Although we often talk about redevelopment in cities, the theme of public spaces (or urban landscapes, if you prefer) is always a little snubbed by designers and politicians.
Yet urban landscape architecture is increasingly needed. Redesigning the common spaces between citizens is a respectable challenge.
Here are four new projects that aim to return something to citizens in terms of aesthetics and utility. These are different approaches and contexts, but they have something important in common, the emphasis on the connection between individuals.
1 The American Embassy in London also makes 'diplomatic' use of the landscape
The project, which combines the design of KieranTimberlake and OLIN, ensures that even public spaces bring to mind American landscapes, while still managing to perfectly mix this atmosphere with the surrounding neighborhood.
2 There's an all-green playmate in the Chicago Botanic Garden
No, it's not Hulk. It is a new space that helps children interact more deeply with nature.
The Regenstein Learning Campus encourages children to discover the sensory world: fewer plastic fields and more stimulating experiences.
3 In Detroit, abandoned blocks become public parks
In the famous city of the car, the greatest challenge of redevelopment rhymes with redistribution. We need to rebuild a lost social equity among the many industrial reshuffles.
A plan under consideration by the team of architects Spackman Mossop Michaels (SMM) is connecting the spaces of the Fitzgerald district, whose urban fabric has been literally obliterated by evictions, confiscations for unpaid mortgages and business closings.
4 "Urban reincarnation" takes place in Montreal
A public park in the Canadian city aims to correct the evaluation errors of the old urban plans. A loal team of designers and architects, the Groupe Rousseau Lefebvre transformed a 60s expressway into "a prestigious, functional and easily accessible gateway to the city center".
The present has already passed, and is made up of cities that undermine our physical and mental health.
