Archiprint6—Creating & Experiencing Identity
8
Uniquely Globalized —Thoughts on Urban Character
Ajeetha Ranganathan
The vastness of the notion of identity, as discussed in this issue of Archiprint, is more compelling than ever when reckoned in an urban scale. While we are still grappling with what may be the identity of a unit, a person, a building etc, the phenomenon is already lending to, growing or diminishing with a neighborhood, a city, country or a period of time. So what are the ramifications for the singular, the unique and the local units of identity when the already enormous ground of urban identity grows global ambition. Ajeetha Ranganathan, in her article, poignantly draws out the various players in the globalization of architectural aesthetics and the strain caused by the speed and the intensity of the phenomenon on slow, organic process of local identity creation. The identity of a city can be quite difficult to define or express, comprised as it is of numerous intangibles. However, the physical form of a city, its urban morphology, is something much more tangible and easier to define.
of the streets, construction materials and built form were derived from local conditions of geography, climate and culture. This can be seen, for example, in the narrow streets in hot dry climates such as Jaipur in India, where the houses share walls to prevent heat gain. Buildings were mainly of local materials – mud or stone or wood – and the details derived from the material, climate and culture. An example would be the mashrabiyas of the Middle East. These serve the dual function of cooling the hot air and to allow privacy for the women of the household. Another example would be that of the 15th century Jamia Masjid in Srinagar, India. The city is located in the Himalayas, and the mosque combines Islamic arches with a roof form suited to the heavy snowfall of the region. The scale of buildings and open spaces, the form of the buildings, the pitch of the roofs, construction materials, detailing and decorative elements were unique to each place, making the city distinctive and easy to identify.
Historic influences on urban form In the past, when one visited a city, it was possible to immediately get a sense of place in the city centre. Cities were shaped by geography, history and climate, giving each a unique identity. Building crafts were dependent on local materials and traditions, although there was a certain amount of influence from invasions and trade. The vernacular of each of these places was different. Old cities still retain some of these characteristics. Traditional cities had a centre of religious and civic public buildings around which housing neighbourhoods were clustered. The scale
Forces shaping contemporary urban environments The modern city is shaped by the effects of industrialisation and globalisation. ‘Everywhere in the world is becoming alike economically and culturally as a consequence of globalization. This is a scaling up from the national to a global scale of the old idea of ‘modernization’. From this perspective, common global norms about conduct, consumption standards, and cultural practices are spreading everywhere.’1 Road widths are now a function of the automobile, a condition that is global rather than local.
The invention of air-conditioning and elevators contributed to the spread of what Vidler described as the second typology — the building as machine2. Air-conditioning in particular facilitated the detachment of the building from its surrounding environment, revolutionising the way a building had to be designed. The hermetically-sealed building/ engine did not have to respond to heat, cold, noise or dust, day or night. The industrialisation of building construction also resulted in a change in the culture of building from a craftsman–led tradition to mass-produced standardization. The increase in standardization and the global movement of materials have led to a situation where buildings in vastly different locales use remarkably similar materials. Architecture is influenced by forces larger than design intent. Market demands, construction limitations, the demands of client and program or the restrictions of planning and safety regulations can combine to shape a large part of the built environment. As developers and construction companies operate globally, they tend follow standard procedures wherever they operate. These macro-influences on the built environment therefore largely operate in a similar way across multiple locations. The scales of buildings, construction technique, program and services and choice of materials are affected by these influences, which in turn 1 John Agnew (n.d.), ‘The New Global Economy: Time-Space Compression, Geopolitics, and Global Uneven Development’, Journal of World-Systems Research (vii, 2, 2001), 133–154 2 Anthony Vidler, ‘The Third Typology’, Oppositions 7 (Winter 1977), 287–294