ARCH_ 3122
1ST SEMESTER - 2019/20
URBAN DESIGN AND PLANNING II
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY A N D ITS ELEMENTS DEPARTMENT OF ARCHITECTURE AND
URBAN PLANNING
Instructor: HENOK S.
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Lecture Objective
At the end of the chapter you will be able to
Understand the concept if Imageability and Legibility
Define the city image and its elements
Learn about the applications of the elements
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
WHAT DO YOU THINK OF
IMAGEABILITY ?
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Introduction/The Author/
Kevin Andrew Lynch was born on 7th Jan 1918 &
died on 25thApril 1984.
He was an American urban planner & author. “There seems to be a public image of any
He was one of the earliest urbanist who tries to given city which is the overlap of many
individual images… Or perhaps there is a
identify and analyze the form of the cities actual
series of public images, each held by some
meaning to the people who live there? significant number of citizens. Such group
He is best known for his work on mental mapping & images are necessary if an individual is to
on perceptual form of urban environments. operate successfully within his environment and
to cooperate with his fellows.”
His famous book The Image of the City which he
published in 1960 is very famous among his works. Kevin Andrew Lynch
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Introduction The Book/THE IMAGE of THE CITY/
The General Scope of the Book is to set a wide and generalized
evaluation method for evaluating the form of cities and its
application in design of cites.
The book is organized in to 5 main Sections, with a total of 194 pages.
1st The Image of the Environment,
2nd Three Cities,
In the third section, five elements and their
3rd The City Image and Its Elements, interrelationships are summarized from
previous researches which act as the core
4 City Form and
th
content of the book.
5th A New Scale
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Introduction The Book/THE IMAGE of THE CITY/
In this Book Kevin Lynch studies three American cities: Boston, Jersey
City, and Los Angeles.
He analyze the look of this three cities and whether this look is of
any importance? And whether it can be changed?
With the support of this studies he formulates a new criterion
— IMAGEABILITY —
And shows its potential value as a guide for the building and
rebuilding of cities.
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Concept Of Mental Mapping
Lynch's conclusion was that people formed mental maps of their
surroundings consisting of five basic elements.
A person’s perception of the world is known as mental map, it’s an
individual’s own map of their known world.
To understand the layout of a city, people first and foremost create a
mental map.
Mental maps of a city are mental representations of what the city
contains, and its layout according to the individual.
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
The image which the user
form in his mind about the
architectural and urban
components of the city and their
places so he can direct his
motion through the city after
that.
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
HOW DO YOU THINK WE CAN INVESTIGATE
A MENTAL MAP?
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Mental image properties :
The overall mental image of an urban
environment will be:
1. Partial : not covering the whole city
2. Simplified : omitting a great deal of
information
3. Unique : each individual has his/her
own
4. Distorted : not necessary has real
distance or direction.
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Legibility
There seems to be a public image of any given city which is the overlap
of many individual images. Or perhaps there is a series of public
images, each held by some significant number of citizens.
Such group images are necessary if an individual is to operate
successfully within his environment and to cooperate with his fellows.
People use advantage of the layout when they can grasp the place
The quality which makes a place graspable is called
legibility
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Legibility
One of Lynch's innovations was the concept of place legibility, which is
essentially the ease with which people understand the layout of a place.
By introducing this idea, Lynch was able to isolate distinct features of a
city, and see what specifically is making it so vibrant, and attractive to
people
Legibility is important at two levels:
Physical form and Activity Patterns
physical form is just the form of the place (aesthetic level)
Patterns of use concerned with the functional use of a place
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Legibility
The point of legible layout is that people are
able to form clear accurate images of it.
The traditional city
Places of public relevance could easily be identified
The modern City
In most Modern cities places that are important owned by
companies which occupy key city center positions. They
visually overwhelm publicly-relevant places and facilities
confusing important activity patterns important public buildings and publicly
–irrelevant private ones often look alike
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Legibility
A legible city would be one whose districts or landmarks or pathways
are easily identifiable and are easily grouped into an over-all pattern
A good environmental image gives its possessor an important sense of
emotional security. He can establish a harmonious relationship between
himself and the outside world.
Building the Image: Environmental images are the result of a two-way
process between the observer and his environment.
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Imageability
That quality in a physical object which gives it a high probability of
evoking a strong image in any given observer.
It is that shape, color, or arrangement which facilitates the making of
vividly identified, powerfully structured, highly useful mental images
of the environment. It might also be called legibility, or perhaps visibilily
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
The Concept of Imageability does not necessarily connote something
fixed, limited, precise, unified, or regularly ordered, although it may
sometimes have these qualities.
Nor does it mean apparent at a glance, obvious, patent, or plain.
Lynch conclude from the study, Since the image development is a two-way
process it is possible to strengthen the image either
by symbolic devices,
by the retraining of the perceiver, or
by reshaping one's surroundings.
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Image Elements
From the study the image of the city interims of its physical forms,
can conveniently be classified into five types of elements:
Paths,
Edges,
Districts,
Nodes, and
Landmarks.
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Image Elements [PATHS]
“Paths are the channels along which the
observer customarily, occasionally, or
potentially moves”
They may be streets, walkways, transit lines,
canals, railroads.
They arrange space and movement between
space.
For many people, these are the predominant
elements in their image.
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Image Elements [EDGES]
“An edge is defined as a boundary between
two areas, including shores, walls, wide
streets, breaks between buildings, and open
spaces.”
Edges are the linear elements not used or
considered as paths by the observer.
They are the boundaries between two phases,
linear breaks in continuity: shores, railroad
Ex. Churchill Road
cuts, edges of development walls.
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS Man-made edges
Image Elements [EDGES]
They are lateral references rather than
coordinate axes. Such edges may be barriers,
more or less penetrable, which close one
region off from another;
Natural edges
Or they may be seams, lines along which two
regions are related and joined together.
These edge elements, although probably not as
dominant as paths, are for many people
important organizing features.
Ex. Kebena river bank
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Image Elements [DISTRICTS]
“Districts are the medium-to-large sections of the city,
conceived of as having two-dimensional extent, which
the observer mentally enters “inside of,” and which are
recognizable as having
Ex. Merkato (business district)
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Image Elements [DISTRICTS]
some common, identifying character.”
Style –
Texture,
Urban fabric
Spatial form,
Topography-
Colors,
Districts may have Clear edges, or soft uncertain ones gradually
fading away into surrounding areas.
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Image Elements [NODES]
“Nodes are points, the strategic spots in a city
into which an observer can enter, and which are
the intensive foci to and from which he is
traveling.”
Large areas you can enter, serve as the foci of the
city, neighborhood, district, etc.;
Offers the person in them multiple perspectives of
the other core elements.
Ex. Leghar, Meskel Square, Beharawi Theater
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Image Elements [NODES]
They may be primarily junctions, places of a break in transportation,
a crossing or convergence of paths, moments of shift from one structure
to another.
Or Nodes may be simply concentrations, which gain their importance
from being the condensation of some use or physical character, as a
street corner hangout or an enclosed square.
Some of these concentration nodes are the focus and epitome of a
district, over which their influence radiates and of which they stand as a
symbol.
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Image Elements [NODES]
Many nodes, of course, partake of the nature of both junctions and
concentrations.
The concept of node is related to the concept of path, since junctions
are typically the convergence of paths, events on the journey.
It is similarly related to the concept of district, since nodes are typically
the intensive foci of districts, their polarizing center.
In any event, some nodal points are to be found in almost every image,
and in certain cases they may be the dominant feature.
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Image Elements [LANDMARK]
Points of reference; but in this case the observer does not enter within
them, they are external.
These are buildings, signs, stores, mountains, public art; Mobile Points (such
as Sun) can be used as well.
Their use involves the singling out of one element from a host of
possibilities.
Some landmarks are distant ones, typically seen from many angles and
distances, over the tops of smaller elements, and used as radial
references.
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Image Elements [LANDMARK]
Other landmarks are primarily local, being visible only in restricted
localities and from certain approaches,
These are the innumerable signs, store fronts, trees, doorknobs, and
other urban detail, which fill in the image of most observers.
What makes landmark a land mark?
Clarity of general form, Contrast with the surroundings
Singularity: “one in the context”,, Difference in form,
EX. The Parliament Watch
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Thus Image Of The City
None of lynch’s elements exits in isolation : all combine to provide the
overall image:
Districts are structures with nodes
Edges define Districts
Paths introduction to Districts
Nodes sprinkled by landmarks ….
Nodes emphasizes the connection between paths
All combine to provide the overall image of the city
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Applications EX. (path & Node)
The steps for utilizing these elements of legibility are
To know the physical form worth taking as models for legible layout
To think in terms of these elements
Consider the permeable path as the dominant element in the creation of
mental image
Permeability is the extent to which an environment allows peoples a choice
of access through it and from other place to it.
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Applications EX. (path & Node)
Permeability is important in two scales
1. The connection of the site to the city as a whole
2. The connection of the site to its immediate surrounding
In this process paths can be reinforce by giving each path a strong
character and by bringing out relative importance of each path.
All paths should have their own identity to avoid similarity.
This can be done by height consideration, functional identity, detailed
architectural consideration and etc.
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Applications EX. (path & Node)
Nodes should be given certain significance.
All nodes should not be given equal emphasis
The degree of emphasis on nodes depends on three main factors
1. The functional role of the streets forming the junctions (The more
functional role the streets have the more concern given to spatial
emphasis to relate between the form and the use)
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
Applications EX. (path & Node)
2. The activities in adjacent buildings(like above the more public relevant
buildings the more spatial relevance is needed)
3. The expectations set by other nodes within the district
concerned(These focus on the major and minor node based on their
relative importance)
Nodes legibility increased by treatment of corner buildings. Splayed
corners also give more enclosure because of their shape-concave.
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
WHAT PURPOSE IT SERVED?
THE IMAGE OF THE CITY AND
ITS ELEMENTS
CONCLUSION & WHAT PURPOSE IT SERVED
Preventing feeling lost
Helping make the city feel like “home”
So it is important to understand how people think and form their
mental impressionabout the city and the common themes they share to
help designers to design urban places.
THANK YOU!!
QUESTIONS ??
