Author: Brightman Samuel Thomas

Publisher:

Published: 2012

Total Pages: 99

ISBN-13:

The purpose of this graduate terminal project is to explore the possibility of a more comprehensive green space network for Florence, Italy and to use landscape architecture to improve legibility and wayfinding within the centro storico (historic center) of the city. Florence contains over 2,000 years of history, some of which is celebrated in the main piazzas and some of which is buried under several meters of earth and hardscape. While modern Florence boasts one of the highest concentrations of historic art and architecture in the world, the city has faced many post-industrial challenges, including traffic congestion, noise pollution, and lack of green space. The city suffers from a dense network of medieval streets that can be difficult to negotiate and poses challenges to the wayfinding experience. One of the main challenges of the project is to design a green space network within such a densely urban condition. Most streets are too narrow for street trees and existing gardens are either hidden behind opaque walls or poorly connected to the broader circulation patterns of the city. The defining natural feature of Florence, the Arno River, is mostly inaccessible to the public and bordered by a chaotic and narrow roadway in the busiest section of town. My main goal, then, is to provide an innovative new system of green linkages and spaces that improve wayfinding and legibility as well as the aesthetic, psychological, and environmental experience of the resident and visitor alike. In order to accomplish this goal, I engaged in a qualitative research process that was both interpretive and action-based. My primary research included field research, GIS analysis, archival review of historic urban plans, and a range of case studies. My secondary research included a detailed review of the social, political, religious, and artistic history of Florence as well the city0́9s history of urban form. In addition, I examined the writings and theories of Kevin Lynch, Spiro Kostof, David Dunster, Stephen Tiesdell, Ivor de Wolfe, Allan Jacobs, Matthew Potteiger, and J.C. Moughtin. I also explored the traditional form of Florentine gardens and civic spaces as well as the regional Tuscan agricultural landscape. In order to situate my project within the unique context of Florence, I codified the existing hierarchy of street corridors as well as the traditional use of local hardscape materials.