Public spaces mirror the complexities of urban societies: as historic social bonds have weakened and cities have become collections of individuals public open spaces have also changed from being embedded in the social fabric of the city to being a part of more impersonal and fragmented urban environments. Can making public spaces help overcome this fragmentation; where accessible spaces are created through inclusive processes? This book offers some answers to this question through analysing the process of urban design and development in international case studies; in which the changing character; level of accessibility; and the tensions of making public spaces are explored. The book uses a coherent theoretical outlook to investigate a series of case studies; crossing the cultural divides to examine the similarities and differences of public space in different urban contexts; and its critical analysis of the process of development; management and use of public space; with all its tensions and conflicts. While each case study investigates the specificities of a particular city; the book outlines some general themes in global urban processes. It shows how public spaces are a key theme in urban design and development everywhere; how they are appreciated and used by the people of these cities; but also being contested by and under pressure from different stakeholders.
#194754 in eBooks 1997-08-01 1997-08-01File Name: B0031TZ8TK
Review
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Seven Guitars play a complicated tuneBy Infinitejerry69Floyd Barton promised to give Vera the moon. Problem was he wasnt no good. and her neighbor Louise tried to tell her that. Yet. while reading August Wilsons play. Seven Guitars. you want what Louise said to be just talk as Wilson uses other male characters in the sets explore the disenfranchisement many black men felt during the period in which the story occurs. As he does so. you have no idea where the story will go. Then again. clues are dropped. like Hedleys machete. to let you know something isnt going to end well.3 of 4 people found the following review helpful. I Enjoy ALL Of Wilsons WorksBy J. MooreEach of August Wilsons plays is rich. memerable. and wholly poetic in its scope of the African American experience. Naturally with any series in any genre or medium. some plays are not as good as others--but mostly the entire cycle is a near masterpiece. and certain plays in the cycle (such as Fences) are a perfect masterpiece.If you look at the structure of the cycle. you will see that to have ten plays put together to encompass a whole century in the lives of an entire group of people is no small feat. When August Wilson writes of the African Americans. he is in a sense writing about all Americans and how they live their lives. The plays demonstrate their voice in the rich poetry of the blues--one could very well be called the blues musician of the pen and the paper. With no more than a tenth grade education and a lifelong passion for books. Wilson has proven himself a true visionary.August Wilson died in 2005. His absence will be long grieved. just as his immortal works will surely be forever cherished for their sharp-edged beauty and piercing vitality.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. August WilsonBy Jacqueline DavisOne of his best. I am two plays short of owning the entire cycle. August Wilson was (and is) the voice for a generation.
