Considerate Urbanism
The concept of Considerate Urbanism, recently developed by place maker Liane Hartley, encompasses all the elements of the experience of urban living that pique my interest. She describes it as creating urban environments that are more considerate of people, their behaviours and emotions and their relationship with others and the planet. How do we experience urban environments and how can we improve this? Spaces and places are linked to belonging and identity – how can we become more inclusive and considerate of all people when we make buildings and create spaces? Considerate urbanism “fosters kindness, empathy, affinity, and caring urban behaviours to help bind our social fabric together”1.
This work is representative of the development of urbanism over time. Initial housing is sparse and uses limited materials. Gradually, the choice of materials changes and improves housing. We then get to an urban setting with a higher urban density, where housing varies in construction, materials and appearance and is constructed closer together. Is it scary to come a little closer?
Get a little closer 2024 Handspun and commercial yarn, clay, concrete, sticks and skewers
Urban density is often seen as an unpleasant phenomenon where privacy is lost and spaces become hot concrete jungles. This does not need to be the case. Moving from low density environments to high density areas may be a not so straightforward road, but a road that must be taken nonetheless as the world population continues to increase. The use of vibrant colours and soft materials evokes a happy, welcoming image of our urban fabric that we need to create ourselves just as how the intricate and varied forms in this work were created.
Spreading Density 2024 Handspun and commercial yarn
Construction fences are part and parcel of city living. This fence is representative of the continual change in our urban environment, with new buildings being constructed and old ones torn down – but how innovative is the change? Are the ‘old ways’ of doing things being shielded from change, or is change being protected from ‘more of the same’? The seeds of new thinking are present, we can choose to blossom, leave our old ways behind like the cicada did, or just live in the present and sit on the fence like the spider.
Reconstructing Urbanism 2024 Concrete, branches, weeds, wire, palm seeds, wasp nest, cicada shell, spider
- L. Hartley, Considerate Urbanism: Why Now?, 2022, http://www.considerateurbanism.com/considerate-urbanism-why-now
