Cities and Design

by Knox; Paul L.

• ISBN13: 9780415492898
• ISBN10: 0415492890
• Format: Nonspecific Binding
• Copyright: 2010-07-30
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

Cities, initially a product of the manufacturing era, have been thoroughly remade in the image of consumer society. Competitive spending among affluent households has intensified the importance of style and design at every scale and design professions have grown in size and importance, reflecting distinctive geographies and locating disproportionately in cities most intimately connected with global systems of key business services. Meanwhile, many observers still believe good design can make positive contributions to people's lives.Cities and Design explores the complex relationships between design and urban environments. It traces the intellectual roots of urban design, presents a critical appraisal of the imprint and effectiveness of design professions in shaping urban environments, examines the role of design in the material culture of contemporary cities, and explores the complex linkages among designers, producers, and distributors in contemporary cities: for example fashion and graphic design in New York; architecture, fashion, and publishing in London; furniture, industrial design, interior design and fashion in Milan; haute couture in Paris; and so on.This book offers a distinctive social science perspective on the economic and cultural context of design in contemporary cities, presenting cities themselves as settings for design, design services, and the 'affect' associated with design.

Author Biography

Paul L. Knox is University Distinguished Professor and Senior Fellow for International Advancement at Virginia Tech, where he was Dean of the College of Architecture and Urban Studies from 1997 to 2006. He has published widely on urban social geography and economic geography.

Table of Contents

List of figures	p. vii
List of tables	p. ix
Acknowledgements	p. xi
Introduction	p. 1
Cities, design and urban life	p. 3
Design, designers and the resurgent metropolis	p. 38
The intentional city	p. 63
Better by design? Historical antecedents	p. 65
The city redesigned: modernity, efficiency and equity	p. 100
Design for new sensibilities	p. 129
Designer cities	p. 171
Design and affect in urban spaces	p. 173
Design services and the city	p. 202
Conclusion: toward liveability and sustainability	p. 236
References	p. 251
Index	p. 269
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