ABSTRACT
For generations projective urban thinkers have pondered on the future city as an idyllic utopia. Continued today, such depictions of a controllable urban environment made from highly regulated geometric organizations and systematic idealism fail to identify both cultural and social legacies, including sensitivity to contextual responsiveness. The contemporary city is complex, full of irregularities, and composed of continuous oscillations of local and global intersections. While unpredictability can be unsettling, it can also be productive for its transformative potentiality. Approaching design as a fruitful exchange begins when we, as designers, accept that we are incapable to fully dictate the future city, but must work in dialogue with its existing components, trends, and behaviors.
