CITIZENSHIP
Le Corbusier famously called the house, a machine for living in. Like any good machine, the modernist city split into distinct and specialized parts. The close knit, human scaled, vibrant city was gone.
Critics ( Jane Jacobs) argue that his vision for urban life was destructive to the city, alienating people from one another, and elevating the car over the human.
A 45 storey tower in Venezuela was abandoned on the death of its developer. The incomplete building which was unused for the first 13 years, is today an improvised home of a community of more than 750 families. The tower of david is one of the projects that has shown us that The future of urban development lies in collaboration among architects, private enterprise, and the global population.
The first public space to be built was a representation of power to the common man. The Parthenon as a place where people came together to discuss the issues of governance. This facilitated ‘INCLUSION’
Do public spaces allow democracy today?
“Common spaces are the pre-political and yet necessary conditions of democratic politics.�
Hannah Arendt, Political Philosopher
Architecture is a physical manifestation of Ideologies.
Modernism : Led to industrialization of cities. It transformed the traditional walled city to a metropolitan city which was stimulated by the development of public transport.
Consumerism : Led to economizing spaces. Pedestrianized streets intended for free movement and utilization are today lined with open street restaurants aiding additional income, and blocking free space.
Architecture forms an important part of our daily lives. It influences and shapes not only our functions but also our well being, socially and physically.
Architecture could almost be considered as a part of the citizen body. Public spaces being enablers of democracy, must manifest the ideology of democracy.
Democracy entails participation. A public space can be made democratic, only by allowing and encouraging participation as a responsibility and duty of a citizen.
‘Citizenship’
Shweta Manikshetti Citizenship and Public Space Master’s in Design Innovation Glasgow School of Art