土木工程 外文翻译 外文文献 英文文献 城市与自然的诗学走向城市设计新美学.docx

土木工程 外文翻译 外文文献 英文文献 城市与自然的诗学走向城市设计新美学.docx

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土木工程外文翻译外文文献英文文献城市与自然的诗学走向城市设计新美学

Title:

ThePoeticsofCityandNature:

TowardaNewAestheticforUrbanDesign

JournalIssue:

Places,6

（1）

Author:

Spirn,AnneWhiston

PublicationDate:

10-01-1989

PublicationInfo:

Places,CollegeofEnvironmentalDesign,UCBerkeley

Citation:

Spirn,AnneWhiston.（1989）.ThePoeticsofCityandNature:

TowardaNewAestheticforUrban

Design.Places,6

（1）,82.

Keywords:

places,placemaking,architecture,environment,landscape,urbandesign,publicrealm,planning,design,aesthetic,poetics,AnneWhistonSpirn

Thecityhasbeencomparedtoapoem,asculpture,amachine.Butthecityismorethanatext,andmorethananartisticortechnological.Itisaplacewherenaturalforcespulseandmillionsofpeoplelive—thinking,feeling,dreaming,doing.Anaestheticofurbandesignmustthereforeberootedinthenormalprocessesofnatureandofliving.

Iwanttodescribethedimensionsofsuchanaesthetic.Thisaestheticencompassesbothnatureandculture;itembodiesfunction,sensoryperception,andsymbolicmeaning;anditembracesboththemakingofthingsandplacesandthesensing,using,andcontemplatingofthem.Thisaestheticisconcernedequallywitheverydaythingsandwithart:

withsmallthings,suchasfountains,gardens,andbuildings,andwithlargesystems,suchasthosethattransportpeopleorcarrywastes.Thisaestheticcelebratesmotionandchange,encompassesdynamicprocessesratherthanstaticobjectsandscenes,andembracesmultipleratherthansingularvisions.Thisisnotatimelessaesthetic,butonethatrecognizesboththeflowofpassingtimeandthesingularityofthemomentintime,andonethatdemandsbothcontinuityandrevolution.

Urbanformevolvesintime,inpredictableandunpredictableways,theresultofcomplex,overlapping,andinterweavingdialogues.Thesedialoguesareallpresentandongoing;somearesensedintuitively;othersareclearlylegible.Together,theycomprisethecontextofaplaceandallthosewhodwellwithinit.Thisideaofdialogue,withitsembodimentoftime,purpose,communication,andresponse,oscentraltothisaesthetic.

Concomitantwiththeneedforcontinuityintheurbanlandscapeistheneedforrevolution.Despitecertainconstantsofnatureandhumannature,weliveinaworldunimaginabletosocietiesofthepast.Ourperceptionsofnature,thequalityofitsorder,andthenatureoftimeandspacearechanging,asisourculture,provokingthereassessmentofoldformsanddemandingnewones.Thevocabularyofforms—buildings,streets,andparks—thatareoftendeferredtoasprecedentsnotonlyreflectsaresponsetoculturalprocessesandvaluesofthetimeinwhichthoseformswerecreated.Someofthesepatternsandformssillexpresscontemporarypurposesandvalues,buttheyareabstractions.Whataretheformsthatexpresscontemporarycosmology,thatspeaktousinanageinwhichphotographsofatomicparticlesandofgalaxiesarecommonplace,inwhichtimeandspacearenotfixed,butrelative,andinwhichwearelesscertainofourplaceintheuniversethanweoncewere?

Conceivingofnewformsthatcapturetheknowledge,beliefs,purposes,andvaluesofcontemporarysocietydemandsthatwereturntotheoriginalsourceofinspiration,beitnatureorculture,ratherthanthequotationortransformationofabstractionsofthepast.

Time,Change,andRhythm

"Fortheartist,"observedPaulKlee,"dialoguewithnatureremainsaconditiosinequenon.Theartistisaman,himselfnatureandpartofnatureinnaturalspace."Beforehumansbuilttownsandcities,ourhabitatwasorderedprimarilybynature'sprocesses.Themostintimaterhythmsofthehumanbodyarestillconditionedbythenaturalworldoutsideourselves:

thedailypathofthesun,alternatinglightwithdark;themonthlyphasesofthemoon,tuggingthetides;andtheannualpassageoftheseasons.

Incontrasttotherepetitivepredictabilityofdailyandseasonalchangeistheimmensityofthegeologicaltimescale.Fromaviewoftheworldthatmeasuredtheageoftheearthinhumangenerations,wehavecometocalculatetheearth'sageintermsofthousandsofmillionsofyearsandhavedevelopedtheoriesoftheearthitself.Thehumanlifespannowseemsbutablip,andtheearthbutasmallspeckintheuniverse.

Theperceptionoftimeandchangeisessentialtodevelopingasenseofwhoweare,wherewehavecomeform,andwherewearegoing,asindividuals,societies,andspecies.Designthatfostersandintensifiestheexperienceoftemporalandspatialscalesfacilitatesbothareflectionuponpersonalchangeandidentityandasenseofunitywithalargerwhole.Designthatjuxtaposesandcontrastsnature'sorderandhumanorderpromptscontemplationofwhatifmeanstobehuman.Designthatresonateswithaplace'snaturalandculturalrhythms,thatechoes,amplifies,clarifies,orextendsthem,contributestoasenseofrootednessinspacetime.

Process,Pattern,andForm

Great,upright,redrocks,thrustfromtheearth,risinghundredsoffeet,striketheboundarybetweenmountainandplainalongtheFrontRangeoftheRockies.RedRocksAmphitheaterissetinthesefoothills,itsflatstagedwarfedbytheredslabsthatframeitandthepanoramicviewoutacrossthecityofDenver,ColoradoandtheGreatPlains.Thestraightlinesoftheterracedseats,cutfromsandstonetofitthehumanbody,andthetightcurveoftheroad,cuttofittheturningcar,seemfragilenexttotherocks'awesomescaleandmagnificentgeometry.

Denverisacityofhighplains,Nestledupagainstthesefoothills,itrestsonsedimentsmanyhundredsoffeetdeep,theirfinegrainserodedfromtheslopesofancientmountainsthatoncerestedatoptheRockies,theirpeakshighabovetheexistingmountains.Theredslabsaretheruinedrootsofthoseancientmountainpeaks,remnantsofrocklayersthatoncearchedhighovertheRockiesweknowtoday.Astheeyefollowstheangleoftheirthrustandcompletesthatarc,oneistransportedmillionsofyearsintothepast.ThisisthecontextofDenver,acontextinspaceandtimecreatedbytheenduringrhythmofnature'sprocessesandrecordedinpatternsintheland.Theamphitheateraffordsnotonlyaviewofthecity,butalsoaprospectforreflectingupontime,change,andtheplaceofmanandcityinnature.

Whenweneglectnaturalprocessesincitydesign,wenotonlyrisktheintensificationofnaturalhazardsandthedegradationofnaturalresources,butalsoforfeitasenseofconnectiontoalargerwholebeyondourselves.Incontrast,placessuchasRedRocksAmphitheaterprovokeavividexperienceofnaturalprocessesthatpermitsustoextendourimaginationbeyondthelimitsofhumanmemoryintothereachesofgeologicalandastronomicaltimeandtotraversespacefromthemicroscopictothecosmic.Howeverpermanentrockmayseem,itisultimatelywornsmoothbywaterandreducedfinallytodust.Thepowerofaraindrop,multipliedbythetrillionsoverthousandsintoplains.Thepatternoflinesetchedbythewaterinthesandofabeachechosthepatternengravedontheearthbyriversovertime.

Thesearethepatternsthatconnect.Theyconnectustoscalesofspaceandtimebeyondourgrasp;theyconnectourbodiesandmindstothepulseofthenaturalworldoutsideourskin.Thebranchingriverbedcutbyflowingwaterandthebranchingtreewithinwhichthesaprisesarepatternsthatmirrorthebranchingarteriesandveinsthroughwhichourbloodcourses.

Patternsformedbynature'sprocessesandtheirsymmetryacrossscaleshavelongbeenappreciatedbycloseobserversofthenaturalworld.Recentdevelopmentsinscienceaffordnewinsightsintothegeometryofformgeneratedbydynamicprocesses,betheynaturalorcultural,andpointtonewdirectionsfordesign.

Theformsofmountainranges,riverbanks,sanddunes,trees,andsnowcrystals,arepoised,jelled,atamomentintime,thephysicalembodimentofdynamicprocesses.Theirbeautyconsistsofapeculiarcombinationoforderanddisorder,harmoniouslyarranged,andthefactthattheirformsareatequilibrium,atanygivenmoment,withtheprocessesthatproducedthem.Suchformsandthephenomenonoftheirsymmetryacrossscalesoftimeandspace,haverecentlybeendescribedbyanewgeometry,"fractal"geometry,whichoneofitsoriginators,BenoitMandelbrotcalls"thegeometryofnature"—"pimply,""pocky,""tortuous,"and"intertwined."Asensibilitysteepedinclassicalgeometryperceiverstheseformsastoocomplextodescibe.

However,asfractals,suchpatternscanbedescribedwithsimplicity,theresultofrepetitiveprocesses,suchasbifurcationanddevelopment.Thevarietyofformsthatstemfromthesameprocessostheresultofresponsetodifferingconditionsofcontext,oftotheinteractionwithotherprocesses.

Strangeandwonderfulforms,mirroringthoseofnature,havebeencreatedbyrepeatingasinglecomputerprogram.Earlyintheprocess,theresultingform,asseenonthecomputerscreenappearschaotic;graduallyanorderunfolds.Suchexperimentsarethesubjectofanewfield,coinedChaosbyitspioneers,whofeelthattheyaredefininganewparadigm.Theirsubjectsarediverse,theirobjectiveistoidentifytheunderlyingorderinseeminglyrandomfluctuations.Manyofthoseworkinginfieldhaveexpressedtheiraestheticattractiontothemathematicsoffractalgeometryincontrasttowhattheytermthe"Euclideansensibility."

ThisisageometryforeigntothatofEuclid,withitslinesandplanes,circlesandspheres,trianglesandcones.Euclideangeometryisanabstractionofreality;itsbeautyliesinsmooth,clean,idealshapes.Itisageometrybasedonthebeliefthatrest,notmotion,isthenaturalstate;itdescribesthree-dimensi