Reading NY Urbanism

This course introduces NYC as a laboratory of historical experiments in both designing and understanding the urban environment. The goal is to arm students with the observational and representational tools to read the city and the multiple forces that influence its physical form and social experience and to represent these forces in short documentary videos. The class delves into specific places throughout the City’s five boroughs and analyzes how different actors—writers, artists, designers, real estate developers, government agencies—have interpreted, represented, or intervened in these sites over time.