Perception of Urban Space Shape of an Urban Form

Amity School of Architecture and Planning
M.Arch Programme, II Semester
Urban Morphology
ARCH648

Contents
Perception of Urban Space
Shape of an Urban Form
Contents

Learning Objectives
By end of this session you will be learn to
perceive urban environment or space
with the help of determinants of Urban
form.
Learning Objectives

• Urban Space may be a very noticeable resultant of the determinants.
• It may be isolated or linked; may be purposely designed to display
linkage or to emphasize buildings and objects they contain.
• Space may be linear/corridors; squares; or reserves, based on their
sizes they define the hierarchy of spatial types, from small intimate
sizes to urban squares and the natural space within which the city is
set.
Perception of Urban space:

• Urban Mass refers to the arrangement of ground surface, buildings, and
objects to influence the quality of urban space and to shape urban
activity patterns on both large and small scales.
• In terms of massing, buildings may be projecting into space, be on a
space, or in a space.
• Our vision and light conditions govern the way we perceive masses…
– Vision: 45deg is for details; 30deg is for whole objects; 18deg is for
object plus context
– Light: under bright, clear sunlight the individual parts of objects will
tend to stand out…..as light subdues we tend to see less of details
and more of the overall object. Sculptured objects are best viewed
under even light such as shadow light…thus northern and southern
facades may transmit details differently…..depending our position in
relation to solar patterns.
Perception of Urban space through mass:

Sense of enclosure through mass:
• A fundamental requirement of Urban
space is actual urban enclosure, or its
strong articulation by Urban forms.
• Urban enclosure also becomes an
important component in setting up street
scape.

Sense of enclosure in a street:

Scale:
Scale: refers to any system of measurement appropriate
to the context.
i) Proportion as an aspect of measurement introduces the
aspect of relativity
ii) A module is one part of a system of relative proportions,
where one part can combine with other parts to form a
larger object

• Scale and Human vision: our eyes have two fields of view – general and
detailed. General cone of vision 30 deg up; 45 deg down; 65 deg to either
side.
• The above determines urban scale in several ways: we cannot see an object
that is further from us than 3500 times its size…8 feet is normal conversation
distance; a person between 3 and 10 ft is in close relationship to us…use of
normal voices; we can pick facial details up to about 75ft. Beyond this, there
is need to complement with gestures…up to about 450ft…also maximum for
distinguishing man from woman…maximum viewing distance for human
figures is around 4000ft.
Applications of Scale in urban design:

Scale is determined by the different modes of movement based on their
speeds and sizes, but also characteristics in movement…express versus
stop-over/interactive…
• Scale and circulation: scale is determined by the means we employ for
movement around the city as well as the way we move between cities
across the country.
• Scale and neighbourhood size: The citizen numbers and levels of services
will determine the scale of a neighbourhood…the scale of a network of
neighbourhoods would determine the scale of the entire town.
Perception of Urban space using Scale:

• Scale in neighbouring buildings and spaces:
Buildings and spaces have to be in scale with people, as well as in scale
with each other….this will also apply to other variables like materials,
colour, bulk, and siting.
Intentional variations in scale could be used to achieve emphasis and
hierarchy in design of buildings and spaces
• Scale and parameters: This is where we use attributes of familiar and
known objects and details such as cars, trees, humans, light poles e.t.c
to judge the sizes of other things near them

Scale versus Age, time, convenience and habit
• Our sense of urban scale varies with our ages and habits….the world
of a child begins with the home…as one grows the world enlarges and
separate parts are linked together…the scale of their world enlarges
• Our sense of urban scale is also determined by what we are
accustomed to…people adapt to environments with time…say getting
used to the skyscrapers around us.
• Urban scale may also vary with the temporal cycles of the city…the
rush hour with its fast traffic has a different view of scale to the sluggish
period of the day, when people have all the time to observe and pick
details about the city.

Intimate scale
Urban scale
Monumental scale

Responsiveness could be sensual or environmental
• Sensual: attempt to cater for all the senses:
Visual, Tactile, Auditory, Olfactory, Kinaesthetic
• Environmental; that which provides users with
essentially democratic settings and enrich their
opportunities by maximising the degree of
choice available to them; the available
techniques include:
Responsiveness:

Shape of an Urban form:
Characteristics and objectives of various
shapes; pros and cons.
Size and Density:
• Size: physical extent; no. of inhabitants
• Density: population density; unit
(dwellings) density; amount of building
floor area in a given section of the city
(floor area index); automobile density
• Relationship of size and density influences
the population distribution and urban
massing

Pattern: the underlying geometry of city
form…mostly define by block and street
layouts
Grain: degree of fineness or coarseness in
an urban area
Texture: the degree of mixture of fine and
course elements of urban form (even vs
uneven)

• Voids within the city
• Urban spaces: formal…usually modelled
by building facades and the city’s floor
• Open spaces: natural, representing
nature in the city
• One of the principal determinants of
urban form are the routes.
• Routes affect the appearance of the
landscape through which they pass as
well as the architecture and form of cities
they serve.

• Clarity of routes in form and direction is a design concern
• Routes should have physical relationships and help define
areas they serve instead of just slashing through them,
causing blight and disintegration
• Routes should artfully traverse the landscape, revealing its
strong features.
• Approach routes present cities to us and enable us to fond
our destination…thus they both inform and conduct us.
• Surface arteries are major routes through the city…high
volume traffic
• Local streets carry a mixture of people and vehicles; through
traffic not desirable.

• How streets tie together into the expressway pattern
• Clarity of form
• Relationship to cityscape
• How they shape building sites
• How they pass through existing districts
• Vehicular versus pedestrian traffic…any conflicts?...or
complementary?
• Crossing levels…specific or not defined: stoplights, grade separation
• Through versus local traffic
• Scale; how size of streets relates to size of the districts they serve
Evaluation of streets:

• These are:
areas/precincts/quarters/sectors/encl
aves of the city
• Often have dominant, distinctive, and
pervasive characteristic features
• The city is an arrangement of these.
Districts:

• Districts may be distinct, overlapping, uniform, complex.
• Two data categories to assess:
- Physical form
- Visible activity
• We assess:
- Components, appearance, activity, threats, emergence,
relations
• Anatomy of a district: form, activity, features, paths, centres,
intrusions, change, improvement
Districts:

• This captures certain areas of the city
with characteristic functions; living,
leisure, learning e.t.c
• Activity structure will be affected by
density, topography, transportation
routes.
Activity structures:

• These address walking as a prime
mode of
transportation…communication and
inter-movement.
• These should be creatively integrated
with motorised transportation.
• Traffic calming is a specific concern in
design of pedestrian areas…low
speeds, minimal through traffic, one
way streets e.t.c
Adequacy of pavements: widths, paving,
condition of repair, protection from
elements of weather, furniture and fittings
Intersections and crosspoints: impact on
flow rates, continuity, and sequence
Pedestrian:

• This is the logical articulation of the arrangement of a city’s anatomy
expressed visually
• A city lacking orientation is confusing and may cause confusion, anxiety
and feeling of getting lost
• Landmarks are the prime aids in orientation
Orientation:

• Vistas are strong visual links
• May serve approach or departure purposes of urban areas…i.e
views into and out of a city.
• Some views are gazetted and legally protected as urban assets
• Vistas could be complemented by buildings
Vistas and Skyline:

Skyline refers to the (3-dimensional)
compositional and sequential
character of urban spaces and
buildings
• It is a representation of a city’s facts of
life and embraces the maximum
amount of urban form in a single visual
output.
• Every building with a potential to alter
a city’s skyline should be studied
carefully.
Skylines:

• These include objects of various types
for direct/indirect or
conscious/unconscious use: signs,
benches, waste bins, street lamps,
e.t.c.
• The quality of detail should be
informed by the nature of audience
targeted.
Details:

References;
1. Urban forms in planning and Design by Shashikant Nishant Sharma,
International Journal of Research (IJR), Volume-1, Issue-1,February 2014
2. Sennett Richard 1969, Classical Essays on the Culture of Cities, Prentice Hall,
New Jersey
3. The American City: What Works and What Doesn't
by Alexander Garvin (1995)
4. Local Planning: Contemporary Principles and Practice Edited by Gary Hack, et
al. (2009)
5. The American City: What Works and What Doesn't
by Alexander Garvin (1995)
6. Cuthbert Alexander R, 2006, The form of Cities Political Economy and Urban
Design, Blackwell, Oxford

Thank You

Perception of Urban Space Shape of an Urban Form

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