URBAN SPACE

-ROB KRIER
CHAPTER 1:
TYPOLOGICAL AND MORPHOLOGICAL
ELEMENTS OF THE CONCEPT OF URBAN
SPACE!
1. INTRODUCTION:
• The modern cities have lost their sight for traditional understanding of an urban space, in the
present times.
• According to the author, the city dwellers know the loss and understand and are sensitive enough
to compare the town planning of the past and the present.
• Here, the author tries to talk about that “urban space” and how it has to be defined in the present
situation.
• In this chapter, he tells that the concept of “urban space” or just “Space” is a highly disputed topic
and he tries to get back the original meaning of it to the current time.
2. DEFINITION OF THE CONCEPT OF
“URBAN SPACE”
• The concept of urban space means all types of spaces between
buildings in towns and cities. All these spaces are perceived by the
human eye aesthetically.
• Any space bound geometrically by a variety of elevations and its
geometrical characteristics have both legibility and aesthetic qualities,
we consciously perceive these external spaces as urban space.
• Internal space and extarnal spaces are two ends of the poles. But
these spaces behave similar because the laws are alike both
functionally and form wise.
• The Romans and Greeks were the first pioneers of town planning.
• Those principles are followed today in present time but the cities are
not following the same principles as followed by the historians. Hence
these cities aren't functioning properly- as argued by Rob Crier in the
book.
THE URBAN SPACE DEFINITION CAN BE EXPLAINED THROUGH 2 CLASSIFICATION- THE SQUARE AND THE STREET.
THE SQUARE-
• This was probably the first way man discovered the
use of urban space. This was consciously done by
arranging the houses around the central courtyard
like space.
• This kind of arrangement provided for a high
degree of control of the inner space as well as
protecting the inside spaces from external
aggressions.
• It has a symbolic value (even in present situations)
and therefore chosen as the model for construction
of various monuments and buildings.
THE STREET-
• The linear built pattern or the spread settlement on
all available spaces around the square is the
street. It provides a framework for the square and
the individual plots.
• This space is more attractive place for the pass
time of the residents staying there.
• These streets were not designed for the present
motorized traffic to pass, but was designed
according to human scale and the carriages, so
these streets are not appropriate for the working of
modern times.
 3. TYPICAL FUNCTIONS OF URBAN SPACES:
The activities that take place in the urban spaces are divided as public and private spaces. The behavioral pattern of people are also similar in a
way. So the result of this is that the public spaces are all designed according to the organization or design of private spaces.
The private spaces have influenced the design of public spaces since time immemorial.

THE SQUARE- THE STREET-

• The spatial model is best suited for residential use. In the
private use it corresponds to the inner courtyard or the atrium.
• The functions that take place in these squares could be
market places, parade grounds, ceremonial squares, squares
in front of churches and temples, etc.
• But in the present times these squares are not being used
according to what they were designed for; but instead are
used for different purposes like commercial activities above all
the cultural activities, public administration offices, youth
centers, libraries, theatres, cafes, etc.
• These are all functions that generate activity 24 hours of the
day.
• These type of planning should be carefully worked out and
• In purely residential areas, streets are universally seen as
areas of public circulation and recreation.
• If the rules and setbacks aren’t followed then the system
could be unsettling with a few planning errors, like-
1. If the flats or garages aren’t approached directly from the
street but from the rear, then the street is deprived of its vital
activity.
2. If smaller congregation spaces like the play spaces are all
squeezed out and isolated from the residential zone, in the
name of preserving the intimacy of the residential zone, and
yet can bear the noises of the traffic outside, it is very
unsettling and not logical.
settled so that the people can live in harmony and also not
completely distancing one zone from the other.
• Sometimes in rare cases it also noted that the streets
broaden out into squares directly without being marked or
oriented according to the buildings.
THE SQUARE- THE STREET-
4.TYPOLOGY OF URBAN SPACE
• Spatial forms of urban space and their derivatives may be divided according to their
geometrical patterns of their ground plan into the following:

CIRCLE SQUARE TRIANGLE

Scale of the urban space can also be related to its geometrical qualities.
5. MODULATION OF A GIVEN
SPATIAL TYPE
1. Angled space- this indicates a space which is a
compound of two parts of basic element with two
parallel sides bent.
2. Segment of a basic element.
3. The basic element is added to.
4. The basic element overlapped or merged.
5. Distortion -those spaces which can only with
difficulty be traced back to their original geometric
model. These space can also be defined as species
born out of chaos.
6. HOW BUILDING SECTIONS AFFECT
URBAN SPACES.
7.Intersection of
street and
square
8.SPATIAL TYPES AND HOW THEY
MAY BE COMBINED
• Summarisation of the morphological classification of the
urban spaces-
1.The three basic shapes (squares , circle , triangle ) are
affected by the following modulation factors angling , segments,
addition , merging , overlapping, distortion.
2.These modulating factors Cn produce geometrically regular or
irregular results.
3. The building sections also influences the quality of spaces.
4. The term ‘closed’ and ‘open’ may be applied to all the spatial
forms :i.e. spaces which are completely or partially surrounded
by buildings.
 9.MORPHOLOGICAL SERIES OF
URBAN SPACE
• The series of spatial forms are laid out
according to the geometrical characteristics
of basic shape.
• There is a wide spread and naïve view
prevalent among art historians as well as the
general public that this type of irregular or
organic architecture is more beautiful than a
group of urban buildings planned
synchronically .
• Fig25 – simple geometrical variations on a
four sided square and examples of different
types of street intersections. Evidences
found in historic towns
• A clear geometric urban spatial form calls for
architecture of extreme delicacy and high quality.
• Any architectural error is immediately obvious and
damages the overall impression.
• In case of irregular forms , variety is the overriding
characteristics .
• Defective architectural detailing is not so glaringly
obvious, but it is effectively buried.
• The great popularity of mediaeval squares is rather
more rooted in the fact that , first, they are squares of
a type which no modern could imitate , and second,
that they are surrounded by fine architecture .
PLANS OF RECTANGULAR SQUARES
WITH VARIATIONS
ORTHOGONAL PLANS FOR
SQUARES
Plaza real , Barcelona, 1848
ORTHOGONAL PLANS FOR SQUARES WITH
CENTRAL BUILDING
OPEN SQUARES WITH BUILDINGS
INTRODUCED
EXAMPLE OF SPACES WHICH ARE ANGLED ,
DIVIDED, ADDED TO ADD SUPERIMPOSED
CIRCUSES
CIRCUSES CONTAINING BUILDINGS AND
MODULATIONS OF THIS SPATIAL TYPE
COMBINATIONS OF DIFFERENT TYPES OF CIRCUS
GEOMETRICALLY COMPLEX SYSTEMS
TRIANGULAR SQUARES AND THEIR DERIVATIVES
LARGE SCALE COMPOSITE PLANS
Self contained systems of street and square during the roman period.
The forum always lay adjacent to the streets but the streets never actually ran
through them.
Ex, Perge, Timgad, Leptis Megna or Palmyra.
In the development of typical roman urban architecture,
• Greek agora- Was surrounded by one or more colonnades.
• Assos- In Athens there were 2 straight colonnades.
• Kindos and Priene- one straight and one U shaped colonnade which is opposite
to each other.
In his book Grundformen der Europaischen Stadt, Gantner shows the different
stages of development of Agaros.
• Agora in milet as open to close spatial system.
• Agora in lown town at Pergamon was an open space enclosed on all sides and
framed by 3 colonnades.
• Agora at Magnesia is enclosed rectangular site but surrounded by all sides with
double colonnade. These also used as market places.
• The two gymnsia at Priene were square open spaces, enclosed all round by a
colonnade.
Then roman developed colonnade into arcaded street. In all romans important
towns, basilica was the next phase of development.
 LARGE SCALE COMPOSITE FORMS
The old forum, which were surrounded by a large variety of isolated
buildings.
• First we enter directly the forum of Caesar adjacent to the curia
which is bordered by a colonnade.
• The temple, relatively spacious which in square and occupies good
quarter.
Next enter to the forum of Augustus. This was twice as large as the first
and space was articulated in a fundamentally different way.
• The temple was not free standing on the square but was pushed
back with no rear elevation.
• To heighten the perspective of the square, the single colonnade
was taken almost to the front of the temple.
• Where the colonnades ended, semi- circular lateral niches were
inserted, emphasizing the transparency of the square.
1 – The Imperial Forum in Rome.
2 – The spatial breakdown of the Forum complex.
3 – Second design by the architect Boffrand for a place Louis XV in
Paris.
• Wall was angled towards the temple, theatrically exaggerating
the depth of the space.
• The Forum of Nerva, which flanked the first two and described
above in different form. The square was extremely alongated
and rounded off at its top end like a circus.
• The temple of Minerva was squeezed out of the forum
altogether.
• Moving on from Augustus forum which crosses atrium into the
forum trajan which is 90*110m. Entrance which triumphal arch.
After this the rest of complex laid out axially. The entrance
adjacent to basilica ulpia was decorated with columns.
• According to Paul reconstruction, the central area and the two
flanking colonnades were covered. The semi circular apses at
the top were left open. The result was two rows of columns on
the longer axis of the basilica and three on its transverse axis.
• Finally, after crossing a very narrow atrium in which trajan’s
column stands.
STREET PLANS
VARIATIONS AND INVENTIONS
10 EPILOGUE TO THE CHAPTER:
‘THEORY OF URBAN SPACE’
THANK YOU