THE DUAL APPROACH TO URBAN SPACE

 
  • Ground and figure

In the psychology of perception and in aesthetics, the 'ground/figure' theory argues that we perceive certain forms as 'figure' (the main element) and the rest as 'ground' (background): this is the Gestalt theory - German for 'form'.

In the picture on the left, we tend to see the central motif as a vase (the figure) and the rest as surrounding atmosphere (the ground); on the right, we see two facing profiles (the figures) and the intermediary space as empty (the ground).

If we apply these notions to the perception of urban space, we can usually see the solid parts -the buildings- as the figures, and the streets and squares as the ground; but if we decide to focus on the thoroughfares, the emphasis is reversed and they become the main element.

This may occur in the arts, when a painting focuses on the space of a square rather than on the surrounding houses, and in literature, when the writer renders the experience of walking along the streets.

The Gestalt theory dates from the 20th century; how was this experience of motif/atmosphere expressed in preceding centuries?

 
  • Theories of urban space

The present-day sense of cityscape has been shaped by several factors dating from the early and mid 20th century:

    • the thought of philosophers such as
      •           Walter Benjamin, who described the multiple sub-spaces of the modern city, among others in his book on Parisian 'passages',
      •          and of all those who studied the impact of modern media on the perception of cities – above all the fragmentation due to cinematographic techniques (cuts …)
    • the work of architects and town-planners, studied by authors such as Gordon Cullen (1960s), who made a typology of the successive effects produced by the developing cityscape, from the point of view of a passer-by. In a list of books on cityscape, you may view the cover of his book, showing how buildings and streets combine.

When these theorists wrote, attention was paid to the influence of the new forms of art (at the time, the cinema) on our perception of cityscape. Digital media are now a medium though which the modern sense of cityscape is expressed.