Architects and the Urbanization Process

Between regulation, deregulation and differentiation Lectures and course readings will investigate urban environments from the late 19th century to the recent past and present. As a frame of reference, the urbanisation process will illuminate the conditions in which architecture is conceived, materialised and consumed. Case studies and seminal texts will span an arc from modernism up to the postmodern present. Linking urban space to economic regulation and social differentiation, the course will critically examine the concept of “urbanity”. An emphasis will be placed on how architects endow cities with added cultural value. We will also look at historic and recent forms of gentrification, addressing characteristic programs, institutions and socioeconomic dynamics.