Art & Urbanism

(Guest post for Ecological Urbanism)

"The second series on the topic of Ecological Urbanism (EU) will focus on space and the design thereof. What we would like to discuss is how space, as a product of cultural and social organisation, has to be reconfigured in order to allow for a more sustainable performance. With a focus on space as the raw material in cities we want to discuss aspects of sustainability on a much more substantial level, as a change to how we create, use and interact with urban space and most important include the so called 'user' , the citizen as a fundamental part of the discussion." (txt: Fabian Neuhaus)

Follow the discussion on:
http://urbantick.blogspot.com/
http://urbanlabglobalcities.blogspot.com/2010/10/art-urbanism.html

As author of the PYTR75-blog, I want to focus on the concept of merging art with urbanism. Here are some examples of artists researching and interacting with urban areas, sometimes on an abstract level. They take urbanism and architecture as a starting point for experimentation. The outcome is a diverse ensemble of projects that reflect how artists incorporate the idea of (ecological) urbanism.
Some artists alter the condition of urban places with (temporary) installations. Urban interventions react with the users of public space and are clearly visible in our daily environment.
Other artists use the morphology of the built environment to create a stand-alone artwork, ready to travel the world in museums.

#1 Krystian Czaplicki aka Truth (Poland)

"Truth works within the urban space. He creates installations in places that he picks intuitively. First the idea for the work appears, then later comes the desire to implement and see it in reality. The physical space in which it appears is essential. The work without the place cannot exist. You can’t just simply cut it away and present it on a different background; it sinks deep into the city like a parasite." (Text by Ewa Laczynska-Widz)

http://krystiantruthczaplicki.blogspot.com/

 Thruth - sanok poland (2007)

 Thruth - lodz poland (2007)

Thruth - london england (2008)

#2 Allison Kudla (USA)

"Capacity for (urban eden, human error): the system uses a computer controlled four-axis positioning table to ‘print’ intricate bio-architectural constructions out of live plant cells. Suspended in a clear gel growth medium, these cells continue to divide and flourish, gradually filling in the construction. The algorithmically-generated patterns drawn by the system are based on the Eden growth model and leverage mathematical representations of both urban growth and cellular growth, thereby connecting the concept of city with the concept of the organism." (Text by Allison Kudla)

Allison Kudla (born in 1980)  is interested in using digital media to preserve and discover environments that are in a continual state of flux.
 

http://www.washington.edu/dxarts/profile_research.php?who=kudla&project=Eden

 

 

Allison Kudla - capacity for (urban eden, human error)

#3 Krijn De Koning (NL)

“Krijn de Koning (born in 1963 in Amsterdam) has build some large works in public environment and deals with the idea of architecture and place. His site-specific interventions change the way that a visitor perceives the place. It turns around, breaks through, and sometimes only points out the elements that condition the visitor on the place that he is in.” (Text by Krijn De Koning)

http://www.krijndekoning.nl/

 Krijn De Koning - Hilversum (1999)

Krijn De Koning - Blandy Les Tours FR (2008)

#4 Xing Danwen (China)

Xing Danwen (°1967 Xi'an, China)  is interested in cultural narratives and the friction created by globalization and the proliferation of new urban constructions. For the project ‘Urban Fiction’ she has photographed actual architectural maquettes of buildings that are being created in China, and has then inserted herself within them, as different "characters". (Text by Rachel Hulin)

http://www.danwen.com/web/works/uf/index.html

 Xing Danwen - Urban Fiction, image 17 (2004)

 Xing Danwen - Urban Fiction, image 0 (2004)

#5 Edith Roux (FR)

Euroland (2000) - 34 photographs of peri-urban landscapes in Europe taken with a 4x5 view camera.
"Crossing the barrier that held it back over the centuries, the city is now spilling outwards, incontinent, beyond walls and ditches. It has reached the countryside, which it now occupies and transforms. The city is spreading out in every direction, with a preference for well-travelled axes and grids. The rounded perimeter of the city limits has been stirred up, and punctured. It now spreads out star-like, its edges uncertain." (Text by Gilles Clément)

http://www.edithroux.fr/works/euroland/index.php

 Edith Roux - Euroland 26

 Edith Roux - Euroland 3

Edith Roux - Euroland 25

#6 Stephanie Beck (USA)

"My work is inspired by images of archaeological sites, architectural history, aerial photos and my own explorations through various cities. My strongest influence at the moment is the city where I currently live, Philadelphia, where buildings are in a constant state of construction and destruction. I enjoy seeing the bones of these structures, on top of which strong skin is hung, yet which is so easily torn down again. I see these buildings as surrogates for ourselves, revealing our attempts at order and stability despite, or because of, our very human frailties." (Text by Stephanie Beck)

http://www.stephaniebeck.org/

 Stephanie Beck - Township (2008)

 Stephanie Beck - Harbour (2008)

Stephanie Beck - Pattern Of Place (2007)

#7 Nathan Abels (USA)

"These images are a response to natural processes and the noticeably unnatural human habitat. They depict the effects of construction and destruction – each image functioning as a visual pause; a contrast in this persistent turbulence." (Text by Nathan Abels)

http://www.nathanabels.com/

 Nathan Abels - Untitled

 Nathan Abels - House Train

Nathan Abels - Layout