How Images Shape our Understanding of Places

An article by Ben Campkin, Marina Mogilevich, and Rebecca Ross examines how images shape ideas about cities—from "John Snow’s Cholera map to Le Corbusier's plan for a contemporary city and Moose's 'clean graffiti.'"

1 minute read

December 3, 2014, 7:00 AM PST

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


"Maps, plans, photographs, renders, computer generated images, street art and signage drive physical changes and are central to perceptions of place and claims to territory," write the trio of researchers for Guardian Cities.

"When we make things visible, we make them public and subject to debate. Urban images not only offer insights to help analyse and understand cities, but also point to ways of radically altering their futures."

In addition to the examples cited above, the article also mentions the photojournalism of Jacob Riis and the exhibition sat the Shanghai Urban Panning and Exhibition Centre. The article also introduces the Picturing Place project, hosted by the University College London. The first of the Picturing Place series on Guardian Cities focuses on the iconic images of Brasilia—capital city of Brazil.

Monday, December 1, 2014 in Guardian Cities

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