Monday, July 7, 2008

the thing with cities, again


"it was only as these old shops began disappearing that i realized how much i counted on them - that this layered, frayed, and quirky beauty underline my own life. new technology is usually pitched to us as an improvement but progress is always an exchange. we gain something. we give something else up. i'm interested in looking at some of what we are loosing."

-zoe leonard discussing her photography project, analogue, in
"block by block: jane jacobs and the future of new york city."


down time during pre-college = time to catch up on thinking about things like cities. i checked out "the life and death of american cities" from the mica library. it was published in the early 60s, so it's pretty crazy how relevant most of it still is today. lots on planning and people, problems and solutions, cities and suburbs. there are three chapters on the subject of sidewalks alone. needless to say, i'm loving it.

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