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KEVIN LYNCH
Lynch influenced the field of city planning through his work on the theory of city form, and studies relating to human perceptions of the city y y , g p p y on the perception of the city environment and its consequences for city design. Lynch says "Looking at cities can give a special pleasure, however y y g g p p , commonplace the sight may be. Like a piece of architecture, the city is a construction in space, but of a vast scale, . . . perceived only in the course of long spans of time . . . At every instant, there is more than the eye can see, more than the ear can hear, a setting or view waiting to be explored. , , g g p Nothing is experienced by itself, but always in relation to its surroundings, the sequences of events leading up to it, the memory of past experiences . . . Every citizen has had long associations with some part of his city, and his image is soaked in memories and meanings . . . g g
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Book contents
Appendices
1. 1 Some references to orientation 2. The Use of the methodology 3. Two examples of analysis
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Methodology of working:
Make visual plan Analyze the existing form and public image of the area. Understand the critical problems, opportunities and image elements and use them in designing a city .
To explain that he takes three cities Boston, New jersey, Los Angeles as examples and tries to introduce a system in which one can derive design guidelines.
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Legibility
Definition: The ease with which type characters can be read. By Lynch : Legibility is essentially the ease with which people understand the layout of a place place.
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By making questionnaire surveys, Lynch defined a method of analyzing legibility based on five elements: paths, edges, districts, nodes and landmarks. He defined these as follows: Paths Familiar routes followed- Are the channels along which the observer g customarily, occasionally, or potentially moves. E.g.-streets, walkways, transit lines, canals, railroads The continuity depends on: y p Width Gradient activity y
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Edges dividing lines between districts- "are the linear elements not used or g considered as paths by the observer. They are boundaries between two phases, linear breaks in continuity. E.g.- shores, railroad cuts, edges of development, walls ... as barrier
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Breaks
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Districts areas with perceived internal homogeneity- "are medium-to-large sections p g y g of the city, conceived of as having two-dimensional extent, which the observer mentally enters inside of, and which are recognizable as having some common identifying character" E.g.- center, midtown, its in-town residential areas, organized industrial g , , , g areas, trainyards, suburbs, college campuses etc.
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Landmarks p point of reference- Are another type of point-reference, but in this case yp p , the observer does not enter within them, they are external. They are usually a rather simply defined physical object which makes one orient oneself. E.g.-building, sign, store, or mountain g g, g , ,
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Nodes Center of attraction that you can enter- Are points, the strategic spots in a y p , g p city into which an observer can enter. The nodes may be simply concentrations, which gain their importance from being the condensation of some use or physical character, as a street-corner hangout or an enclosed square . q E.g.-primary junctions, places of a break in transportation, a crossing or convergence of paths, moments of shift from one structure to another.
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Imagibility
The quality of a physical object, which gives an observer a strong, vivid object strong image. He concluded that a highly imageable city would be well formed, would contain very distinct parts, and would be instantly recognizable to the common inhabitant. The elements of legibility paths, edges, districts,landmarks, and nodes, when placed in good form, increase human ability to see and remember patterns, and it is these patterns that make it easier to learn.
Public Image
Each individual holds a unique image of his or her city, a visual city representation that guides through daily life and maps out meaning. Researching a sample of these images can help planners discern a public image of their city.A person's perception of the world is known as a mental map. A mental map is an individual's own map of their known map individual s world. Mental maps of individuals can be investigated . This can be evaluated in terms of identity, what makes this particular image unique among cities, structure, how the image is spatially formed, cities structure formed
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and meaning, what values are attached to the image through which one can locate himself. He discusses these elements in detail with respect to three cities and extracts the structure and identity act of the city which would define the city
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Comparing
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Because of the sample examples were inordinately small: thirty people in Boston, and fifteen in Los Angeles and in Jersey city there was some indication that the composite image might still be a rough first p g g g approximation of the true public image. So far, the study has definitely shown only the existence of a consistent image which is used to describe or recollect the city in the absence of the g y real thing. While the data on single elements was adequate , there was a lack of information on element interrelations, patterns, sequence. ,p , q
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If the mass interview for larger samples is done: All the material would finally be synthesized in a series of maps and y y p reports which would give the basic public image of the area and the general visual problems and strengths, the critical elements and elements interrelations. Such studies would produce a library of material on the effects of physical form. On which the designer of cities could draw. The methods can be apply to different scale or function than cities: a pp y building, landscape, a transportation system or a valley region. The studies helps to create the potential structure of the city which would allow one gradually to construct a more complex picture. g y p p
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fo5BAaiJQsM Check out what Lynch has to say about the Image of the city
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