Jane Jacobs RIP

[owlmoose]

Pre-eminent urban scholar Jane Jacobs dies.

The Death and Life of Great American Cities, which she wrote in 1961, is still the classic work on city neighborhoods -- how they work, what makes them living and vibrant and real. It's one of the few college textbooks I kept, and I still pull it out when I want to make a point about planning. Her legacy is secure, but the Cities world will miss her.

Comments

[regann]

I've never heard of Jane Jacobs but her books sounds very interesting.

What did you study in college?

[owlmoose.livejournal.com]

I was an urban studies major ("Growth and Structure of Cities" was the department name, which I've always thought very cool). I started the program because I thought I wanted to be an architect, but then I took a year of design studio and realized I was wrong. ;) But it was a fascinating course of study, and cities and architecure are still my academic love. I chose my current job in no small part because the school where I work has an interior design program, and so I get to spend part of every day playing with architecture books.

[regann]

That's neat! I didn't even know a person could major in urban studies -- I learned something new. LOL.

That's very cool -- it's nice when things blend together like that! Of course, my academic loves have nothing to do with my job, so I find that doubly cool. ;)

[rustehroll.livejournal.com]

I think the urban geography course I took was possibly the most interesting thing. We focused more on suburbs really, and how they're created to keep people inside content, but they also keep them from moving around the main city with the lack of transport.

Meep.

It was something I could see myself studying more, but I wasn't sure how much work there was for city planners!

[owlmoose.livejournal.com]

I think the urban geography course I took was possibly the most interesting thing.

Oh yeah, I love that stuff. How cities are set up and designed and what makes them work and what makes them fail.

I thought about going into city planning, too, but so much of it is economics and I hate economics, always have. So I gave up on that idea pretty quick. I still find the design and policy aspects really interesting, though.

[coco-keesses.livejournal.com]

I'm just now reading books from Venturi and Scott Brown (Architecture as Signs and Systems), and just yesterday read about Jane Jacobs. Must look her up. Did the cities program ever work with the UPenn department? I feel like a dork having been so close to the action, and yet architecture wasn't really that interesting for me at that period in my life. SB also writes of the genius of Louis Kahn, but I will never get over my grudge of having to use one of his buildings.

[owlmoose.livejournal.com]

Did the cities program ever work with the UPenn department?

Not closely, although there was a 3-2 BA/MArch program (3 years doing Cities at BMC, 2 doing architecture at UPenn). But I never knew anyone who did that. I used their architecture library a few times, mostly to get at rare archival stuff.

Definitely check out "Death and Life". It's a classic for a reason. "Learning from Las Vegas" by Venturi/Scott Brown is also very worth reading. I admire Venturi's theories very much, although strangely his actual designs often leave me cold. Not sure why.

[coco-keesses.livejournal.com]

Yep, have learning from LV in my possession now. Also love the theory and yet am indifferent to their actual architecture.