1. Prospects for Places Anna Bielawski 2.10.10

2. Some Topics Covered in this Section Edward Relph Place Placelessness The Placeless American landscape 2 Case Studies Strategies for Avoiding Placelessness Criticisms of Relph’s Work Conclusion

3. Edward Relph a geographer wrote the classic Place and Placelessness grew dissatisfied with the definition of place teaches at the University of Toronto

4. 2 Main Experienced Geographies 1. Place 2. Placelessness

5. Place

6. Concept of Insideness If a person feels inside a place, he or she is here rather than there, safe rather threatened, enclosed rather than exposed, an at ease rather than Stressed. But… Currently, people are becoming more geographically Alienated and are showing an uncommitted insideness

7. Placelessness A phenomenon that deals with increasing similarities among places and lack of character Various manifestations including universal-standarized-look-alike landscapes, make-believe places, and environments lacking character Stems from ignorance of local and regional character Brought about by increasing globalization and mass culture

8. Forces that Lead to Placelessness 2 Main Causes of Contemporary Placelessness Economics Technology

9. American Placelessness Landscape of Mass Corporation Landscape of Mass Entertainment Landscape of Automobile Landscape of Segregation

10. Tanner Fountain at Harvard University Dynamic Mysterious Metaphor

11. Whitehead Institute-Splice Garden 2 in 1 A formal French hedge garden A Japanese Zen Garden

12. Strategies for Avoiding Placelessness Place designs should be unique, original, and regional or local in character A good place design should be expressive, meaningful, and intellectually provoking There needs to be a collaboration of numerous parties involved in the design process

13. Some Things to Consider…. Is Relph’s meaning of place out of touch with what places really are today? Is placelessness inevitable? Does placelessness have any positive aspects? Could there be a global sense of place?

14. Conclusions