#23 A City’ Joints and Muscles: About the Links Between Architecture and Art

From Jane Jacobs to Liveable Cities

Why the talk is inspiring?

For several decades Jan Gehl has helped to transform urban environments around the world based on his research into the ways people actually use—or could use—the spaces where they live and work. In this talk Gehl will describe the travel from the idea to actual inception and delivery of livable cities, with a focus on Copenhagen and Vilnius.

The talk will take place on October 25th in the National Gallery of Art, Konstitucijos ave. 22, Vilnius.
The talk will start at 6 pm and will be in English. Event is free.

The same day an exhibition titled Changing Mindsets and dedicated to Jan Gehl’s seminal work as a theorist, researcher and writer of human behaviour in an urban context will be opened at 7 pm in the National Gallery of Art. The lecture by Jan Gehl and exhibition “Changing Mindsets” are organized in collaboration with the Danish Cultural Institute in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, The Embassy of Denmark and the Danish Ministry of Culture as part of Denmark’s celebration of Lithuania’s centenary.

25
october
2018

Speaker

Jan Gehl

How the speaker is exceptional?

Over the course of his career that started in 1960, Danish architect Jan Gehl has done endless research on human behavior in urban environments, leading to actual changes of space as well as mindsets world-wide. His books, from “Life between buildings” (1971) to “Cities for people” (2010), are available in more than 35 languages and have become must-reads for any urban strategist today.

RECOMMENDS TO READ

Cities for people

Jan Gehl

Why the book is worth reading?

In this revolutionary book, Gehl presents his latest work creating (or recreating) cityscapes on a human scale. He clearly explains the methods and tools he uses to reconfigure unworkable cityscapes into the landscapes he believes they should be: cities for people.

Taking into account changing demographics and changing lifestyles, Gehl emphasizes four human issues that he sees as essential to successful city planning. He explains how to develop cities that are Lively, Safe, Sustainable, and Healthy. Focusing on these issues leads Gehl to think of even the largest city on a very small scale. For Gehl, the urban landscape must be considered through the five human senses and experienced at the speed of walking rather than at the speed of riding in a car or bus or train. This small-scale view, he argues, is too frequently neglected in contemporary projects.