AVS. Arkitektúr verktækni skipulag - 01.06.2005, Qupperneq 22

Cityscapes:
Creating urban environments
Helga Bragadóttir, Architect, Planning Official of Reykjavik
iðborgar Roykjavlkur
SUNDIN OG ESJAN
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SUNDIN OG ESJAN
VIÐEY
The term cityscape is used to
define the appearance of a man-
made environment. It also means
the dynamic aspect of cities,
planning, and last but not least,
the redevelopment of old areas.
When new land is developed
and new districts created certain
concessions are given with re-
gard to social features, technol-
ogy, and location as a basis for
planning. In this way cities have
been built through the ages.
The history of town building in
lceland is not long. But the laws
that governed the building of sea-
side and inland farms are, to some
extent, the same as those that
govern town building. The best
location for buildings had to be
found depending on the site and
activity, available materials used for
buildings and traffic planned - all
in harmony with the environment.
Reykjavik enjoys proxim-
ity to the sea and Mt. Esja. It
has a good harbour, hot water
and arable fields, which formed
the basis for the growth of a
city that attracted people.
Looking at the development of
Reykjavík it is clear how features
like hills, valleys, lakes, fields, glo-
bal locatíon and view have had
an influence on the location of
important buildings and recreation
areas. These features still influ-
ence the planning of Reykjavik.
Almost a decade before the ar-
chitect Guðjón Samúelsson, first
put forward his plan for Reykjavík in
1927, a medical doctor, Guðmundur
Hannesson, had put forward his vi-
sion for the development of towns
in lceland in his important book,
About the Planning of Towns.
Guðmundur's book was an im-
portant influence in Guðjón’s plan.
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