In the 19th century New York City created Central Park, Prospect Park and Riverside Park all intended to provide natural environments in a large city; some would argue these parks are what makes New York City livable. The 21st century is expected to see a similar trend but this time through the creation of greenways and waterfront recreational areas that retain natural environments while integrating sustainable modern technology into their operation and management.
Prince Charles & The Foundation For Building Community
Prince Charles, author of the book Harmony, frequently weighs in on how some of the world’s greatest cities, London among them, have become ugly and dysfunctional due to a lack of foresight and planning. The following is a summary of Prince Charles top criteria for improving architecture:
- Developments must respect the land: they should not be intrusive and should fit the landscape they occupy.
- Architecture is a language: new designs should abide by grammatical rules to avoid dissonance with existing structures.
- Scale is also key: new buildings should respect both the human scale and the scale of the surrounding buildings.
- Harmony − the playing together of all parts: richness comes from diversity, but buildings should be in tune with their neighbours.
- The creation of well-designed enclosures: enclosed spaces are both more visually satisfying and encourage walking.
- Materials also matter: materials should be natural and local, drawing on traditional local styles
- Signs, lights and utilities. They can be easily overused: it is possible instead to control traffic using ‘events’ in the road layout which cause drivers to slow down.
- The pedestrian must be at the centre of the design process: streets must be reclaimed from the car.
- Density: though density is critical, it can be achieved through traditional typologies such as the terrace or the mansion block.
- Flexibility: rigid conventional planning should be avoided in favour of flexible schemes.
The following video shows Prince Charles describing his vision of a new architecture:
Related articles on IndustryTap:
- Only In Japan: A Taste Of Tokyo’s Urban Architecture
- Check Out the Grand Architecture of Oberoi Udaivilas… A Highly Acclaimed Luxury Resort
- Astronomical Architecture of India’s Jantar Mantar
References and related content:
- Prince Charles’s 10 principles for architecture – and 10 much better ones | Art and design | The Guardian
- The Prince’s Foundation for Building Community | The Prince’s Foundation for Building Community: transforming lives through engaging, educating, and empowering people.
- ArtsJournal – Prince Charles Thinks His Ideas About Architecture Are ‘For The People’ And He Couldn’t Be More Wrong
