 249-263 On Movement and Vantage Points— The Strollologist’s Experience (1999)....Pages 264-279 Back Matter....Pages 280-288 Urban Planning And Democracy (1957) -- Ulm Anno 5. The Curriculum Of The Ulm School Of Design (1960) -- Building--a Process With No Obligations To Heritage Preservation (1967) -- On The Value And Meaning Of Urban Utopias (1968) -- From Design Academicism To The Treatment Of Wicked Problems (1973) -- Who Plans The Planning? (1974) -- Family And Home--two Adaptable Systems (1975) -- Urban Design And Its Significance For Residents (1975) -- Gardening--an Art And A Necessity (1977) -- Why Is Landscape Beautiful? (1979) -- On The Design Of Everyday Life (1979) -- Design Is Invisible (1980) -- Dirt (1980) -- What Is Livability? On Quantifiable And Invisible Needs (1981) -- The Night Is Man-made (1989) -- Architecture--an Art Or A Science? (1983) -- A Critique Of The Art Of Gardening (1983) -- Fake: The Real Thing (1987) -- Aesthetics And Ecology (1990) -- A Walk In Second Nature (1992) -- The Sermon (1994) -- Strollological Observations On Perception Of The Environment And The Tasks Facing Our Generation (1996) -- Wasteland As Context. Is There Any Such Thing As The Postmodern Landscape? (1998) -- On Movement And Vantage Points-- The Strollologist's Experience (1999) -- Biography -- Bibliography -- Index. Jesko Fezer, Martin Schmitz (eds.). Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Design for a democratic society was an urgent matter in postwar Europe. Swiss sociologist, journalist, professor and the founding father of strollology, Lucius Burckhardt (1925-2003) pioneered an interdisciplinary analysis of man-made environments focused on both the visible and invisible aspects of our cities, landscapes, political processes and social relations. Acutely aware of how our interventions and decisions shape the world, and how the changing world shapes us, his life-long concern was not only the prerequisites of architecture, urban planning and design but also their long-term impact. Teaching and practice in all three disciplines are still much indebted to his keen observations and critique. This compilation, the first of Lucius Burckhardt's texts to appear in English, introduces his groundbreaking theory of environmental design, in posthumous tribute to a prescient thinker Design for a democratic society was a matter of urgency in bombed-out postwar Europe. Swiss sociologist, journalist, professor and founding father of strollology Lucius Burckhardt (1925 2003) pioneered the interdisciplinary analysis of man-made environments, and thereby highlighted both the visible and invisible aspects of our cities and social relations. Acutely aware of how our interventions and decisions shape the world, and how the changing world in turn, shapes us, his life-long focus was not only the prerequisites of architecture, urban planning and design but also their long-term impact. Teaching and practice still owe much to his work. Thus, the first selection of Lucius Burckhardt s texts to appear in English, introduces his groundbreaking theory of environmental design, in retrospective tribute to a prescient thinker. Burckhardt pioneered the interdisciplinary analysis of man-made environments, a field forged in the ruins of post-war Europe. This is the first English translation of his core essays on the interplay between humans and their designed, often urban, landscapes.