Utopia & Modern Urbanism Research Papers (original) (raw)

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- History of Science and Technology, Cultural History, Future Studies, Comparative Literature
- by Antoine Picon
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- Architecture, Utopian Studies, Urban Planning, History of architecture
- by Luke Barnesmoore
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- Critical Theory, Philology, Religion, Ancient Egyptian Religion

This chapter unpacks the imaginary of the smart city, taking the reader on a journey which, across time and space, explores the intellectual foundations of the key ideas, images and visions underpinning the theory and practice of smart urbanism. Starting from Francis Bacon's New Atlantis, the chapter examines the origins of the synergy between technological development and urban development, that today characterizes the smart-city phenomenon. The same thematic thread is then followed through the history of the city, with an emphasis on Modernism when technological innovation begun to be deeply embedded in city-making. By connecting the philosophy of Nietzsche to the work of Expressionist architects and Futurist artists, the chapter emphasizes the stark individualism permeating the spirit of modernity. The chapter then discusses the cases of Los Angeles and Singapore, as the first incarnations of the computer city and the intelligent city respectively. Finally, current smart-city initiatives are critiqued through the lens of Max Horkheimer's critical theory. More specifically, the chapter draws upon Eclipse of Reason, to argue that the recent dreams of smart urbanism are but a rerun of traditional capitalistic ambitions which, masked by the promise of technological progress, target the interests of elites, and neglect the progress of society and the preservation of the natural environment.

- by Federico Cugurullo
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- Critical Theory, History, History of Science and Technology, Geography

The concept of Tabula Rasa, as a desire for sweeping renewal and creating a potential site for the construction of utopian dreams is presupposition of Modern Architecture. Starting from the middle of the 19th century to the first half of the 20th century, Iranian urban and architectural history has been integrated with modernization, and western-influenced modernity. The case of Tehran as the Middle Eastern political capital is the main scene for the manifestation of modernity within it’s urban projects that was associated with several changes to the social, political and spatial structure of the city. In this regard, the strategy of Tabula Rasa as a utopian blank slate upon which a new Iran could be conceived “over again” – was the dominant strategy of modernization during First Pahlavi era (1925–1941). This article explores the very concept of constructing a new image of Tehran through the processes of autocratic modernism and orientalist historicism that also influenced the discourse of national identity during First Pahlavi era.

- by Asma Mehan
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- History, Iranian Studies, History of Iran, Architectural History
- by Jaap Evert Abrahamse
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- Cartography, Urban History, Urban Planning, History of Cartography

Brasília has precedents that go much farther back in history than is usually acknowledged. The more common discourse on the Brazilian Capital has stressed the originality of Lucio Costa’s project, but this conceals its strong relations with places produced by other cultures far distant in time and space. This book reveals the same underlying logic of examples apparently as di-verse as a modern capital city – Brasilia – pre-Columbian ceremonial centers – as Tikal – Afri-can settlements of the Zulu culture – as the military “kraals” – and French Feudal castles. All are special places in the domain of the cultures that have produced them: they are exceptional spaces.

- by Frederico Holanda
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- Urban History, Modernism, Urban morphology, Urban theory, Brasilia

Purpose-This paper aims to assess the contemporary paradigm of urban utopia's ability to fulfill its goals and to evaluate its attainability in the first place. Its main question is: are contemporary urban utopias achievable? If not, is there an alternative?
Design/methodology/approach-In light of modern urban utopia's failure to achieve the "good city/society," skepticism regarding utopianism has prevailed. However, many scholars stress the significance of utopianism, calling for its revival. Recently, a new paradigm of urban utopia has emerged; one that stems from present capitalist urban conditions and requires resolving its ills. It puts great emphasis on rights as a means to accomplish the good society and the just city. This research critically examines contemporary urban utopia to evaluate its ability to fulfill its goals. It poses questions such as: Does capitalism facilitates achieving its goals? Could rights as a means achieve the good city/society? If not, is there an alternative? To answer these questions, a substantially different perspective, that of Islam (as a societal system), is used as a utopic paradigm that could open up new paths for developing an alternative utopia.
Findings-It is found that despite the focus of both the Islamic societal system and mainstream contemporary urban utopia is on the concept of rights, vital dissensions exist between the two models regarding the concept of rights per se. Hence, the urban utopia of the good city and society is achievable, yet, it cannot transpire within the capitalist kaleidoscope. Originality/value-Recently, discussions on what constitutes the future city and the alternative conceptions to the (Western) post-Enlightenment approaches generally offered in the English language planning literature have been on the rise. Therefore, this paper contributes to this debate through critically assessing Western contemporary urban utopias from a non-Western perspective, that of Islam. It introduces an alternative model based on Islamic urbanism that could open doors for deeper thinking regarding the alternative future/good city.

- by Abeer Allahham
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- Utopia & Modern Urbanism, Urban Theories, Urban utopia
- by Luca Reale and +1
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- Design, Architecture, Urban Planning, Urban Regeneration

Entre el 30 de septiembre y el 2 de octubre de 2015 se celebró en el Centro Cultural La Corrala de Madrid el Congreso Internacional "Imaginarios utópicos: pasado, presente y futuro", con un total de 84 participantes. La idea de reunir este Congreso partió del Proyecto Imagest de la Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, que lo organizó como primera actividad de la recién creada Red Trasatlántica de Estudio de las Utopías. Para su realización se contó con la colaboración del Departamento de Historia Contemporánea, la Facultad de Filosofía y Letras y el Vicerrectorado de Investigación de la UAM, el Centro de Estudios de América Latina (UAM-Santander) y la International Nineteenth-Century Hispanists Network.

- by Juan Pro
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- Utopian Studies, Techno-Utopia, Art, Place And Utopia, Utopian Literature

As superquadras que caracterizam a malha urbana de Brasília são definidas por Lucio Costa, a posteriori, como a “escala residencial” da cidade: um jogo de palavras que obscurece o entendimento de como se estrutura o tecido residencial da capital. Visando a perceber com maior clareza as relações de escala — no sentido convencional, isto é, geométrico, da palavra — na superquadra, abordam-se inicialmente as contradições inerentes à abstração espacial e discursiva no modernismo. Em seguida, analisam-se as relações de escala na área residencial de Brasília em três níveis sucessivos: as articulações de escala da unidade de vizinhança, os elementos de composição espacial na superquadra, e o papel dos edifícios na concretização das escalas e espacialidades peculiares ao urbanismo desta cidade. A cada passo, observa-se como as categorias interpretativas avançadas por diversos estudiosos de Brasília e da arquitetura moderna se articulam, nos seus esclarecimentos e contradições, com a abstraç...

- by Pedro P Palazzo
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- Sociology, Utopia & Modern Urbanism, Brasília, Modern Monumentality
- by Peter Atkins
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- History, Cultural History, Cultural Studies, Geography

As superquadras que caracterizam a malha urbana de Brasília são definidas por Lucio Costa, a posteriori, como a "escala residencial" da cidade: um jogo de palavras que obscurece o entendimento de como se estrutura o tecido residencial da capital. Visando a perceber com maior clareza as relações de escalano sentido convencional, isto é, geométrico, da palavrana superquadra, abordam-se inicialmente as contradições inerentes à abstração espacial e discursiva no modernismo. Em seguida, analisam-se as relações de escala na área residencial de Brasília em três níveis sucessivos: as articulações de escala da unidade de vizinhança, os elementos de composição espacial na superquadra, e o papel dos edifícios na concretização das escalas e espacialidades peculiares ao urbanismo desta cidade. A cada passo, observa-se como as categorias interpretativas avançadas por diversos estudiosos de Brasília e da arquitetura moderna se articulam, nos seus esclarecimentos e contradições, com a abstração e ambiguidade espacial da superquadra. O conjunto assim indissociável de espaços e discursos sustenta o paradigma do habitar moderno, ao preço, porém, de se erigir um sistema de mistificações conceituais.

- by Pedro P Palazzo
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- Utopia & Modern Urbanism, Brasília, Modern Monumentality, Superquadras
- by Francesco Moschini
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- Urban Planning, Urban Studies, Urban Design, Kunst

Kostel Božskéhop Srdce Páně, s. 146–148; Národní památník na Vítkově (dříve také Mauzoleum Klementa Gottwalda), s. 207–209; Barrandov a baarrandovské Terasy, 245–248; Sbor kněze Ambrože a Labská Kotlina I., 262–265; Hotel Černigov (dříve... more

- by Ladislav Jackson
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- Urban Planning, Urbanism, Modern Architecture, Modernism

La Revista de Estudios Globales y Arte Contemporáneo es una revista científica indexada, de acceso abierto y publicación en línea, que tiene como objetivo el estudio de la visualidad, las práctica artísticas contemporáneas y los conflictos interculturales desde una perspectiva global. REG|AC está asociada al grupo de investigación Art Globalization Interculturality (AGI/ART: 2014SGR 1050) del Departamento de Historia del Arte de la Universitat de Barcelona (Proyecto I+D Cartografía Crítica del Arte y la Visualidad en la Era Global: Nuevas metodologías, conceptos y enfoques analíticos MICINN: HAR2010-17403 /MINECO: HAR2013- 43122-P). En el contexto del 500 aniversario de la Utopía de Tomás Moro, el cuarto número de la revista tratará de UTOPÍAS NO TEXTUALES.
Existe una larga tradición de textos que abordan el tema de la utopía a través del género literario inaugurado por Tomás Moro en 1516. Sin embargo, hace tiempo (al menos desde Karl Mannheim) que los estudios utópicos incluyen muchas otras expresiones de la imaginación social, abarcando todas las formas de proponer cambios sociales profundos, cuya radical alteridad los vuelve inconcebibles o irrealizables desde los prejuicios ideológicos de cada momento. Desde ese punto de vista, la utopía puede ser vista más como un método que como una forma concreta (Ruth Levitas). Por su parte, Lyman Tower Sargent ha hablado de tres caras de la utopía: la literatura utópica, la teoría social y la práctica utópica.
Con su teorización del "principio esperanza", ya Ernst Bloch había destacado el papel del arte como una esfera de la creación de utopías. Si los cuadros de Arcadias, Paraísos o ciudades ideales son una manera obvia de abordar la cuestión, ésta se complica a partir del siglo XVIII, cuando el arte comienza a imaginarse a sí mismo como agente del cambio social, situándose entre los dos ejes de la representación y la praxis.
En el marco del 500 aniversario de la Utopía de Tomás Moro, la revista REGAC dedica un número monográfico a las UTOPÍAS NO TEXTUALES, buscando reflexionar acerca de las utopías que no están basadas en el texto escrito. En ese sentido, nuestro interés parte de la reflexión acerca de las prácticas artísticas y de la expresión de lo utópico dentro la cultura visual contemporánea. Sin embargo, entendiendo lo simbólico como un campo expandido que se funde con lo performativo y lo espacial, también damos la bienvenida a contribuciones que reflexionen acerca de las dimensiones utópicas de las prácticas políticas y comunitarias. Pese a centrarnos en un marco temporal posterior a la caída del Muro de Berlín, asimismo consideramos interesantes los estudios que se aproximen al contexto del siglo XX y finales del XIX. Buscamos textos, imágenes o proyectos artísticos que traten asuntos como:
Proyecto Cartografía crítica del arte y la visualidad en la era global III Parte (I+D+I
HAR 2016-75100-P
).
-la utopía en el arte y la arquitectura -imaginación utópica a partir de lo visual -iconografías de la utopía
-arte y práctica comunitaria -imaginación política y utopía
-comunas contemporáneas
-activismo y utopía
-utopías no occidentales
-utopías cinematográficas y ciencia ficción
-dimensiones de posibilidad e imposibilidad dentro de la utopía -relaciones entre utopía y realidad

- by Julia Ramírez-Blanco and +1
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- Critical Utopics, Utopian Studies, Techno-Utopia, Art, Place And Utopia
- by Elisa Drago Quaglia
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- Latin American Studies, Art History, Architecture, Mexican Studies

The Journal of Global Studies and Contemporary Art is an indexed journal and an open access online publication, which aims to analyse visuality, contemporary artistic practices and cultural conflicts through a global perspective. REG | AC... more

- by Julia Ramírez-Blanco
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- Social Movements, Art History, Education, Art
- by Francesco Moschini
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- Utopian Studies, Utopianism, Urban Utopias, Utopia & Modern Urbanism