Arch+ (1968-1978)

Went through the first decade of Arch+ issues (1968-1978). It turned out to be a great source to interpret the self-perception of critical architecture in West-Germany during that time. Two things struck me: 1. the ongoing discussions over the reform of the university education of architects and planners, concerning both the structure of the programs and the content to be taught. This overlaps 2. with the dominance of theoretical articles by marxist sociologists and politicians. This, however, ceased sometime around 1975. After that, contributions became much more concrete: you find reports on certain cases and photos, which were completely absent before 1975.

McKee (2008): The Problem of Jobs

McKee, Guian A.: The Problem of Jobs. Liberalism, race, and deindustrialization in Philadelphia, Chicago 2008.  

When this book came out in 2008, it was probably beyond my focus at that time wanting to get my own book finished. Otherwise I should have clearly read it back then. First of all, It is a great account of industrial policy in Philadelphia of the 1950s and 1960s. The focus on such local policy in a field that is usually held to be situated in national or even transnational policy is definitively very valuable. And secondly it comes to very similar conclusions that I drew analyzing urban redevelopment policy in Phila during the same period.

Harvey: Paris (2006)

David Harvey (2006), Paris: Capital of Modernity.

I found this book, even though many have praised it, rather difficult to judge. It contains a lot of interesting interpretations on Second Empire Paris. But then, in some places the conclusions Harvey draws seem rather crude and far-fetched. It is a difficulty of the book that it tries to combine good old marxist economic analysis (which is remarkable) with newer forms of cultural history that are intended to support and explain the asserted economic forces. This is probably the point where I got lost, it is just not convincing if you don’t share Harvey’s marxist approach beforehand.

Bloch: The Historian’s Craft

What a nice Sunday. Time to read a classic on the balcony. I have wanted to read Marc Bloch’s book, originally written in the 1941/42. A great overview over basic issues of historical research, but also a fascinating document of the time. Reading such “great” works every once in a while is extremely inspiring.

Promotion for the Ruhrgebiet

Anne Brownley Raines’ article on industrial conservation in the Ruhrgebiet in the latest Planning Perspectives (Vol. 26, pp. 183-207) really makes me want to revisit some of the sites. Apart from many occasional visits, I have never really discovered much of the Ruhrgebiet in a systematic manner. The article, which reads like a great piece of PR aimed at urban historians and planners, shows how the transition over the last decade can be read as many small stories leading into a model for post-industrial change. It is these manifold stories that are buried in the Ruhrgebiet and have rarely been told (unlike the stories of the “great” European cities) that caught my interest. After all, it was only this year that I learned that a great-granduncle of mine was actually a leading figure in the famous controversy over the Eisenheim neighborhood in Oberhausen.

Journal of Planning History Feb 2011

Reading through the last issue of the Journal of Planning History (February 2011) on universities and their role in urban development. An inspiring set of articles, with a focus on 1960s students movements and how these changed the relationship between universities and local communities. It’s worth reading, even though I am still desperately waiting for an article on students of urban planning and architecture in the 1960s.

Osborne: Security and Vitality

Todays text for our reading group at the Centre for Urban History: Thomas Osborne, Security and Vitality: Drains, Liberalism and Power in the Nineteenth Century, in: Andrew Barry et.al. eds.: Foucault and Political Reason. Liberalism, neo-liberalism and rationalities of government, 99-121.

Reading British analyses of Victorian policy really gives me a new understanding of “liberalism”. This dualism of Governmentality and Privacy permeates much of 19th century British history in a way that I had neither been familiar with in German nor in US scholarship.

Besides, Osbornes piece is great because it role played by material infrastructures in mediating between govenmentality and privacy. I love the idea explored here that sewers, as an example, established the desired public health - as a precondition for individual and social prosperity - without intervention into the private sphere through surveillance.

Otter: The Victorian Eye

Otter, Chris: The Victorian Eye. A political history of light and vision in Britain, 1800-1910, Chicago 2008.

This is a great book with many facets to it that got me thinking. It is first of all a history of vision, which is interesting as it touches on bodily aspects as well as technological ones. Then it is also an assertion of liberalism and a rejection of applying Foucaultian Panopticism to all and everything.

Reading Group “Materiality”

Just talked to my PostDoc colleague Dan Horner here at the Cnetre for Urban History on initiating a small reading group on “materiality”. There are some great text out there that are worth reading. My favorite - in a way - still being Ted Schatzki’s “Nature and Technology” in the History and Theory from 2003. It has many problems, but it still is extremely inspiring. Unfortunately one of my other favorites of which at least some chapters relate to materiality, Karl Schloegel’s “Im raume lesen wir die Zeit” is only available in German. But there will be enough to  read and I am actually very excited that I don’t seem to be the only person who wants to inquire into the fild of “materiality” and find out what it has in store for historical research.