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Every city presents a complicated set of messages which are expressed through city planning, architecture, decorative features and outdoor advertising. Political and social tensions, conflicts and changes can be seen through the symbolic configurations and images of a city’s monuments. The role of past and present messages communicated by cities has not until recently been given proper consideration. It has lately, however, become a new dimension in the study of urban culture. An understanding of the communicative fabric of a city -- which may be read differently by different generations -- is critical to all who study communication, public relations, architecture and urban design.This resource offers a two-semester course for the graduate students of the MSU School of Philosophy (concentration in Philosophy of Language and Communication). The first semester will give a brief introduction to communication in the prehistoric cave and settlement periods, in the cities of Mesopotamia, Egypt, Ancient Greece, Rome, Byzantium and Medieval Europe and with the advent of classical approaches to communication in urban design. The second semester will be dedicated to historical and current perspectives of communication in the Moscow environment.The study of Moscow’s urban symbols will include city plans, churches, monasteries, monuments and statues; streets, squares, parks, shops, transportation, outdoor advertising, street names and official city emblems.Moscow itself was the symbol of the Soviet Empire and Soviet messages still dominate in the city. These messages, however, contain accumulated cultural knowledge from previous civilizations. That is why the first semester is the key to an understanding of the theme. Fluctuations over the years in preferences for certain styles and symbols reflect the shifts from nation-building to clashes of political ideologies and, more recently, the 'identity crisis' that the nation has clearly been experiencing. The course is based on studies and observations that are supported by the publications of Dr. Olga Zinovieva.
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Moscow Urban Environment as the Cultural Context for
Communication
Dr. Olga Andreevna [email protected]
www.urbansymbols.orgCenter for Russia and the US
MSU Main Building, A-161, 939 45 16
Ground Rules:• To be involved and interactive
• A learning experience for everybody
• 10 minutes of each class will be dedicated to the previous themes
• Do not be afraid to speak English
• We shall discuss general mistakes in English as a whole
• Grading – attendance (20%), course involvement (40%), presentations (40%) or a final test.
Goals and Objectives
• Learn how to read urban messages
• Be aware of the urban symbols but do not get driven by them
• Improve speaking and writing skills in English
Communication carriers• City outlay• Street planning• Buildings (public &private)• Décor• Monuments• Fortifications• Religious constructions• Cultural objects
(education, theaters, museums)
• Transport• Markets and malls• People (creators and
historians)
Symbol
• something used for or regarded as representing something else; a material object representing something, often something immaterial; emblem, token, or sign.
• a person, place, or thing, representing an abstract idea or concept -- anything that stands for something beyond itself.
Roadmap
Spring Semester 2010• Introduction to urban
communication • Legacy of pageantry and
Christianity of Kiev Russ• Medieval messages in
contemporary city• Classical Styles (Baroque,
Classicism, Empire)• Nobility versus
industrialists: architectural rivalry
• Symbolic messages of revival styles and art nouveau
• Revolutionary Constructivism
• Justification of the totalitarian power
• Ottepel, Stagnation, Perestroika, Post-Perestroika
Where do communications come from?Appearance of communicative
carriers around the world 30000 – 3000 BC
What is the driving force behind the development of cities?
• People had more food and the technology
• Division of labor• Differences in labor, origin,
material status• Desire to keep a privileged
position – competition• Protection against other
humans not nature• Expansion• Warfare becomes legal
What messages could be conveyed by the city design, architecture and monumental art?
• I am strong/stable• I am good• Remember me• Follow me/join us• Give me something• I am interested in
something
Paradise lost • The Golden Age
Paleolithic/Neolithic Influence
• Comfortable weather, enough fruit and vegetables for everybody
• Animals were either friendly or proud, not terrifying
• No emotions, no responsibility• Follow somebody else’s well-
established order• The mythical age , which never
existed; but early Sumerians looked at it as pre-urban rural tranquility and peace with no “fear, nor terror, man had no rival”
• “Unarmed, naked, primitive man had become cunning enough to dominate all his natural rivals”
Remains of the Paradise in cities• Nostalgic place• People should get
there if they behave• Perception of good
weather• Plenty of known and
unknown plants• Lack of emotional
sphere (no excitement – no disappointment)
• Well-balanced biodiversity
Paradise lost
• Curiosity of Neolithic people did not lead civilization to collective scientific investigation but to collective attacks and aggression
• The expansion of human energy and enlargement of human ego lead to differentiation of social and economic roles
• War, nicely communicated, becomes one of the reasons for the city’s existence
Division of Labor• Charles Darwin:
evolution of species through better adaptation
• Evolution of human beings through specialization
What is communication and PR in the urban environment?
• Based on cultural studies
• Urban messages are influenced by:• economic and
political realities• historical events• social dynamics• religious and spiritual
ideas• technological
advances• Interdisciplinary topic
Communication through Monumental Art
Tower of Babel, Peter Brueghel the Elder 1563, Vienna
• Vertical and horizontal bridges between peoples
• Similarities of art among different nationalities and historical periods
• Attitudes to and preferences for past epochs may vary
• Accumulative character of art and architecture
Reflections of the TimeThe tallest building in the world from 2560 BC to 1300 AD.
Cheops (Khufu) Pyramid, 2560 BC, Giza, Egypt
• Totalitarian power• Cheap labor• Centralized ownership
of resources • Culture of the dead
and death• Available technology
How do we read messages?
• Plan• Scale• Proportion• Composition• Material• Color• Symbols• Words• Smell • Sound
Monumental Art:• From Latin: “monere”
to remind• Designed for a certain
geographical location• Does not reflect space,
time – works for eternity
• Generalization, outside the framework of everyday life
• Epic character
Target Audiences• The current population• Future generations• Visitors
Questions for the Next Session• Why are cities so fertile
for communication and PR?
• How and why is the concept of Paradise present in cities?
• What are the original messages of the first cities?
Please, give examples!!!!!
Books to read• Lewis Mumford, The City in History• Carolyn Steel, Hungry City• Федосюк Ю.. Лучи от Кремля• Романюк С. Из истории московских
переулков• Романюк С. Московские слободы• Баранова С. Москва изразцовая• Лопатин История Москвы• Зиновьева О..Символы Сталинской
Москвы• www.sovarch.ru• www.metro.ru
