Before I dig deeper into the interaction between creative clusters and the city, I search for a backdrop that contextualises urban theories. Along with others, Lewis Mumford comes into my mind. He is probably one of the most influential American urban critics in the 20th century. I haven’t had enough time to read all of his books, but fortunately I’ve found a short film about the city in his view.
The just over three and half minutes video is divided into six chapters. They are
(1) The City – Heaven and Hell: rituals and conflicts are both accommodated in the city; (2) The City – Cars or People: the transportation problems haven’t been solved even now; (3) The City and its Region: Mumford’s sentiment of Medieval cities is yearned for suburban housing; (4) The Heart of the City: Mumford harshly criticises commercial greed dominates the development in the city centre; (5) The City as Man’s Home: again, Le Corbusier’s “A House is a machine for living in” is criticised by Mumford. He claims to “stop mechanical plans”and large scale development and introduce humanity into planning discourse. (6) The City and the Future: He envisions the city as a place to “remember, educate and communicate”.
Interestingly, the six chapters act as six principles for designing the city. Although the video is possibly 50 years old, it is still relevant to today’s modern planning.
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