the untested city

The search for public space will begin by looking at significant examples of NODES, open spaces,

(ranging in scale from the multiplied grounds of Almere’s City Center to a neighborhood park in

Kazakhstan) and CORRIDORS, the networks that feed and sustain them ( the system of air-conditioned

bus stops in Dubai to the linear park-covered highway of Leidse Rijn). It will transcend spaces of mere

public access and prioritize spaces that accommodate multiple uses and sections of society. Although

new spaces are often larger than those of traditional cities, the scale of human interaction has not

changed; while conscious of the presence of competing scales, the search is ultimately intended to

remain open to the discovery of new types.

Criteria for evaluating public space is established and well-documented. Analysis will adapt this

defined apparatus by virtue of what is happening on the ground. Two distinct new city models – the

TABULA RASA (planned city), and the SPROUTING (unregulated city) will be used to analyze public

space.