SAMPLE PROJECT
This is a figure ground drawing of the Place Charles de Gaulle in the 8th arrondissement of Paris. The original name, Place de l’Etoile, calls attention to the star formation of the 12 converging avenues. Baron Haussmann (1809-1891) was a key figure behind the Parisian adoption of this radial technique of urban planning. Cut through by the Avenue Champs-Elysees, this area is populated with everything from supermarkets to embassies. The circle covers a group of privately owned residential and mixed use buildings.
This aerial view shows the city block between Avenue Foch, Rue d’Argentine and Rue de Saigon. The highlighted building is a large mixed use/residential structure comprised of five separate buildings with shared internal courtyards. The structure fills out the city block with a six story street wall and no cut-throughs making it a classic example of what is known as Haussmann Architecture.
This drawing shows key characteristics of the city block between Avenue Foch, Rue d’Argentine and Rue de Saigon including hard landscaping (road, pedestrian walkway) and soft landscaping (green space, gardens, green roof) creating a typical streetscape. Vehicular circulation traverses roads of varying widths, some one-way, which are part of the 137km network of boulevards across the city. Street walls are shown aligning across building façades of adjacent blocks, creating a continuous visual boundary. Each intersection has crosswalk lines and bollards on curbs. In the main avenue there are boundaries defining parking and lampposts every 2 meters.
This Actor-Network map traces the history of the Paris streetscape as well as the actors and processes that shaped the boulevards. he map presents a radial layout to explore the history of the French formal garden as well as the public works projects developed by Baron Haussmann.The urban landscape of the selected region is deeply tied to Andre Le Notre’s conception of the French formal garden, notable via its emphasis on symmetry, perspective, and composition. The development of the avenue as a road lined by regularly spaced trees can also be attributed to the French formal garden, contemporarily updated by the use of London plane trees which are known for their hardiness in polluted urban environments. The history behind the Champs -Elysees also displays the work of Haussmann and his efforts to build a modern Paris. The boulevard network increased the mobility of people and military equipment alike. Haussmann’s urban renewal program also served to displace large populations of the city, which the map explores as both an historic and contemporary process. Beyond the immediate use of the boulevards in Paris, the implementation of these concepts abroad provided France more imperial and cultural influence as they dominated city plans and thus the people who moved through them. The materiality associated with 19th century Paris was also exported. Technological advancements of the time allowed for mass production of cast iron, an increase of glass use and repeated patterns along facades. Currently, the city of Paris is gearing up to implement major renovations to the Champs-Elysees, spurred by increasingly clogged traffic and worsening pollution, as well as a low domestic public visitation rate.
This image shows an alternative set of activities including a theater, fruit stand, crepe cart, and a more ethnically diverse set of pedestrians. Other details such as the garland on the tree in the foreground and the apples in the trees in the background create a warmer and more festive atmosphere. This reimagining of the space transforms the hyper-commercialized landscape of the Champs-Elysees into a more inviting scene populated with non-white persons engaged in leisure activities. Taking the findings of the Actor-network map into consideration, this vision of the Champs-Elysees is in line with the city’s current efforts to revitalize the avenue.