4. Plan de Desarrollo Cultural de la comuna de Lolol
4.1. Imagen Objetivo
The observation of ‘meaning’ in this research is sharpened into two terms in analysing cities or urban spaces, which are reading and understanding. ‘Reading’ is used to highlight the observation of physical condition of spaces or perceived space study. ‘Understanding’ is used to explore the process of giving meaning to urban elements in becoming symbols through the meaning that is conceived and lived by the observers. ‘Understanding' also means ‘experiencing,' especially when the urban spaces are read by researches who share the same social life and time with the dwellers.
Borrowing a ‘reading’ term from a semantics point of view, urban spaces are a metaphorical text and full of signs. These signs might be read by readers who are the city’s observers including the visitors, dwellers and also researchers who study the space.304 According to Leach, ‘reading’ occurs through observation of fixed forms of
physical attributes, and ‘experiencing’ through the exploration of meaning (which is not fixed) by involving in social activities.305 The ‘understanding’ term is used in order to
emphasise the process of developing meaning related to place. Leach adds that in the ‘reading’ process, they are things that should be decoded by the readers through physical forms of spaces and elements.306 The reading process includes interpretations
and representations that refer to perceptions and recognitions based on the readers’ categorisation.307 This ‘reading’ definition leads to the ‘understanding’ process.
‘Reading’ cities also means reading their society (or ‘understanding’) through the community with their complex relationships in giving meaning.308 Understanding society
in terms of social meaning has a strong relation with social life and culture, which is embedded in the urban architecture elements.309 The elements themselves have two
dimensions of reading; the real (material) properties and those based on human
304 David Frisby, ‘The Metropolis as Text; Otto Wagner and Vienna’s Second Renaissance’, in The Hieroglyphics of Space; Reading and Experiencing the Modern Metropolis (London: Routledge,
2002).
305 Neil Leach, ‘Introduction’, in The Hieroglyphics of Space; Reading and Experiencing the Modern Metropolis (London: Routledge, 2002).
306 Leach.
307 Graeme Gilloch, ‘Benjamin’s London, Baudrillard’s Venice’, in The Hieroglyphics of Space; Reading and Experiencing the Modern Metropolis (London: Routledge, 2002).
308 Cuttaleeya Jiraprasertkun, ‘Reading Thai Community; The Process of Reformation and
Fragmentation’, in Urban Theory Beyond the West, ed. by Tim Edensor and Mark Jayne (London: Routledge, 2012).
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perception.310 This Lefebvre calls a ‘social text' to be read. ‘Social text is one aspect of
semantics field, which is to read and to communicate with others.311
In analysing contemporary Asian cities, Dovey introduces a term ‘becoming’ as a combination of ‘reading’ and ‘understanding’ terms. He highlights the process of becoming place from space, especially in terms of sense of place and identity, and characters as continuous changes of cities.312 He differentiates between space and place
terms to focus on the ‘becoming places’ process; where ‘place’ is understood as a product/knot of spatiality and sociality. The ‘becoming’ process of urban spaces is a concept of exploring social construction of place identity and meaning over time since meaning of spaces is changeable or never fixed.313
Understanding the society has a strong relationship with social life and culture, which is embedded in the urban elements.314 Particularly for areas where cultural hybridisation
occurs, the two processes should be undertaken. Also, areas with low imageability should be explored more in terms of social factors rather than structure or physical properties. This is because, in such areas, urban spaces and elements exist as a matter of survival of the dwellers.315 The urban space is seen as a product of social and physical
assemblages of norms and forms.
310 Norberg-Schulz; Tuan, Space and Place: The Perspective and Experience.
311' Henri Lefebvre, Henri Lefebvre, Key Writings, ed. by Stuart Elden, Elizabeth Lebas, and
Eleonore Kofman (London: Continuum, 2003), p.88.
312 Kim Dovey, Becoming Places (Oxon: Routledge, 2010). 313 Dovey.
314 Christian Norberg-Schulz, Genius Loci; Towards Phenomenology of Architecture (London:
Academy Editions, 1980).
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SUMMARY OF PART II
As a summary of Part II, the diagram below lists particular theories that are applied in this research to explore meaning of spaces. The exploration is undertaken to add meaning to Lynch's theory regarding urban spaces exploration in terms of the theoretical concept.
Chapter 3 has discussed the theory of place-based meaning in order to understand and explore spaces based on meaning. The theory is abstracted from theories by scholars: Yi- Fu Tuan, David Canter, Henri Lefebvre, Edward Soja and Homi Bhabha. The significance of Tuan’s and Canter's theories for this research resides in their observation of space and place through social perspectives, which is the main focus of this research in exploring meaning. Furthermore, Canter's concept focuses on the psychological process through which people are giving meaning of spaces to become places.
A combination of Henri Lefebvre’s, Edward Soja’s and Homi Bhabha’s theories are used in order to extend the view of space as social production and the creation of Third Space. Lefebvre’s and Soja’s theories are applied because of their approach to exploring space as social production in three different types of spaces. The theory of Trialectics of Spaces from Soja is applied to observe meaning at the empirical level of this research by studying the perceived, conceived and lived spaces. Bhabha’s theory is applied in terms of his view of Third Space creation, which represents the condition of the kampungs that experience an uneven situation with the city that surrounds them.
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NO TOPIC SCHOLAR,
YEAR FOCUS THE VIEW
PLACE IS IDENTIFIED THROUGH
1 Image of cities Kevin Lynch 1960 Legibility
Perceptual and conceptual quality of elements are to define quality of cities
Identification of the quality of paths, landmarks, nodes, districts, edges, and perception of places 2 Place Meaning Yi-Fu Tuan 1977 Basic understandin g of place
Place is known for attachment to space through experiences
Quality of intimacy through people experiences: emotion to thought and sensation to conception David Canter
1974
Place is spaces for social/group expression Creation of places: attributes, activities, conception Social production of space Edward Soja 1996 Trialectic of space Space is socially constructed through society and time
Three types of spaces: perceived, conceived, lived Homi Bhabha
1994 Third Space
Society and place over time create combination of culture
Third Space condition: intermediate condition of culture, questioning identity
3 Urban symbols
Appleyard
1979 Intended and nonintended
Social symbols are perceived as people/group representatives People/group representation in intended and non-intended Colombijn 1993, Peter Nas 2011 Symbol
bearers Urban symbols is a place identity
Types of symbol bearers: material, discursive, behavioral, iconic (place identity) Jack Nasar 1989 Socio physical dimensions Elements are enhanced by this dimension in becoming symbols
The dimension: intrinsic value of the elements, values triggered by social life, value of interaction people-elements
4 Place attachment Scannel &Gifford 2010 Place attachment model The development of place attachment through interaction space- person-process
Physical space, person (individual/group memory, culture, experiences), process (people affection, cognition, and behavior)
Figure II. 11 Summary of theories applied in this thesis to extend Lynch’s theory of Imageability
Chapter 4 explored a specific way to study meaning through observing place attachment in urban symbolism. The theoretical framework of social symbols is drawn from Donald Appleyard, Peter Nas, and Jack Nasar. To study place attachment, the framework from Leila Scannel and Robert Gifford is applied. This framework connects three main factors in place attachment: person, place, and process. In analysing the attachment in relation
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to spatial perception/conception, this research applies Louis Chawla’s model in extending Lynch’s urban evaluation techniques to place attachment observation. This combination is chosen to highlight the role of urban elements' meaning that has been perceived and conceived by a specific group.
The definition of social symbols applied in this research is: physical objects/acts/behavioural expressions/images that bear individual/groups attachment to urban spaces and elements through their spatial perceptions and conceptions. Social symbols have two main foci in meaning: the emotional dimensions that attach to the elements, and as an identity of a specific group. They represent personal/group identity through the interaction of three factors: observers (people-culture), activities (process- time) and elements (place). The three factors are similar to Lefebvre’s/Soja’s concept of spatiality, process/time also has an important role in observing spaces, especially in Soja’s ‘lived space’. The study of urban symbolism is related to meaning development of urban images through people’s perception and conception in social spaces.
In urban symbols observation, place attachment is the main dimension in identifying the symbols. The attachment is an emotional dimension that makes people bond/attach to places, and is triggered by various reasons such as: social bonding, feeling of security/insecurity, feeling of territoriality, spatial recognition, sense of community and sense of life stability. This research aims to identify the unintended symbols of kampungs, which are naturally developed by people with little political power, where today, most studies in Indonesian cities highlight the intended symbols or political symbols. Therefore, it is crucial for this research to focus on this emotional dimension, which could be done through exploration of the connections between social life/practices and spatial perception/conception of the observers.
Part II has explored the way to explore meaning of urban spaces and elements in terms of the theoretical concept. The exploration of meaning that will be applied in the empirical work is through the method named reading and understanding urban spaces. It is a method regarding observing spaces that are perceived, conceived and lived by the observers or participants in the research, with the specific aim to identify social symbols. The next part, Part III, is the application of the method in specific participants of young adults in kampungs, Surabaya.
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