Great Cities Speaker Series / William Morrish

June 8, 2008
When Cities Tango: The Art of Glocal Public Space Design
Bill Morrish,  Professor of Architecture, Landscape Architecture and Urban and Environmental Planning, at University of Virginia.
Venue: San Jose City Hall Council Chambers, 200 E. Santa Clara Street 

In the last 25 years, citizens, artists, designers, and civic leaders in cities and neighborhoods across the American urban landscape have been involved in the creation of public spaces that added together reveal a unique public art infrastructure.  Globally, cities are becoming places of increased density, diversity, technological innovation and ecological revelation. To meet the realities of today’s cosmopolitan urban landscape public spaces need to integrate formal, functional, productive and generative characteristics. This lecture will explore existing case studies and future proposals for such a public art works infrastructure.

His work is exemplified by his innovative urban design plan for Phoenix, Arizona’s public art plan which unites artist and public work engineers in the transformation of city utilities into the a citywide cultural setting and new public realm.  Morrish’s urban design work approaches infrastructure as a cultural landscape -- the connective safety net that knits citizens, public spaces, social institutions, cultural expression and the natural environment into multi-operational urban landscape networks. He is the author of the forthcoming book, Grow Urban Habitats: “Design Principles for Compact, Affordable and Sustainable Multi-family Homes and Gardens.