Iconic Architecture contribution to Publicizing Cities

Author: Ahmed Mahmoud (Master's thesis, 2012/2014)
Year: 2014
Source type: article (Master's research paper)
Raw file: raw/articles/mahmoud-2014-iconic-architecture-publicizing-cities.md

Summary

Mahmoud explores how iconic architecture contributes to "publicizing cities" — creating identifiable images that make cities recognizable as touristic destinations, cultural hubs, or business districts. The paper traces the shift from pre-globalization iconic architecture (religious, cultural, state buildings reflecting national/regional culture) to post-globalization iconic architecture (commercial, high-corporate buildings reflecting transnational culture and consumerism). Mahmoud follows Sklair's framework of generic vs. capitalist globalization and the role of the transnational capitalist class (TCC) in driving iconic production. Case studies of London and Singapore examine tensions between development and conservation, and how heritage policies shifted in response to iconic architecture's effects on urban identity.

Key Claims

• Architecture's ubiquity: "Architecture is an old industry since the inception of creation, started as a basic need for a shelter and flourished with human development throughout the ages... we can hardly find a space that is excluded from the architectural practice."

• Globalization's dimensions: "Globalization, technology, time and space compression, mobility and media promote Architecture and support it with more dimensions than just a building function, and give advantage for architects to elaborate unprecedented designs, which contributes to publicizing the cities by having a better image, be more attractive and recognized as; Touristic destination, Cultural hub, business district, etc."

• Cities develop iconic strategies: "In that sense cities develop strategies and policies to be globally recognized and get the advantages of iconic architecture and iconic architects, in which media plays a big role to make stars of them as a part of the development strategy."

• Examples of publicizing: "Opera Sydney designed by Jørn Utzon, Guggenheim museum of Bilbao designed by Frank Gehry, and Swiss Re tower in London designed by Norman Foster, etc."

• Iconic architecture defined: "The building that is famous inside the profession, between Architects, Planners, Engineers, etc. and it could extend to be famous for the Public, as it have special aesthetic or symbolic or historical values attached to them." "'Icons are famous not simply for being famous, as is the case of various forms of celebrity, but famous for processing specific symbolic/aesthetic qualities, qualities that are the subject of considerable debate within the recent rise of blogosphere, debate to which the general public actively contributes'" (Sklair, 2010: 136).

• Three values of iconicity: Aesthetic, symbolic, historical. Some buildings are famous for function (High Dam in Egypt) or ethical values (Architecture of the poor "El Gorna Village" in Egypt), but the study focuses on the three primary values.

• City identity defined: Identity is "'the extent to which a person can be recognize or recall a place as being distinct from other places'" (Lynch, 1960, cited in Riza 2011: 294). City identity can be inherited by identifiable image (Dubai), mega events (Cannes), nature (Maldives), but the paper focuses on identifiable image through iconic architecture.

• Iconic architecture as representation: "Iconic Architecture has a direct relation with City Identity as it is a representation for History, Culture, Economic, Political, and Social states of the city. Through these representations that are delivered through the identifiable image, cities are drawn on the global map and become more recognized."

• Examples of city-icons: Burj el Arab (Dubai — financial/luxurious), Eiffel Tower (Paris — classical history), Guggenheim Bilbao (cultural development), Petronas Towers (Kuala Lumpur — economic development), White House (Washington — democracy symbol).

• Pre- vs. post-globalization iconic architecture: "Iconic Architecture in the pre-globalization era was either a religious or cultural or state building, as it was the leading force at that time, and the reflection of people believes and ideologies." After globalization (roughly post-1950), "the iconic architecture mostly shifts towards commercial and high corporate buildings."

• Globalization defined: "'the closer integration of the countries and peoples of the world... brought about by the enormous reduction of costs of transportation and communication, and the breaking down of artificial barriers to the flows of goods, services, capital, knowledge, and people across borders'" (Stiglitz, 2002: 9).

• Sklair's three globalizations:

  • Generic globalization: four criteria — electronic revolution, postcolonialism, creation of transnational social space, new forms of cosmopolitanism. But "Generic globalization is an abstract framework for analysis, it is not actually existing globalization" (Sklair, 2010: 136) except the electronic revolution.
  • Capitalist globalization: "in an institutional form, which is responsible for the transnational economic practices, and guides the transnational political practices and decisions. Thus, affects the society culture and ideologies and creates the cultural ideology of consumerism."
  • (Non-capitalist) globalization: mentioned but not elaborated.

• Commercialism sprawl: "Commercialism sprawls everywhere rendering everything into a commodity form 'shopping has become the dominant mode of contemporary public life'" (Goss, 1993: 18, cited in Sklair 2010: 142).

• Capitalist globalization as engine: "Capitalism globalization is the engine of transforming everything to a commercial product according to Sklair in 2010, and the iconic architecture Plays role with commercialism, as the visual aspects and the recognition of the building outline that catches the eyes helps in advertising the products inside."

• Stadium tourism: Sports buildings become part of "'Stadium tourism'" — "Olympic stadium in Munich is the second most touristic attraction and the home of camp of the football club in Barcelona records higher tourism than Picasso museum."

• Bilbao effect: "Cultural buildings transform and add to its cultural value a touristic attraction value, hence it becomes a part of the major development of cities as the case in Bilbao and Guggenheim museum and it reaches a point that a lot of cities tends to simulate what is called a Bilbao effect."

• Commercialization of culture: "Most of new museums today have larger shops and greater variety of art and architecture-related merchandise and spaces for refreshment than was the case 50 years ago" (Zukin, 1995, cited in Sklair 2010: 146). "Capitalism tends to add in any space or building commercial function and get advantage from it."

• Jencks on spiritual inflation: "Today anything can be an icon" (Jencks, 2006: 4). When "people faith and believing in God stops, they don't believe in nothing, and they could be easily directed and forced to believe in anything." Icons have "no clear iconography" — Jencks calls them "enigmatic signifier" and describes them as "spots on skin that needs a doctor to cure them."

• Erosion of hierarchy: "Today social hierarchies are suspected and perceived to rely only on power and class, the value and symbolism that used to justify an integrated culture are no longer currency" (Jencks, 2006: 12). "As architecture is a reflection of culture, the hierarchy of buildings changed with the change of social hierarchy, which affects national identity gained through history and time. Causing from the other side declination of monuments."

• Electronic revolution's impact: "The global electronic revolution is one of the most important elements that make a revolution in Architecture, in a way that makes Architects able to create unprecedented buildings." Computer hardware/software solves "complicated architecture and structural logarithmic equations," simulates environmental effects, enables "more contrived designs and sculptural forms."

• Construction technology: New materials (beyond concrete, stone, timber, masonry) respond to "new complicated designs." Examples: Burj Khalifa (800+m, "impossible before"), Guggenheim Bilbao (new cladding materials).

• Mobility of starchitects: "The modern transportation systems, flow of images and countries with opened borders facilitate the mobility of Architects and the flow of Architectural concepts and technologies, which elaborates new and innovative ideas forming the new morphology of iconic architecture all over the world. As now a lot of Architects like Norman Foster, Zaha Hadid, Frank Gehry, etc. presence is everywhere in the world creating the contemporary iconic architecture."

• TCC as managing force: "The effect of globalization on iconic architecture and all the changes due to capitalism, culture, electronic revelation, construction technology is managed and driven by a dominating force which is the transnational capitalist class."

Connections

Concepts: iconic-architecture
Authors: sklair-leslie, jencks-charles
Debates: jencks-vs-sklair-iconic-architecture
Related source notes: sklair-towards-understanding-architectural-iconicity, jones-2009-putting-architecture-social-place

Direct Quotes

"Icons are famous not simply for being famous, as is the case of various forms of celebrity, but famous for processing specific symbolic/aesthetic qualities, qualities that are the subject of considerable debate within the recent rise of blogosphere, debate to which the general public actively contributes." — Sklair

"Commercialism sprawls everywhere rendering everything into a commodity form." — Goss

"Today anything can be an icon." — Jencks

"Today social hierarchies are suspected and perceived to rely only on power and class, the value and symbolism that used to justify an integrated culture are no longer currency." — Jencks

Open Questions

• How does Mahmoud's "publicizing cities" framework relate to Sklair's "transnational social spaces"? Are publicized cities a subset of transnational spaces?
• What is the relationship between the "Bilbao effect" and the empirical finding "visuality peaks, function lasts"? Does visual iconicity drive tourism even when function is secondary?
• How does the Singapore case study (shift from contemporary to heritage architecture) complicate the globalization narrative — is heritage itself now commodified as iconic?
• Does Mahmoud's account of the TCC's role align with Johnson's critique of OMA/CCTV — are architects willing collaborators or constrained agents?