ABSTRACT

In the era of the Anthropocene, site matters are more pressing than ever. Building on the concepts, theories, and multi-disciplinary approaches raised in the first edition, this publication strives to address the changes that have taken place over the last 15 years with new material to complement and re-position the initial volume.

Reaching across design disciplines, this highly illustrated anthology assembles essays from architects, landscape architects, urban designers, planners, historians, and artists to explore ways to physically and conceptually engage site. Thoughtful discourse and empirically grounded pieces combine to provide the language and theory to contextualize the meanings of site in the built environment. The increasingly complex hybridity of constructed environments today demands new tools for thinking about and working with site. Drawing contributions from outside and within the traditional design disciplines, this edition will trace important developments in site thinking with new essays on topics such as climate change, landscape as infrastructure, shifts from global to planetary urbanization debates, and the proliferation of participatory site transformation practices.

Edited by two leading practitioners and academics, Site Matters juxtaposes timeless contributions from individuals including Elizabeth Meyer, Robert Beauregard, and Robin Dripps with original new writings from Peter Marcuse, Jane Wolff, Neil Brenner, and Thaisa Way, amongst others, to recontextualize and reignite the debate around site. An ideal text for students, academics, and researchers interested in site and design theory.

chapter 1|13 pages

Why Site Matters

ByAndrea Kahn, Carol J. Burns

chapter 3|12 pages

Reclaiming Context: Between Autonomy and Engagement 1

ByEsin Komez Daglioglu

chapter 4|27 pages

Site Citations: The Grounds of Modern Landscape Architecture

ByElizabeth Meyer

chapter 5|11 pages

Site Specific or Site Responsive?

Interview with Denise Markonish
ByDenise Markonish

chapter 6|25 pages

Groundwork

ByRobin Dripps

chapter 7|9 pages

Landscape Processes as Site Context

BySimon Dixon

chapter 8|21 pages

In the Anthropocene, Site Matters in Four Ways

ByDirk Sijmons

chapter 9|21 pages

Shifting Sites: Everything Is Different Now

ByKristina Hill

chapter 10|24 pages

Adaptive Systems: Environment, Site, and Building

ByCarol J. Burns

chapter 11|13 pages

Translating Sites: A Plea for Radicant Design

ByLisa Diedrich

chapter 13|11 pages

Portfolio: Sites, Stories, Representations, Citizens

ByJane Wolff

chapter 14|11 pages

Urban Site as Collective Knowledge

ByThaïsa Way

chapter 15|13 pages

From Place to Site: Negotiating Narrative Complexity

ByRobert A. Beauregard

chapter 16|13 pages

Neighborhoods Apart: Site/Non-Sight and Suburban Apartments

ByPaul M. Hess

chapter 17|15 pages

From Gerrymandering to Co-Mandering: Redrawing the Lines

ByPeter Marcuse

chapter |11 pages

Afterwords What does site look like to.…

ByAndrea Kahn, Carol J. Burns