Locations for seating are places where there are people. The social life of small urban spaces is a documentary about a study performed and narrated by william h. The social life of small urban spaces 1980 duration. Whyte analyzes the success and failures of urban spaces. The social life of small urban spaces m o h d d a n i s h m. The social life of cities, in particular the ordinary, the small scale and mundane aspects of urban life, are commonly overlooked as a source of insight and inspiration for city planners and decisionmakers.
The social life of small urban places june 2, 2015 andrea gibbons 8 comments truly one of the greats of urban planning, i loved this pivotal look at how you study public space and what you learn from the practice. Apr 07, 2015 the social life of small urban spaces 1. Clustering amenities attracts people and activity, and helps to incre ase peoples level of social comfort. The aim of the research project was to study how people use plaza. Out of print for six years, pps has acquired the rights and is thrilled to make this important book available again to the public. Project for public spaces, the social life of small urban spaces 1979 short version planum magazine, movies column no. The exception is the appendix with whytes tips on conducting time lapse filming. T h e street life project began its study by looking at new york city parks and. This documentary mainly focuses on plazas, parks, and sidewalks. I got a copy of the social life of small urban spaces 1980 which in its marvelouslywritten, straightforward way is the one book all burgeoning urbanists should start their world exploration. Social comfort can, in turn, help to facilitate spontaneous social interactions and activities. Throughout his essay, whyte engages in a more extensive observation of the space, broken down into diagrams, timeschedules, and studies of how the public actually circulate and station themselves within the.
Whyte and his colleagues involved in the street life project whyte, 1980. It resulted in 1980 in, among other things, a documentary called the social life of small urban spaces. Study and analysis of the public plazas of new york city. To our readers f o r m o r e t h a n 25 years, project f o r p u b l i c spaces has b e e n u s i n g. Holly whyte, explores the successes and failures of public spaces in new york city. William holly whyte in his own words, the social life. In 1980, renowned urbanist, william whyte made the social life of small urban spaces based on observations made in new york city.
Goodreads members who liked the social life of small. The social life of small urban spaces 1980, we spent 350 hours observing. Books similar to the social life of small urban spaces. The social life of small urban spaces, market square youtube. The role of icts in creating the new social public place of. The social life of small urban spaces street urban. Nov 30, 20 the social life of small urban spaces, market square george morris. The social life of small urban spaces tranzit paper. Apr 04, 2016 05 social life of small urban spaces 1. The easiest way to caption and translate any video, with crowdsourcing, volunteers, and professional services. The social life of small urban spaces 1979 planum the.
With the publication of the social life of small urban spaces and its companion film in 1980, the world could see that through the basic tools of observation and interviews, we can learn an immense amount about how to make our cities more livable. The urban renaissance agenda appears too concerned with matters of urban design, as well as being distinctly metropolitan in character. Key words urbanization, impact, urban areas, sustainable development. Jul 23, 2014 a few years later i met fred and ethan kent at project for public spaces. The social life of small urban spaces is a brief book on urban plaza design from william whyte, author of the organization man. Erik rietveld introduces the social life of small urban. Whytes classic 1980 study of new yorks plazas started a minirevolution in urban planning and design. Nevertheless, the successful spaces is one in which an unrelated public is present.
The study was done to try and get new zoning resolutions in place that would promote the building of better public spaces in manhattan. Pdf the social life of the small urban space bruna silveira. Whyte, washington, open epub for the social life of small urban. The organization man, the social life of small urban spaces. Erik rietveld introduces the social life of small urban spaces 19 june 20 erik rietveld urbanism, theory on wednesday last week erik rietveld philosopher at the university of amsterdam and partner at raaaf rietveld architectureartaffordances introduced the film the social life of small urban spaces by william whyte. Pdf change in the social life of urban public spaces. Thirtyfour years later, this short film explores whether his. The social life of small urban spaces, a 1979 documentary by william h. The book, the social life of small urban spaces, wants to be a manual for the creation and management of urban spaces, referring in particular to the city of new york. William hollingsworth holly whyte october 1, 1917 january 12, 1999 was an american urbanist, organizational analyst, journalist and peoplewatcher. Observation here shows fewer interethnic social interactions among adults than among youths. Whyte takes a closer look at the open spaces of cities.
He identified the elements that create vibrant public spaces within the city and filmed a variety of urban plazas in new york city in 1970s. Whyte is a documentary made in 1979 to discuss open spaces in urbanized areas. Young office workers from the surroundings, commuters on their way to work, nearby street commerce, create the bulk of the public. Spaces designed to keep out o u r small urban spaces, i f we design new s. Whyte that looks into how people interact in and with urban plazas in new york. The social life of small urban spaces public space. Here, whyte focuses on behavior in urban plazas of the sort generally found at the foot of corporate skyscrapers in new york, san francisco, and other major cities.
Beginning at new yorks seagram plaza, a popular open area in nyc, the film proceeds to investigate major facts of urban design throughout various public spaces. Whyte, a pioneer in the study of human behavior in urban settings, are far from passe. The study concluded that the greater the number of these key features, the more people gravitated to these public spaces. The social life of small urban spaces street urban planning. Whytes the social life of small urban spaces in the early 1970s, when the technologies involved were quite simple, was one of the first documentaries studying in detail the way public spaces were used using surveillance cameras. Buy the social life of small urban spaces book online at best prices in india on. The social life of small urban spaces research by erik rietveld.
Social life of small urban spaces 1980 social life of. Social interactions in urban public places this particularly applies in the case of ethnicity and cultural diversity in a town where the black and minority ethnic population is relatively small. Beginning at new yorks seagram plaza, one of the most used open areas in the city, the film proceeds to analyze why this space is so popular and how other urban oases, both in new york and elsewhere, measure up. Pdf the social life of the small urban space bruna. Pdf the widespread deployment of wifi and highspeed mobile phone data. The social life of small urban spaces brain pickings. C wikipedia citation please see wikipedias template documentation for further citation fields that may be. The social life of small urban spaces informal science. In 1970 william whyte formed a small research group. Produced by tom southall of the uwe urbanism social life of small urban spaces on vimeo.
The rise of mobile phones and women, and the decline of aloneness over thirty years article pdf available in urban studies 528. The street life project, and began studying new york citys urban spaces including parks, playgrounds. Whyte published the findings from his revolutionary street life project in the social life of small urban spaces. Find books like the social life of small urban spaces from the worlds largest community of readers. Some kind soul has put the whole thing up on vimeo. Article information, pdf download for the social life of small urban spaces william h. A couple years ago, i pointed to a 10minute clip of a longer documentary called the social life of small urban spaces. Architecture general open spaces open spaces social aspects united states pedestrian areas pedestrian areas social aspects united states. Whyte s video is charming and exhaustive document on use of public space in new york of 80ths. Both the book and the accompanying film were instantly labeled classics, and launched a minirevolution in the planning and study of public spaces. Oct 03, 2011 probably one of the most wellregarded films about urban planning is now available online in its entirety.
Whyte suggested that the effective market radius for a plaza is about three blocksp. Classic documentary on public space now available online. Based on direct observation of what people actually do, the. The documentary is a feast for anyone interested in design and the skilled contextsensitive interaction between people and their environment. A few years later i met fred and ethan kent at project for public spaces. The methods of study included timelapse filming, interviews, and direct observation. To our readers f o r m o r e t h a n 25 years, project f o r p u b l i c spaces has b e e n u s i n g observations, sur. Whyte published the findings from his revolutionary street life project. Although whytes social life of small urban spaces was first published in 1980, this book doesnt feel dated at all, reading it some 30 years later.
Looking at the everyday life of city streets and neighbourhoods. The social life of small urban spaces people like to visit places. The social value of public spaces i 3 the research challenges several current government policy assumptions concerning public space. The clothing and hairstyles of the people featured in the film may seem dated, but the ideas put forth by william h.
Slim but fantastically insightful, the social life of small urban spaces is a foundational piece of todays thinking on what makes a great city and a fine addition to these essential reads on urbanism. It documents their cultivation of detailed ict repertoires to make the most of. The social life of chinese small urban spaces youtube. By ron hine fbw march 19, 20 the social life of small. Arch 1st sem urban regeneration j a m i a m i l l i a i s l a m i a by william h. I got a copy of whytes 1980 classic, the social life of small urban spaces, which in its marvelouslywritten, straightforward style is the one book all burgeoning urbanists should start with. The social life of small urban spaces 1979 short version. This witty and original film is about the open spaces of cities and why some of them work for people while others dont. The social life of small urban spaces free download as pdf file. Aug 22, 20 their findings were eventually collected in the social life of small urban spaces public library in 1980 and synthesized in a 55minute companion film, which you can watch below for some remarkably counterintuitive insights on the living fabric of the city. This highly influential film in architecture and planning circles by william h. Snehal kanade yash more prasad mankar guided by omkar parishwad.
In fact, new york city derived from whytes conclusions useful principles for the creation of those spaces. Observing the natural order of spaces and the way people move through them, whyte provides an intuitive critique of urban spaces and ways these spaces can be improved. The social life of cities, in particular the ordinary, the smallscale and mundane aspects of urban life, are commonly overlooked as a source of insight and inspiration for city planners and decisionmakers. It is far easier, simpler to create spaces that work for people than those that do not and a tremendous difference it can make to the life of a city. Whytes video is charming and exhaustive document on use of public space in new york of 80ths. Public spaces play a vital role in the social life of communities the social value of public space is wide ranging and lies in the contribution it makes to peoples attachment to their locality and opportunities for mixing with others, and in peoples memory of places dines and cattell et al. This complex process knows a strong global dimension that overcomes the spatial barriers, acting as real centers of progress with a significant impact on natural resources and on life quality.
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