Urban Places as Aesthetic Phenomena: Framework for a Place-Based Ontology of Urban Lifeworld

Abstract

Urban places are of central significance for cities both as built structures and as centers of everyday life. Due to the emergence of various design-led place-making policies and practices, "urban place" has largely become a marketed and branded product. Aesthetics plays a major role in this project of place-making, and the related interpretation of "commodified aesthetics of place" emphasizes certain experiential and qualitative place-attributes-such as authenticity-despite apparent conceptual confusions and controversies. A thorough reconsideration of central place-concepts is required to shed light on this problematic sphere. This article provides an alternative reading of urban places and the related aesthetic dimensions, based primarily on a Heideggerian account of human existence as placed being in the world. Such an approach emphasizes the decisive difference between an object-based and a contextual interpretation of place, providing also a framework for understanding the aesthetics of place and its fundamental lifeworld-constituting role anew.

Aesthetic atmospheres and their affordances in urban squares

“…Furthermore, it is crucial to experience the negative aesthetics as negative to be able to improve things (ibid.). Thus, aesthetics in the daily life, play an “active part in the constantly ongoing process of defining and redefining what is valuable, meaningful, and thus desirable—and what is not” (Vihanninjoki, 2021, p. 468; Schreiber and Carius, 2020) hold that sensing opens for imagining the future in a way that leads to positive visions that meet the human needs. Furthermore, as sensing does not require any specific education, it is an inclusive approach in which everyone can participate.…”

Measuring of Subjective and Objective Aesthetics in Planning and Urban Design

“…He summarized in his study four interrelated stages that lead to the formation of the symbolic aesthetic appearance: the search for comparisons, the schematic expression of similarity, the abstraction with the help of the symbolic story, and the creation of a symbol by giving new content to the sum of abstract ideas [9]. Vihanninjoki (2019) focused on the importance of design in the making of urban places. He dealt with the place as a market that would provide what customers desire of aesthetics as a commodity because urban places contain features that can be focused on to highlight the aesthetics in them through good design.…”

“…He dealt with the place as a market that would provide what customers desire of aesthetics as a commodity because urban places contain features that can be focused on to highlight the aesthetics in them through good design. The article dealt with aesthetics from a philosophical point of view using Heidegger's propositions [10]. Haruna et al, (2018) clarified the role of urban planning strategies in achieving environmental aesthetics, as well as creating environments with social and economic resilience that contribute to a key role in achieving sustainable development.…”

Purposing aesthetics in historic preservation: advocating, signifying, and interpreting aesthetics

“…A contrasting note celebrates the effect aesthetics might have on the community's quality of life through good urban place making. Vihanninjoki (2019) asserts, "aesthetics plays a major role in… place-making, and the related interpretation of 'commodified aesthetics of place' emphasizes certain experiential and qualitative place-attributes-such as authenticity-despite apparent conceptual confusions and controversies." Good spatial design affecting the community quality of life, one may argue, can be furthered by creating "spatial aesthetic expressions relating to the specific context of the participants/users-how to reflect their values, norms, etc., as a group" (Ebdrup, 2017).…”