The Scale of Politics
Reading David Harvey's "Right to the City", the common theme that Harvey introduces is that politics has an important factor in life of architecture and history. He depicts the history of the french revolutions and other events where there was hardships due to politics at the time.
For me, politics not only affects architecture on a large overarching scale but on the smallest local level as well. The nation's government can play a major role in architecture as administrations transition when their political terms are over. As well on a local level, a corrupt city official can change the city's/town's landscape over greed and back door dealings. The movers and the shakers are not the only ones who can change the world of architecture, the people can have just as large of a role as the elected leaders.
I saw how politics were affected first hand down in Charleston with the fire station my firm was designing. A hand full of local residents felt that a fire station right next to their house would lessen the value of their homes. Those residents fought and fought the notion of a new station. It ended up putting the project on hold by 2 weeks as the firm leadership had to deal with zoning meetings and town hall meetings to decide the issue. Even has it was a resource and a benefit to all residents on the island, a small handful was almost able to change the project due to manipulating the political system. Luckily the construction of the station is underway.
Politics also uses architecture as a way to express power to its citizens and other political bodies. The national mall in Washington, D.C. does just that. It is used a public place for gathering and demonstrating one's beliefs. The national mall barely has a given day go by when there isn't a political protest or political event taking place. As these events happen, you can see the backdrop of these iconic buildings or architectural features used as a platform for political agendas.
Architecture and Politics has a shared history that isn't going to change anything soon. There has been iconic buildings built to express power and buildings destroyed as political power was used. We just have to understand the political context surrounding architecture as we move forward.
For me, politics not only affects architecture on a large overarching scale but on the smallest local level as well. The nation's government can play a major role in architecture as administrations transition when their political terms are over. As well on a local level, a corrupt city official can change the city's/town's landscape over greed and back door dealings. The movers and the shakers are not the only ones who can change the world of architecture, the people can have just as large of a role as the elected leaders.
I saw how politics were affected first hand down in Charleston with the fire station my firm was designing. A hand full of local residents felt that a fire station right next to their house would lessen the value of their homes. Those residents fought and fought the notion of a new station. It ended up putting the project on hold by 2 weeks as the firm leadership had to deal with zoning meetings and town hall meetings to decide the issue. Even has it was a resource and a benefit to all residents on the island, a small handful was almost able to change the project due to manipulating the political system. Luckily the construction of the station is underway.
Politics also uses architecture as a way to express power to its citizens and other political bodies. The national mall in Washington, D.C. does just that. It is used a public place for gathering and demonstrating one's beliefs. The national mall barely has a given day go by when there isn't a political protest or political event taking place. As these events happen, you can see the backdrop of these iconic buildings or architectural features used as a platform for political agendas.
Architecture and Politics has a shared history that isn't going to change anything soon. There has been iconic buildings built to express power and buildings destroyed as political power was used. We just have to understand the political context surrounding architecture as we move forward.
Comments
Post a Comment