PSEU members are concerned with the production of public spaces for the common good. We perform, observe and analyze experiments on public spaces to discover their nuances and determine potential improvements. Although our work is grounded in existing theory and precedents we seek to elicit, generate, and engage new ideas to aid in the creation of a healthier built environment. PSEU is nestled in the Landscape Architecture Department at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science & Forestry and is the initiative of Assistant Professor Isabel Boggs-Fernández.
PSEU members to date include:
Summer 2012 . ON THE PLAZA experiments on public space & culture . summer work in Puerto Rico: Erica Grohol, Charles Oddo, Dan Arseneau, Jin Huang, Nick Imperial, Luke Mancuso, Ryan Norell, Margaret (Meg) Johnson, and Jaqueline (Jackie) Montanaro
Spring 2013 . 1st formal PSEU course . work in Syracuse, NY and Boston, MA: Zac Barker, Sean Kernan, Sara Agudelo, Ana Maria Castillo Ruiz, Dan Arseneau, Jin Huang, Nick Imperial, Luke Mancuso, Chelsea Andersson, Olivia Bennet, Eric Blatz, Ben Boisclair, Kyle Buser, Tom Christianson, Derek DeFazio, James Gross, Zach Kalette, Nate LaPierre, Ari Muca, Kristine Pedersen, and Josh Thayer
WHAT YOU WILL GAIN IF YOU JOIN US:
1. A strong understanding of:
a. what public space is, its past, present and potential future role in our society
b. the different scales and types of public spaces
c. the varied complexities that impact the design and execution of public space
d. best practices for the design of public space
e. ways to study, analyze and understand how to minimize the user-designer gap when it comes to the design of the public realm.
2. The ability to learn and practice how to lead an engaging class discussion
3. Exposure to creative experiments related to the public realm
4. The confidence to get your opinion exposed via a public forum tool such as weebly (or similar), and the opportunity to document and publicize our work and experiments
PSEU members to date include:
Summer 2012 . ON THE PLAZA experiments on public space & culture . summer work in Puerto Rico: Erica Grohol, Charles Oddo, Dan Arseneau, Jin Huang, Nick Imperial, Luke Mancuso, Ryan Norell, Margaret (Meg) Johnson, and Jaqueline (Jackie) Montanaro
Spring 2013 . 1st formal PSEU course . work in Syracuse, NY and Boston, MA: Zac Barker, Sean Kernan, Sara Agudelo, Ana Maria Castillo Ruiz, Dan Arseneau, Jin Huang, Nick Imperial, Luke Mancuso, Chelsea Andersson, Olivia Bennet, Eric Blatz, Ben Boisclair, Kyle Buser, Tom Christianson, Derek DeFazio, James Gross, Zach Kalette, Nate LaPierre, Ari Muca, Kristine Pedersen, and Josh Thayer
WHAT YOU WILL GAIN IF YOU JOIN US:
1. A strong understanding of:
a. what public space is, its past, present and potential future role in our society
b. the different scales and types of public spaces
c. the varied complexities that impact the design and execution of public space
d. best practices for the design of public space
e. ways to study, analyze and understand how to minimize the user-designer gap when it comes to the design of the public realm.
2. The ability to learn and practice how to lead an engaging class discussion
3. Exposure to creative experiments related to the public realm
4. The confidence to get your opinion exposed via a public forum tool such as weebly (or similar), and the opportunity to document and publicize our work and experiments
TRAVEL . THE BOSTON EXPERIMENT
“In an unfamiliar place, senses sharpen, a survival instinct; in familiar territory, senses dull, and it takes and effort to refresh them. In trying to read a foreign landscape you may not understand everything but you get the gist. Significant details stand out – these help you frame questions”.
source: The Language of Landscape by Anne Whiston Spirn (1998)
“We travel in order to get away from “our” place and occupy new places that belong to others. Not long ago people travelled in order to discover and explain their discovery; today we know beforehand, with great exactness, the physiognomy that awaits us at our destinations. Thus it is the people that live there and the language of their landscape that interest us. The journey has gone from being a discovery of the land to being a discovery of the people, their materials use – what is different and similar about them, how they look at and understand the world”.
source: Place (2004)
source: The Language of Landscape by Anne Whiston Spirn (1998)
“We travel in order to get away from “our” place and occupy new places that belong to others. Not long ago people travelled in order to discover and explain their discovery; today we know beforehand, with great exactness, the physiognomy that awaits us at our destinations. Thus it is the people that live there and the language of their landscape that interest us. The journey has gone from being a discovery of the land to being a discovery of the people, their materials use – what is different and similar about them, how they look at and understand the world”.
source: Place (2004)
EXPERIMENTAL TRAVEL - THE TRIP ITSELF IS AN EXPERIMENT
April 4 - 7, 2013| Boston, MA
Use the link below to see the map of sites visited:
https://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&tab=ml
Thursday, April 4
Depart Syracuse 1 pm (4 car rentals)
Chinatown Park by CRJA
Friday, April 5
LandWave ARTIST: Shauna Gillies-Smith / Michael Kilkelly / France Cormier artist team led by Shauna Gillies-Smith
Children’s Museum Grounds by MVVA
The New England Holocaust Memorial
Moakley Courthouse
Fan Pier
The New England Holocaust Memorial
Rose F. Kennedy Greenway Boston's ribbon of contemporary parks
Tour and Lecture with Jeff Bittenbender and Liz Knox of CRJA
Visit Carol Johnson & Associates
Saturday, April 6
Cambridge Library PlaygroundTanner Fountain by Peter Walker & adjacent new plaza . under construction by http://www.dillerscofidio.com/
Harvard Yard & Harvard Grounds
Cambridge
Lecture and tour of the GSD with Prof. Ann Forsyth: 3 - 5 pm
Sunday, April 7
Guided tour of North Bank Bridge park system with Jeff and Cathy Offenberg (Principal with CRJA)
1:00 pm Depart Boston
April 4 - 7, 2013| Boston, MA
Use the link below to see the map of sites visited:
https://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&tab=ml
Thursday, April 4
Depart Syracuse 1 pm (4 car rentals)
Chinatown Park by CRJA
Friday, April 5
LandWave ARTIST: Shauna Gillies-Smith / Michael Kilkelly / France Cormier artist team led by Shauna Gillies-Smith
Children’s Museum Grounds by MVVA
The New England Holocaust Memorial
Moakley Courthouse
Fan Pier
The New England Holocaust Memorial
Rose F. Kennedy Greenway Boston's ribbon of contemporary parks
Tour and Lecture with Jeff Bittenbender and Liz Knox of CRJA
Visit Carol Johnson & Associates
Saturday, April 6
Cambridge Library PlaygroundTanner Fountain by Peter Walker & adjacent new plaza . under construction by http://www.dillerscofidio.com/
Harvard Yard & Harvard Grounds
Cambridge
Lecture and tour of the GSD with Prof. Ann Forsyth: 3 - 5 pm
Sunday, April 7
Guided tour of North Bank Bridge park system with Jeff and Cathy Offenberg (Principal with CRJA)
1:00 pm Depart Boston
TRAVEL . THE CHICAGO EXPERIMENT
TRAVEL . THE DC EXPERIMENT
Spring 2014
TRAVEL . LA RUTA 123 . COLLABORATIVE DESIGN BUILD WORKSHOP IN PUERTO RICO
Spring 2014
