The material and visual cultures of cities
Wells, Karen (2007) The material and visual cultures of cities. Space and Culture 10 (2), pp. 136-144. ISSN 1206-3312.
Abstract
The author adapts Lefebvre's (1991) triadic theorisation of the production of space to the study of objects and ways of seeing in cities. Governmental power is condensed in monuments, planning, mapping, and film; capital organises the spaces and events of the city through the circulation of commodities and the destruction and reconstruction of urban space. Local cultures of consumption on one hand and spectacular events on the other shape the lived experience of the urban. In tracing the history and networks of things and images, the article unravels the reification and fetishisation of urban life that would hide the power relations that structure everyday life within the glittering spectacle of the commodity or the smooth veneer of the monument.
Metadata
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Keyword(s) / Subject(s): | surveillance, cinema, town planning, monuments, spectacle, capital, Lefebvre |
| School: | School of Social Sciences, History and Philosophy > Department of Geography |
| Research Centres and Institutes: | Gender and Sexuality, Birkbeck (BiGS), Social Research, Birkbeck Institute for (BISR) |
| Depositing User: | Sarah Hall |
| Date Deposited: | 05 Apr 2013 16:05 |
| Last Modified: | 12 Dec 2016 12:00 |
| URI: | https://eprints.bbk.ac.uk/id/eprint/6407 |
Statistics
Additional statistics are available via IRStats2.
Archive Staff Only (login required)
 |
Edit/View Item |