Manifesto

the Manifesto of the

{ Anti Destination } /ˌˈanti-dɛstɪˈneɪʃn/ opposed to; against, the place to which someone or something is going or being sent.

The anti-destination is defined as the architecture that denies spectacle, that denies attraction, that denies the worshipping of the architectural icon. It is the pro-journey, the prohuman, and the pro-distraction.

Ryan Choong | M.Arch 2 | Flux

Manifesto | 2024

1. The Micro Death of the City (Or, the Destination City problem) 2. The Destination (Or, the God-Icon of City planning) 3. Lynch and Journey (Or, the City as Experience) 4. The Lepak Manifesto (Or, the Malaysian Derive) 5. The Architecture of the Anti-Destination (Or, a Cure for Spectacle) 6. The Architecture of Wandering (Or, Restoring Aimlessness to the City) 7. Manifesto Summary (Or, the Path)

The Manifesto of the Anti-Destination | 2024

‘the city is dead! no longer do we experience the city! long live the destination!’

The Micro-Death of the City (Or, the Destination City Problem)

The Manifesto of the Anti-Destination | 2024

1 ‘people can only experience the city as the sum of its icon destinations’

{ the destination city problem }

The state of our cities is becoming increasingly disconnected. This is due to the bias of city planning as gravitating towards ‘destination spaces’: spaces that are iconic attractors that are ‘airlifted’ and inserted into a site. City dwellers are compelled to move ‘to’ points in the city, but never ‘through’ the city. As long as this paradigm exists, the city is effectively dead; people can only experience the city as the sum of its icon destinations: the city of London becomes Big Ben & the London Eye, the city of Rome is just the Colosseum & the Pantheon. The architecture of anti-destination seeks to defy this, by denying the worship of icon architecture, and bringing back journey & experience to our cities.

The Manifesto of the Anti-Destination | 2024

‘The spectacle is the stage at which the commodity has succeeded in totally colonizing social life’

The Destination (Or, the God-Icon of City Planning)

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The Commodity as Spectacle { readings from ‘The Society of the Spectacle’ } Guy Debord references Karl Marx’s ‘Capital, Volume 1’ in his book ‘The Society of the Spectacle’. Marx states that ‘commodities’ are items that are bought, and sold in an exchange, and thus have perceived value. Debord interprets the Spectacle as commodification of experience. Debord claims that commodities rule social life, and thus commodity, image and products are seen as the only things that are important (not experience). The Spectacle describes the human identification and obsession with images, icons, and attractive brandings. The Spectacle forces us to believe that appearances, commodity and that products, commodity fetishism and superficiality is all there is. And, by making us believe that the Spectacle is real, and is the only and most desirable thing in society, it becomes real. They can be seen as fanciful distractions away from experienced reality

The Manifesto of the Anti-Destination | 2024

The Spectacle (space) { space as commodity and spectacle }

From the understanding of The Society of the Spectacle as people’s obsession with imagery and commodity fetishism, the same is true of space. We construct our spaces as iconic locations (such as landmark parks and clubs) that demand attention to a site. These ‘Spectacle spaces’ are iconic attractions that distract us from genuinely experiencing journeys through space, by artificially inserting a superficial icon in a site that demands our attention and distracts from it. As a result, we only associate our spaces and our cities with that singular God-icon Spectacle space. Because people are blindingly obsessed with Spectacle, they fail to perceive any other space.

The Manifesto of the Anti-Destination | 2024

Spectacle (space) /ˈspɛktəkl/

{ spectacle space as icon }

Spectacle spaces are spaces that are primarily concerned with serving as attractive destinations. They demand the image of the city by overriding perception and sequence of experiences by becoming an over-powering image in the viewer’s mind. As a result, they rarely contribute to the surrounding place, and merely serves as an attractive icon.

The Manifesto of the Anti-Destination | 2024

The Destination as Spectacle { spectacle as anti-journey; destination as spectacle } Lastly, the destination can be seen as a form of spectacle: the destination is the iconic end-goal of people’s travel through a city. The destination is alldemanding, and thus hijacks our experiential journeys through the city. By this construction logic, architects harm our city experiences by creating sites and cities that can only be experienced as the destination that demands our attention of it. This causes us to see cities as destinations to go ‘to’, instead of journeys to be had ‘through’ the city. Activity and attraction is moved away from the public realm of street space and cityscape, instead funneled into these, usually privatised and formal, Destination spaces. We lose the ability to experience the city ‘as-is’; instead, obsessing over destinations to reach.

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Destination /ˌdɛstɪˈneɪʃn/

{ destination as spectacle space }

The Destination is defined as the end point goal of travel. It, like the Spectacle, is an all-demanding icon, and that its overpowering nature hijacks the ability of city dwellers to experience their journeys by being an obsessive icon. It is a powerful end-image that city dwellers associate as being the singular experience and space, but in fact distracts them from experiencing meaningful journeys through the city.

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2 ‘The Destination is the antijourney,

and thus the antiexperience.

{ destination as the anti-experience } The destination is the obsession of people travelling to it, and by being an overpowering and all-important image, it stops the city dweller from experiencing the journey through the city. The Destination is the anti-journey, and thus the anti-experience. The idea of destination architecture is the ultimate enemy of experience. It is the God-icon of city planning that people worship as if it is the only thing that one must care about in the city.

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Situationist { situationist diagram }

The situationist map of Paris, here recreated as a map of Mayfield, Manchester, shows the directional relations of space by the situationist, by drawing arrows depicting the direct paths through space to recognizable locations (Destinations).

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Anti-Destination { anti-destination diagram } Understanding that the anti-destination Manifesto focuses on the journey, and not destinations, a recreated diagram visualises how the anti-destination Manifesto should be interpreted: all focus is put on the journey, the direction, the arrow, the path; the destination, however, is completely disregarded.

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Destination can only be after a Journey { The nature of anti-destination } At this point it is necessary to acknowledge some of the contradictory points of the anti-destination argument. In short, destinations in architecture, city planning, and urban planning are allowed under this Manifesto, but must be preceded by a journey. Destinations themselves are not a negative aspect, but Destinations without journey are: Destination can only be allowed to exist as part of a journey. A destination as a single point, insertion, and iconic structure without the consideration, design and planning leading up to it, and how that affects the city experience is the true anti-journey, and thus is why this Manifesto positions itself as ‘Anti-Destination’: this Manifesto is ‘AntiDestination-without-Journey’

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‘By this we mean the ease with which its parrs can be recognized and can be organized into a coherent pattern’

Lynch and Journey (Or, the City as Experience)

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Lynch and Journey { readings from ‘The Image of the City’ }

Kevin Lynch’s ‘The Image of the City’, writes the city as series of urban elements: path, landmark, node, district, edge. When we understand that Lynch’s work was dedicated to the way that people perceive space, and thus their cities, we understand that Lynch’s urban elements are descriptive of a sequential journey through the city. And his described ‘image of the city’ is produced as a result of this journey through space. From this, we also understand that the ‘image of the city’ (as described by Lynch) is given robustness by being part of a step-by-step sequence, each urban element building upon the previous. The city is experienced as if a storyline.

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Journey ˈ ʒəː

{ Journey as Experience }

The journey, is here defined as the process of travelling through space and places. The end destination is considered secondary. A journey is only considered a journey through the sequential process that defines it. This means that ‘travel to’ does not serve the same purpose as a ‘journey through’ a space, as a travel to a place may be interpreted as a direct line of movement to a destination point, and puts a low emphasis on the sequence and process of travel. In a journey, the process of travel itself is emphasised over the destination. A journey is an experience had when moving through space. It is specifically not the direct travel from one place to another.

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3 ‘if destination is the problem, then the journey, as the opposite of destination, is the cure’

{ journey as the anti-destination } If Spectacle space, as the destination, is seen as being detrimental to the experience of space, then we can naturally conclude that the journey, as a direct opposite to the destination, should be considered as the most conducive to reintroducing and improving the experience of space to people. The journey through a space as the ultimate expression of spatial experience

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Destination Path { diagram of destination-going path } The destination-going path is a pattern of monotone, one-direction, and therefore one-note travel, linearly, to the intended point of destination. The user is focused only on reaching their end goal, with no intention of deviating or exploring their surroundings. (Essentially ignoring them)

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Journey Path { diagram of journey path } The journey path still reaches the destination, but includes the process of exploration, therefore allowing additional circumstances and encounters to occur in the path and on the way to the destination. The journey path breaks the monotony of destination path by offering deviation and exploration.

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‘Now do what?’

‘Go jalan-jalan only lah’ ‘Yeah, go there lepak a bit’

The Lepak Manifesto (Or, the Malaysian Derive)

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Lepak ˈɛ

{ Lepak; Or, the Malaysian Derive }

The word Lepak (literally loiter) is a phenomenon of Malaysian walking/wandering culture that evades definition: it is the aimlessness of wandering, within a space (usually back alleys, market streets, or malls) with the implicit understanding a ‘Lepak’ will lead to an experience of chance, and that the Lepak is a search for this chance experience. This uniquely Asiandefined aspect of city-dwelling is an important parable in understanding the relationships and, more specifically, the lack of Lepak, that plagues theWestern city-dweller’s experience. The exact aimlessness, chance, & wander of Lepak is the exact spirit which must be revived in the experience of Western City living.

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Dérive ʁ

{ Lepak Compared to the Situationist Derive } The derive, as set out by the Situationist Guy Debord, is literally translated as ‘drift’, and is a method of ‘unplanned journey’ through the urban environment.

Derive is used as a vehicle for counteracting the predictability and monotony of everyday city experiences under capitalism. Comparing the Derive to Lepak draws several similarities. However, the Lepak differs in being a carefree journey, focused on the social activity of wandering and experiencing social encounters, while Derive is a conscientious exploration and observation of space.

At its best, a Lepak becomes subconscious, carefree, and the Lepak is itself a form of socializing, like a walk or shopping trip along high streets. The key difference being that this Asiatic variant of Derive has a high focus on social encounters, situations, and commerce.

The Manifesto of the Anti-Destination | 2024

4 ‘activities are considered only an improvised/ impromptu by-product of the Lepak’ { why Lepak is important }

The importance of aimlessness lies in its exploratory and chance encounters: the inception of a Lepak usually begins out of boredom, and a desire to go out, precisely with no aim. The experience of a Lepak is birthed from the dynamism of encounters with shops, street markets, vendors, and other chance moments experienced along the way. The importance of Lepak is in providing the Citydweller with a unique, non-repetitive, and always-dynamic avenue by which they can experience their City. The actions of purchases, eating and socialising, are a secondary result created from the improvisations of the Lepak. That is, the Lepak as improvisations which create social, commercial, and community activity. This is in direct opposite to common sentiments that one goes out in search of these activities (socialisation, shopping, eating etc.). In Lepak, these activities are considered only an improvised/impromptu byproduct of the Lepak.

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5 ‘The ability for Lepak routes to use blank spaces as an improvised space, with an impromptu manner of activity and interaction, is what makes Lepak a strong activator.’ { the informal street and Lepak ] Lepak routes happen on the street, and the street informality is the factor of success for Lepak. Asian streets, shopping streets, and alleys are co-opted informally by local communities to create social spaces, street-side eateries, stalls for shopping etc, in spaces that would otherwise be considered unattractive or uninhabitable by large developers who are more concerned with Destination developments. The informal activity and hijacking of empty liminal space creates street activity along the Lepak route, which then spirals and creates even more activity in a feedback loop, turning a dead liminal space into a now bustling hub of activity in the Lepak route; Lepak as an activator. The ability for Lepak routes to use blank spaces as an improvised space, with an impromptu manner of activity and interaction, is what makes Lepak a strong activator.

The Manifesto of the Anti-Destination | 2024

6 ‘The resulting space is a uniquely human-based space, catering to human activity’ { Human scale of Lepak ] As previously established, Lepak usually occurs in alleyways, streets, and market streets: areas which are uniquely human-scaled. These areas may begin as inaccessible to vehicular access, or exist in areas outside of vehicular access, or are simply an improvised space made from a plot of land considered too small for a council to occupy/construct on. Therefore, a human element can only enter and use that space. The resulting space is a uniquely human-based space, catering to human activity: as the demographics that enter and use the space are designed and constructed to specifically cater to a human proportion, size and scale, ignoring the need for vehicular entry and servicing. The dynamism of Lepak activity is also seen as occurring in a human time scale, as the experience is catered to a uniquely human experience of time: as they walk, eat, or sit, and throughout an average (working) day. Here we understand the lepak as the uniquely pro-human; at a human scale in human time.

The Manifesto of the Anti-Destination | 2024

7 ‘with so many micro-destinations and micro-stimuli that a straight-line, monotonous path is an impossibility’ { the Lepak and stimulus ] Lepak routes commonly occur along populated shopping streets, coffee shop routes, and back alleys that become areas of high activity: a practice that should be replicated to populate the emptiness of the Western city/street model. The high activity and stimulus of the chaotic scramble of markets, shopping streets, street food, and streetside gathering spaces engages users so heavily that they can become lost in space, as they wander from activity point to activity point, the lines and barriers between each blurred so much that they begin to form a continuous journey without a clear beginning or end. The Lepak is to get lost in the abundance of activity, with so many micro-destinations and micro-stimuli that a straight-line, monotonous path is an impossibility.

The Manifesto of the Anti-Destination | 2024

‘No more chance encounters, no more free action; all is pre-determined by the spectacle destination’

The Architecture of the Anti-Destination (Or, a Cure for Spectacle)

The Manifesto of the Anti-Destination | 2024

The Anti-Destination Architecture { understanding the architectural problem of Destination }

Cities are currently being designed with on over-reliance on creating attractive Destinations. This creates the problem of ‘Destination Cities’ whereby city planning becomes a series of point destinations, with no connective activity in the streets leading up to them. This creates an emptiness and placeless void space, where city planning and architecture has neglected these spaces. Such is the problem of Destination. The Manifesto of the Anti-Destination can also be interpreted as the Manifesto of the Pro-Journey. This Manifesto represents the guidelines by which a new architecture must be made to combat our current paradigms of pro-destination, anti-journey architecture.

The Manifesto of the Anti-Destination | 2024

8 ‘created and designed for people as moving “through” the city, not “to” a location’ { through, not to } The anti-destination manifesto emphasises the design of space as taking a person on a journey ‘through’ the city and not ‘to’ a singular location (Destination).; challenging the current monotony and straight-line nature of Destination-going as the pattern of moving from one point to the other. Under this Manifesto, the new architecture should be created and designed for people as moving ‘through’ the city, not ‘to’ a location; to create a journey through space to be experienced. The process of journey through a space is just as important as the activity that happens within the enclosed circuit within a (closed) space.

The Manifesto of the Anti-Destination | 2024

9 ‘the design of how people move through space is just as important as the destination’

{ designing journey } The new architecture should design not just the building as destination, but also curate its movement and journey, and its related journeys going on around it as part of the site’s context of journeys. Understanding that movement is inseparable from architecture, because it is the vehicle by which users perceive and experience space: that architecture should not be designed as a series of stops/views. That city design should not just be created as a series of destinations, but that the design of how people move through space is just as important as the destination: as a path to be experienced, not a checklist to tick off.

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10 ‘against the hyperfocused intentionality of destinationgoing’

{ lingering as entropy } Understanding that Destination creates a monotony of people moving in straight lines to a single destination, and not actually experiencing any journey. This is because the nature of Destinations creates an overly-focused, one-track intention and direction of traveling to a certain point in the city, without any room for exploration along its route. The Anti-Destination works against the hyperfocused intentionality of destination-going by introducing aimlessness, that takes away from the specific focuses of travel, thus bringing a higher dynamism of activity and experience.

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11 ‘to deformalise space, whereby Destinations are considered hyper-formal’

{ informal space and deformalising the formal } The Anti-Destination also seeks to de-formalise space, whereby Destinations are considered hyper-formal: they are spaces that are designed for people to go to, to follow a set of rules within, to interact with it only in its intended function, and then to leave. In some cases, people prepare themselves in dress, equipment or mentality with the specific purpose/intent of going to these Destinations, with a clear idea and expectation of the experience within. To de-formalise space means to introduce informality: a sense of self-construction and improvisation that comes with experimentation, improvisation of use, and freedom of experience. The new architecture should be accommodating to approaches of all types, as well as from all directions.

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‘to give it more

wonder’ (wander)

The Architecture of Wandering (Or, Restoring Aimlessness to the City)

The Manifesto of the Anti-Destination | 2024

The Wanderer’s Architecture { bringing aimlessness back to the city } Understanding that cities are being produced as a result of Destination architecture, the Anti-Destination architecture takes place in the form the new Wanderer’s Architecture. As the opposite of Destination-going, the Wanderer’s Architecture should celebrate the activity of wandering, as opposed to the hyperintentionality of Destinations. It should occupy the space ‘other than’ Destination: whereby a Destination architecture builds monolithic structures, connected by roads, the Wanderer’s Architecture builds roads, connecting to monolithic structures (Destinations). Therefore, the Wanderer’s Architecture can be understood as street architecture, urban planning, city master planning, and all other architectures that surround, and thus give a sense of place to the monolithic Destination architecture. It is the occupation of gaps in the urban fabric, and thus fills in the blanks of the Destination-city model.

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12 Wandering is the program, activity, and objective

{ the activity of wandering } The activity of wandering as an important human basic activity is undervalued in architecture. For example, architecture of work, living, eating, commerce and even bathing exist, recognising those activities as important basic core activities in human life. Likewise, the activity of wandering must be recognised as a basic human need. The value of wandering as an activity is similar to the activity of leisurely walking (through a park, or high street). It is a leisurely activity that brings a sense of calmness, and freedom of expression in it. The need and objective of the activity of wandering is the same as having city parks: allowing people to spend leisure time and simply exist. In the new architecture, wandering is the program, activity, and objective.

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13 the aimless wander is not the same as to be lost in emptiness, rather it is a chosen and enjoyed carefree exploration

{ wandering as being lost } A key distinction must be made that the aimless wander is not the same as to be lost in emptiness, rather it is a chosen and enjoyed carefree exploration. That is, aimlessness and wandering is a ‘chosen lostness’. For example, one may just as easily wander aimlessly around an empty city or empty concrete plaza. However, this is an aimlessness and wandering that is dreary and unengaging to the user, with nothing to explore or experience. The architecture of wandering seeks for the user to choose to get lost, and enjoy it as an experience. The user should feel a sense of getting lost that is engaging and rewarding, not a sense of lost in empty space. The architecture of wandering is that of designed wandering.

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13 The Wander as a new method for interacting with the city { the new model for city interaction } The current city follows a pro-Destination paradigm, that negatively effects our experience of the city. It is necessary for a new city model to be proposed; one that defies the Destination model, and proposes a new method for interaction with the city in opposition to Destination-going. The new model of interacting with the city should be one that highlights the space ‘other than’ Destination, one that purposefully places a lower importance on Destination points, and thus encourages interaction in the streets, and interstitial spaces of the city. The new model should bring activity outside of Destination spaces, and thus its architectural design should be on the street, and away from Destination spaces.

The new method for interacting with the city takes place in the street, celebrates walking and exploration, and prioritises movement through a space rather then focusing on a pre-determined end goal or location; all activity that comes from this exploration should be considered as secondary, whereby the practice of exploration and movement itself becomes the activity, and all encounters, social situations and stopping moments are merely a by-product of wandering.

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14 the specific intent is to have no specific intent

{ the aimlessness of wandering } The aimless nature of wandering cannot be understated: the architectural activity of wandering should only be defined as improvised; non-pre-determined, and aimless. By this definition, we understand that wandering comes from a desire for aimlessness, which is under-represented in our current capitalistic lifestyles which demands too much purpose of the average person. Additionally, if we see that the Destination is a form of pre-determined intentionality and organization, we can surmise that journey is a form of aimlessness unintentionality and dis-organization. The new architecture seeks to challenge the idea that space can only be experience with planned intent and care, and that somehow aimlessness in space is something to be avoided. Instead, the new architecture celebrates un-intentionality. Thus, to be truly anti-destination, the specific intent is to have no specific intent when using space.

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15 to restore aimless-ness to space { the need for aimless space } The need for aimless space is the ultimate and final goal of the manifesto. The aimless architecture provides an option and avenue for city dwellers to wander leisurely, as an expression of freedom of movement. It denies the idea of travelling ‘to’ an iconic destination in efficient, straight lines and without exploration. Humans should be allowed to wander, explore, and make their own destinations and explore varied routes; not those that are pre-determined by city planners and architects. That people should be allowed to meander and break the monotony of movement through the streets, cities, and space. To wander is to acknowledge the idea that humans, when engaged and given a chance to play and explore, will always choose that over the most efficient straight line to a single pointed location.

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‘This is wander-ing

manifest.’

Manifesto Summary (Or, the Path)

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1 ‘people can only experience the city as the sum of its icon destinations’ 2 ‘The Destination is the anti-journey, and thus the anti-experience.

3 ‘if destination is the problem, then the journey, as the opposite of destination, is the cure’ 4 ‘activities are considered only an improvised/impromptu byproduct of the Lepak (wandering) ’ 5 ‘The ability for Lepak (wandering) routes to use blank spaces as an improvised space, with an impromptu manner of activity and interaction, is what makes Lepak a strong activator.’

6 ‘The resulting space is a uniquely humanbased space, catering to human activity’ 7 ‘with so many micro-destinations and microstimuli that a straight-line, monotonous path is an impossibility’

8 ‘created and designed for people as moving “through” the city, not “to” a location’

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9 ‘the design of how people move through space is just as important as the destination’ 10 ‘against the hyper-focused intentionality of destination-going’ 11 ‘to de-formalise space, whereby Destinations are considered hyper-formal’ 12 ‘Wandering is the program, activity, and objective’ 13 ‘Wandering as a new method for interacting with the city’ 14 ‘to challenge the idea that space can only be experienced with planned intent’ 15 ‘to restore aimlessness to space’

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Conclusion (1) { the destination problem } To conclude, this manifesto aims to bring awareness to designers, architects, and city planners to the growing cause of concern that is the Destination (and the Destination city), as creating disconnected island locations within the city, that harm the experiences of people through space. The phenomenon of Destinations creates an obsessive, hyper-focused intentionality towards how we perceive space, and, like the Spectacle, therefore creates a hyper-reality of how space and the city is observed: as we only see space as destinations to be ticked off of a checklist. The Destination phenomenon puts blinders on us and overall harms our consumption and perception towards space that only Destinations matter, and that there is no chance for experience outside of these Destinations. Given this paradigm, our society, city planning, and architecture will only drift further and further toward a city of Destinations, with emptiness and undesigned blank streets of liminal space connecting them.

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Conclusion (2) { restoring aimlessness to space } This manifesto also preaches the aimlessness of wandering as an antithesis to the intentionality of destinations. Aimlessness opposes the Destination by encouraging users to deny the hyper-specific, pre-determined and intentional travel from one location to a Destination by introducing an aimless wander, that takes the user on a non-pre-determined journey. The importance of bringing aimlessness back to the city gives people a vehicle to wander, and challenges preconceptions of how we should consume space: with wandering, we can perceive spaces as more than just singular destinations of specific function.

Aimlessness brings freedom back to how we experience space and fills in the gaps between Destinations: wandering space seeks to enhance and provide context to Destination architecture.

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Interpretations of Anti-Destination { Author’s Commentary } It is important to acknowledge here the many possible interpretations of AntiDestination as a concept. The Lepak is an interpretation of Anti-Destination that, by having a multiplicity and intensity of varied activities and spaces, it interferes with Destination spaces by forcing users to wander aimlessly in an attractive and engaging space that disarms their original focus and intention, by offering an alternative path. The inverse, however, is also true: a space that is heavily dis-engaging and un-intense in activity may also create feelings of AntiDestination by creating calmness and meditation, that then causes a user to be lost aimlessly in a peaceful moment. For example, situationists such as Debord have often praised superstructures (and not microstructures) as being most conducive to the derive method of wandering due to their sheer scale creating a natural sense of lostness. It is important to remember that Lepak is used in this Manifesto as a case study, but other interpretations of Anti-Destination as a concept, Anti-Destination design methods, and further implications are also possible. I am not suggesting that a recreation of Lepak should be the only method to design against Destinations.

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Contradictions of Spectacle & Destination { Author’s Commentary } It is also important to acknowledge the contradictory nature of Spectacle and Destination spaces. For example, one could argue that, should any structure become popular enough, that it would become a Destination by manner of its popularity and attractiveness as a landmark or tourist attraction. While this is true, the purpose of this Manifesto is not to eliminate the presence of Spectacle and Destination spaces, rather it is to alleviate their over-imposing nature on the experience of space through the introduction of designed journey spaces & journey paths. This Manifesto necessarily denounces the Spectacle and Destination spaces only as they pertain to the creation of empty, blank, liminal or interstitial ‘gaps’ in our city experience: if a Spectacle/Destination exists as part of a Journey, it is an acceptable design.

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Definitions:

Spectacle (space) Spectacle spaces are spaces that are primarily concerned with serving as attractive destinations. They demand the image of the city by overriding perception and sequence of experiences by becoming an over-powering image in the viewer’s mind’ Destination The Destination is defined as the end point goal of travel. It is a powerful end-image that city dwellers associate as being the singular experience and space, but in fact distracts them from experiencing meaningful journeys through the city.

Journey The journey, is here defined as the process of travelling through space and places. The end destination is considered secondary. A journey is an experience had when moving through space. It is specifically not the direct travel from one place to another.

Destination Path The destination-going path is a pattern of monotone, onedirection, and therefore one-note travel, linearly, to the intended point of destination. The user is focused only on reaching their end goal, with no intention of deviating or exploring their surroundings.

Lepak The word Lepak (literally loiter) is a phenomenon of Malaysian walking/wandering culture that evades definition: it is the aimlessness and nothing of wandering, within a space (usually back alleys, market streets, or malls).

Derive The derive, as set out by the Situationist Guy Debord, is literally translated as ‘drift’, and is a method of ‘unplanned journey’ through the urban environment.

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Bibliography 1. Debord, G. (1977) Society of the spectacle. Detroit: Black and Red. 2. Lynch, K. (1977) The image of the city. Cambridge, Mass: MIT Press.

3. Marx, K., Paul, E. and Paul, C. (1942) Capital.: Volume 1. London, NY: Dent; Dutton.

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‘the city is dead! no longer do we experience! long live the destination!

How can we expect to experience anything in the city when all we construct are god-icon buildings? { the micro death of the city }

The state of our cities is becoming increasingly disconnected. This is due to the bias of city planning as gravitating towards ‘destination spaces’: spaces that are iconic attractors that are ‘airlifted’ and inserted into a site. City dwellers are compelled to move ‘to’ points in the city, but never ‘through’ the city. As long as this paradigm exists, the city is effectively dead; people can only experience the city as the sum of its icon destinations: the city of London becomes Big Ben & the London Eye, the city of Rome is just the Colosseum & the Pantheon. The architecture of anti-destination seeks to defy this, by denying the worship of icon architecture, and bringing back journey & experience to our cities. (from chapter one)

Manchester School of Architecture

2024