CityCinema and the Making of Urban Space

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Seminar on the History and Theory of Urban Design.Spring 2003

College of Architecture, The University of Oklahoma

Dr. Khosrow Bozorgi

(405)325-3345

Gould 216

Introduction

Cinema and the Making of Urban Space is the theme in which the relationship between the tectonic of building and site, the making of space, and the perceptual and cinematic phenomena will be discussed. This seminar will examine the urban morphology and city life from antiquity through the capital cities of 21^th century. The idea is to discuss the examples of utopian built environment that represent the connecting trends between architecture and cinema. The seminar will also investigate the understanding of cities, civic culture and civic ritual public and private space; the role of the architect and planner; cultural and formal complexity; and adaptation to change. In this respect the conceptualization of an ideal city can be studied within the vast perceptual and experimental richness of cinema while the emphasis will be on developments in the U.S. studying the formation of urban design vocabulary involving the political and cultural issues. In this seminar, the goal is to conceptualize the urban physical system and general theories that purport to explain its form and function.

Objectives

Familiarize students with the typical example and basic principles of European and American urban design. Expand students’ abilities in the methodology of architectural/urban design research. Develops students’ ability to integrate information from multiple disciplines and to think critically.

To succeed in this seminar, the two most important things you can do are to complete the assignments and attend class, in that order. The reading is intended to give you a base of information which provides the context for material presented in class.

Attendance

Attendance is important for two reasons. First and foremost, visual information will be presented in class that is not available in your text (and in some cases, not in any text) so that the only way you can get all the information is by coming to class.

Prerequisites

Familiarity with world architectural history. Familiarity with periods and styles of world architecture.

Reading Requirements (Provided in Course Packet)

History/Theory

· Frederick R. Hiorns: Town-Building In History

· Leland M. Roth: Understanding Architecture - Greek

· Leland M. Roth: Baroque/Rococo Architecture

· Edmund N. Bacon: Design of Cities - Medieval Design

· Edmund N. Bacon: 17^th Century Paris/London

· Michael Web: The City Square - Classical Ideals

· Michael Web: The City Square – Medieval Hubs

· Norman J. Johnston: Cities in the Round

· Spiro Kostof: The City As A Diagram

· Spiro Kostof: The City As Artifact

· Spiro Kostof: The Grid

· Geofry H. Baker: The Piazza of San Marco, Venice

· Geoffry and Susan Jellico: The Landscape of man

· Jonathan Barnett: The Monumental City

· Jonathan Barnett: The Modern City & The City as a Building

Cinema (Essays)

· Anthony Vidler. The Explosion of Space: Architecture and the Imaginary.

· Dietrich Neuman. Before and after Metropolis: Film and Architecture in Search of the Modern City.

· Donald Albert. New York, Olde York: The Rise and Fall of a City

Cinema (Film Synopses)

· Robert Wiene, Director. Germany 1920. The Cabinet of

Dr. Caligari.

· Frits Lang, Director. Germany, 1924. The Nibelungs

· Marcel L’Herbier, Director. France, 1924. The Inhuman One

· Paul Leni, Director. Germany, 1924. The Waxworks

· F.W. Murnau, Director. Germany, 1924. The Last Laugh

· Jakov A. Protazanov, Director. USSR, 1924. Aelita-Queen

Of Mars.

· Frits Lang, Director. Germany, 1927. Metropolis

· F.W. Murnau, Director. USA, 1927. Sunrise

· Joe May, director. Germany 1929. Asphalt

· David Butler, Director. USA, 1930. Just Imagine

· Edgar G. Ulmer, Director. USA, 1934. The Black Cat

· William Cameron Menzier, Director. England, 1930. Things to Come

· Frank Capra, Director. USA, 1937. Lost Horizon

· King Vidor, Director. USA, 1949. The Fountainhead

· Jacques Tati, director. France, 1967. Playtime

· Ridley Scott, Director. USA, 1982. Blade Runner

· Tim Burton, Director. USA, 1989. Batman

· Waren Beatty, Director. USA, 1990. Dick Tracy

Semester Project

Students in this class will be engaged in different projects inspired by significant examples in the history of urban design while studying films as a source of cinematic interpretation of architectural space. Each student involves compiling the history and interpretation of a particular topic related to one of the following themes. The project is intended to increase the awareness of the range and nature of architectural urban design and to enhance the ability to expand student’s knowledge of the methods of research and scholarly writing. The semester projects will be presented on regular size illustration boards, combining drawings, images and written text. Computer animation and digital video presentation would be accepted for the final project. The projects should be inspired by the following themes:

1. Antiquity: The prehistoric background and the origins of the city

· Egypt

· Mesopotamia

· Greece (Hellenistic, and Graeco-Roman)

· Rome-the Empire and colonial expansion.

· Pompeii, the ancient urbanism.

2. Middle Ages: Formation of the medieval environment

· The dark Age.

· The coming of Medievalism.

· European cities in the Middle Ages.

· The Age of Communal adventure and town-planning.

· Italy and France provide model of civic culture for Europe.

· The Age of Reason.

3. The Classical Revival-Vitruvianism.

· New-Platonism.

· Humanist Movement.

· The spread of Vitruvianism over Europe.

· The revival of interest in Classical Antiquity.

· The ideal-town plan.

4. Renaissance and Barouque

· Renaissance theories.

· Renaissance mannerism.

· The Neo-Classic-Humanist Movement permeates civic and refines social life.

· Systematized Vitruvian planning.

· The Aristotelian principle.

· Italian cities during the Renaissance.

· European colonization.

· The capitals of baroque Europe.

· Design structure of Baroque Rome.

· John Nash and London.

· Development of Paris.

· The improve of social and sanitary conditions.

· Eighteenth-century garden and landscape culture.

5. Industrial Age

· The setting of the Industrial Revolution.

· Insanitary conditions and squalor.

· Urban tradition of Europe is broken.

· The English social and sanitary reformers.

· G. Haussmann

· Utopian socialism and rational planning.

· Ruskin and Morris.

· E. Howard and the Garden-City concept.

· F.L. Olmsted and the suburb.

6. The Modern City

7. The Monumental City

8. Megastructures: The City as a Building

Semester Schedule

January

· M1. Thursday 01/16/03 Orientation

· M2. Thursday 01/23/03 Lecture+Film

· M3. Thursday 01/30/03 Lecture+Film

February

· M4. Thursday 02/06/03 Lecture+Film+Exam I

· M5. Thursday 02/13/03 Lecture+Film

· M6. Thursday 02/20/03 Lecture+Film+Class Presentation

· M7. Thursday 02/27/03 Lecture+Film

March

· M8. Thursday 03/06/03 Lecture+Film+Exam II

· M9. Thursday 03/13/03 Lecture+Film

· M10. Thursday 03/27/03 Lecture+Film+Class Presentation

April

· M11. Thursday 04/03/03 Lecture+Film+Exam III

· M12. Thursday 04/10/03 Lecture+Film

· M13. Thursday 04/17/03 Lecture+Film+Class Presentation

· M14. Thursday 04/24/03 Lecture+Film

May

· M15. Thursday 05/01/03 Lecture+Film+Exam IV

· M16. Thursday 05/08/03 Final Class Presentation (Projects)

Semester Grading

Four components will compromise your grade:

· Attendance 150 points

· Semester exams 400 points

· Class Presentation 150 points

· Semester Project 300 points

Total 1000 points

A=over 910 B=over 810 C=over 710 D=over 610 F=below 610