Birgitte Svarre holds an MA in modern culture Jan Gehl Hon.

FAIA (born 17 September 1936,

from the University of Copenhagen and a PhD Copenhagen) is a Danish architect and urban
from the School of Architecture in Copenhagen. design consultant based in Copenhagen whose
She is part of Gehl Institute, the division at Gehl career has focused on improving the quality of
Architects that works with research and urban life by re-orienting city design towards the
communication of knowledge at workshops for pedestrian and cyclist. He is a founding partner
city planners, etc. of Gehl Architects.

The book was published by Island press in 2013. This book contains 179 pages which are further divided into 7 chapters.
This project was conducted as a research project under the auspices of Gehl Architects Urban Quality Consultants,
Copenhagen.
 Book Review
How To Study Public Life
(Author: Jan Gehl & Birgitte Savrre)

The structure of the book is simple, and the reading is easy and accessible. There are seven main chapters within,
starting with Public Space, Public Life: An Interaction. This brief section sets the foundation for the rest of the book by
introducing the nature of public life-public space studies, the need for contemporary tools to look at their relationship,
the important role of direct observation vs technological solutions (GPS tracking, etc.) and key ethical considerations of
data gathering.
This is followed by, what I would consider, the two most important chapters in the book – Who, What, Where? and
Counting, Mapping, Tracking and Other Tools. Gehl and Svarre succinctly describe the five critical questions with which
they engage public life-public space interactions (How Many? Who? Where? What? How Long?) and the tools they use
to collect information (maps, photographs, diaries, etc.), respectively. Accompanied by wonderfully descriptive images
and sidebars, their compactness belies their significance and certainly supports the belief that the simpler things are
described, the closer they are to the truth.
Given how quickly readers are thrown into the heart of the book, the fourth and longest chapter – Public Life Studies
from a Historical Perspective – seems misplaced, at first glance. One would have expected it to be led into the main
content of the second and third chapters. It sits comfortably in its location, slowing the pace of the read and allowing
the reader to reflect back at key figures and writings related to public life studies. Particularly noteworthy for readers
are the selected publications of public life studies of the past century, in aggregate, account for a thorough foundation
in the subject.
The book closes with Public Life Studies and Urban Policy—a short chapter looking at the role and positive influence
public lifeBy:
Submitted studies can have on municipal policy frameworks, as told through the story of Copenhagen.Subject:
As we all know,
the study of complex phenomena is no easy task and surely how people interact with one another
Raghav Dhanuka 2018BPLN024
Planning and
Theorytheir
surrounding environment belongs in this category. In sharing how public life-public space interactions can be
Harish Kumar 2018BPLN035
systematically approached and taught, I don’t hesitate to say that How to Study Public Life is must-read for anybody