Friday 7 August 2015

Mini-Lessons in London: City Guides for 'Professors Abroad'

Lecture-seminars offered beginning in September in London for Professors Abroad:

1. London, introduction
An introduction to London for new arrivals, from a local - eat, drink, sleep, think, play....

2. London at night
London after dark - reflecting on history - night in the 21st century - walk, travel, think, play...

3. London's railway stations
International, regional, underground, overground and light rail - a complex web

4. Living on London's Regent's Canal
Waterside and waterborne living on what was a freight route for the industrial revolution

5. Frankfurt am Main, Germany, introduction
Little 'Mainhattan', was rated in 2015 the most sustainable city in the world, people planet and profit

6. Frankfurt at night
Frankfurt is a conurbation of three cities has diverse and intriguing night life, work and play

7. Frankfurt's railway station noir
Frankfurt's international station quarter has a diverse and intriguing night and noir scene

8. Vienna, Austria
An introduction to Vienna for visitors, from a resident - eat, drink, sleep, think, play....

9. Graz, Austria
An introduction to Graz for visitors, from a resident - eat, drink, sleep, think, play....

10. Perth, Australia
An introduction to Perth for visitors, from a resident - eat, drink, sleep, think, play....

11. Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
An introduction to Ulaanbaatar for visitors, from a resident - eat, drink, sleep, think, play....

12. London to Ulaanbaatar by train
Introduction to a land journey to the far east from a veteran, weeks of slow travel....

For American or English-speaking undergraduates (approximately 19 - 21 years of age), studying any discipline offered in the American study abroad system.

History, art and architecture students, social sciences, physical sciences, fine arts, technology and communications. General lessons about a city / location / route designed to be attractive to students who are visiting for the first time and have little experience of same.

Several general mini-lessons (arranged by theme, or by part the city, for example), are proposed, with a few specialized in my field. Offering the classes in September!

professors@professorsabroad.com

Thursday 26 June 2014

"temporär wohnen_prekär" - Temporary and Precarious Living in London

Am 02.07.2014 von 14:00 – 19:00 uhr veranstaltete das i_w - Institut für Wohnbau TUGraz - ein symposion zum letztjährigen semesterthema "temporär wohnen_prekär" im grazer hda. Haus der Architektur

Ich war eingeladen, einen Impulsbericht zu machen über Wohnen in London und das Prekär, dann auch mit Anderen über Themen einer Auswahl arbeiten von studierenden öffentlich zu diskutieren. 

temporär wohnen_prekär2 July 2014 Haus der Architektur
1. Architektur - und damit das Wohnen und der Wohnbau - sind oft als Rahmen der 'infallibility' (Unfehlbarkeit) und 'security' (Sicherheit) gedacht - aber kann auch als 'incidental', (Gelegentlich-zufaellig), 'temporary' (zeitweilig-temporaer) und precarious (prekaer) gelten.
2. Von Privatisierung des Wohnens, des Sozialwohnbaus, und des Stadtwohnens, bis zur prekaeres Wohnen.
Meine eigener Erfahrung:
Privat miete
Georgian Rental Marchmont Street - 4-geschossig - Laden im EG
Privat kauf
Ex Local Authority flat - Mortgage 
Bootkaukf und miete einer Dauerliegeplatz. Floating home - zum Innenstadtbootleben und Wohnen in London 
3. Methodologie
Vergleichende Staedtebaufeldforschung:
Eine Angehensweise mit schwer-zu-erreichende Teilnehmer
Klang als Stadtbild und Dokumentation
Klangkarten zB London Sound Survey
Anthropologie Feldforschung London and Frankfurt
4. Wohnbau
Modell Rotes Wien im vergleich mit Social Housing London
Privatisierung Sozialer Wohnbau zu ära Thatchers. Steigerung Mietepreise, leistbarkeit der leistbare Wohnungen.

Das öffentliche Gespräch fand Mittwoch 2. Juli statt. Mit jenen referenten, die bereits am früheren Impulstag über diese Lehrveranstaltungen und deren Inhalte berichtet hatten, wurde ein Schreiben mit Stellungnahmen und Forderungen zu diesem gesellschaftlich brisanten thema erarbeitet, und wird dann erntwickelt. 



Thursday 17 April 2014

Occupying Streets - abstract

Occupying Streets: Street Design in Station Areas in London and Frankfurt (2014)

This research investigated street design in inner city station areas, comparing Frankfurt’s station quarter with that of King’s Cross in London. Both are vibrant mixed use areas, with residential, office, commercial and evening entertainment uses in internationally well connected and culturally diverse station hub areas. Based on a gap in knowledge of street design beyond engineering and urban design, a diverse set of hard-to-reach users and some intermediary agents were interviewed in each case study. The research questions were; ‘how is street design orchestrated?’, ‘how are night and day significant?’, ‘how is quality of place reconciled with movement in streets?, and ‘how can we learn from streets?’ 

The research design analysed both the Niddastraβe in Frankfurt and the Caledonian Road in King’s Cross Street as physical environments and to understand how they worked or could be improved from the perspective of users and change agents on each street, and from interviews to discover the criteria stakeholders considered significant for making the street more liveable. Semi-structured interviews were developed as a participant observation tool as extant and future street design in each case were investigated using a mixed methodology. Analysis of the two sets of interviews found six themes of importance to users and agencies; distinctiveness, transport, conflict, recognition, accessibility and transition. 

The contributions to knowledge can be seen in four ways. The formerly under-recognised part that street design plays - making station hubs vital and liveable places - has been identified. A factor described as noir urbanism is shown to add distinctiveness and attractiveness to station areas. The need is outlined to work hard for genuine collaboration between end-users and professionals in co-production of streets, and especially by working live and in situ, which is rarely done. The urban soundscape, usually under-recognised in street design, is also presented as an integral part of the experience of the station area and the city.

Interviews Niddastrasse

Als wichtiger Teil meiner Forschung über die Gestaltung von Strassen im Bahnhofsviertel suche ich diverse TeilnehmerInnen für spazierende / gehende Interviews. Ich habe vor, per Klangaufnahmen die 15-20 minutige spaziergaengchen in Niddastrasse zu analysieren, um Gestaltung von Strassenraueme bzw Shared Space zu erforschen. In Dezember zu verschiedenen Tageszeiten u Wochentagen möchte ich mit TeilnehmerInnen in der Niddastrasse sprechen und ihre Erfahrungen und Meinungen hoeren.

Die Forschung laueft in Zusammenhang mit einem Projekt an der University of Westminster, die Aussagen werden ohne ausdrueckliche zusage nicht Veroeffentlicht, und mit zugabe werden lediglich die anonymisierte Klangaufnahmen oeffentlich benutzt.

Forschungsfragen / Fragethemen

Positive Eigenschaften v Strassenraum
Negative Eigenschaften v Strassenraum
Moegliche Verbesserungen
Nuztung d Gehsteiges / Fahrbahn
Ueberquerung des Fahrbahns
Visuelle Chaos / Stoerung
Betriebsgelände auf Gehsteig

Interviews Caledonian Road

A critically important part of a current research project on Street Design at the University of Westminster involves walking interviews with users and managers of Caledonian Road. It is intended to walk for 15-20 minutes and to sound record a semi-structured interview.
At various times of day ad night on various weekdays in November these interviews are intended to reveal experiences and opinions of interviewees about the street design and potential improvements.
The research is part of a project at the University of Westminster, and interviewees comments will not be published without their express permission. Interviewees will be asked if the anonymous sound files of their voices may be published.

Questions/Themes

Positive Qualities
Negative Attributes
Potential Improvements
Using the footway / Roadway
Crossing (traversing) the carriageway
Visual Clutter
Safety

Wednesday 2 April 2014



There, take a picture 


Cherry Blossoms Regent's Park 


then walk back to work 




(haiku composed white sitting and relaxing under a tree in Regents Park on Tuesday afternoon 1 April, just after submitting my thesis)


Instagram

Bikes Alive

Thursday 27 March 2014

Croydon Sound Sojourn





1 - getting there (audio only - use headphones) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15rEVko7R7A

Frankfurt Bahnhofsviertel: 7 Pilot investigations: (5 Elbestrasse Taunusstrasse)



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7W235_AuoQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVyuQT6wRX8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o7pbwfWv5nM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtP9afpA1o0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qN1ES2n8j-k

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vzObAsQOyK8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KOCoPmiGHfs

'Occupy' 2003, Perth (31 March 2003)

Tuesday 1 October 2013

Walk 21 Munich

(programme) (conclusions)

Walk 21 Munich

Sambarchitecture

Press Release

Streets cf. Roads

"We desperately need a more sophisticated understanding of the difference between a road and a street. Our DOTs (departments of transport) are damaging our cities, wasting money they don't have pursuing antiquated goals using yesterday's procedures. We can do more with less if we adopt a strong towns approach."

http://www.strongtowns.org/journal/2013/8/26/roads-and-streets-in-st-peter.html#.UksH1tJNHkU