URT Members Published a New Paper on Public Space in Shinjuku, Tokyo!

Marco Reggiani Papers, Research Blog

URT members published a new paper in UA 城市建筑 Urbanism and Architecture journal (ISSN 1673-0232CN 23-1528/TU), 2018(4), pages 26-34. The paper is titled The Metamorphosis of Contemporary Public Space: The Role of Informal Buffer Zones in Shinjuku Area, Tokyo, and you can access the preprint version of the article on ResearchGate. You can also read it in English and Chinese in the journal.

Abstract

Facing the ongoing evolution of global cities, the insurgence of countless hybrid spatial typologies poses new questions and problems concerning the status of public space in contemporary urbanism. Within this framework, Tokyo represents a peculiar and meaningful field of investigation due to its historical evolution and patterns of development. Using the complex landscape formed by Shinjuku-Dori and of the underground concourse Metro Promenade (SDMP) in the central district of Shinjuku as a specific case study, this article aims to compare the relationship between the street and relevant examples of these proliferating ambiguous spaces. What are their characters? What are the relationships between above and underground levels? Is it public space, or rather a different form of urbanity? Focusing on users’ behaviors determined by SDMP’s specific urban structure and architecture, data and observations collected recursively at different scales were analyzed to illuminate its qualities as a public space. Based on the results obtained from this exploration, the article discusses in particular the role played by informal and diffused buffer zones within this dynamic and the relation to the experience of Tokyo’s public realm.