Havana Urban Fabric
Before deepening into material aspects of the block the unit should be familiarise with the different formal aspects of Havana City In groups, the unit will create an archive of drawings in different scales (Large, Medium
and Small) with information about the urban grain, voids, density and urban form. A special attention will be given to urban voids, buildings in derelict state and borders generated by tourist-directed developments and
local constructions. Readings on Havana city history and an understanding of its complex social structure will be also conducted to learn about its evolution and configuration of its urban fabric.
Seminar: Havana urban history and contemporary configuration (date tbc)
Readings:
– Arturo Almadoz Marte: Planning Latin America’s capital cities 1850-1950, London: Routledge, 2002, pp. 193-213.
– Mario Coyula and Jill Hamberg: “The case of Havana, Cuba”, Understanding Slums: Case Studies for the Global Report on Human Settlements, UCL: London, 2003.
– Joseph L. Scarpaci, Roberto Segre, and Mario Coyula: Havana : two faces of the Antillean metropolis, Chapel Hill ; London : University of North Carolina Press Rev. ed. 2002.
– Roberto Segre, “The Pearl of the Antilles”, in Cruelty and Utopia, Princeton Architectural Press, 2005, pp.134-145.
