Ποιειν Και Πραττειν - create and do

Tuesday in Chania: planners and poets

Breakfast in the Old Town of Chania

 

 

Tuesday 12.9.1995

9.00 Departure of bus for “old French School” of Technical University of Crete

9.30 Welcome by the Head of Prefecture of Chania: Mrs. Aleka Markogiannaki

First session: presentation of problems as perceived by poets differently from planners

Chairpersons: Bart Verschaffel (University of Gent) and Hatto Fischer (Touch Stone / Dialogos)

Aim of this discussion between urban experts, including regional / urban planners and poets was to seek an understanding and dialogue between the two groups. The aim was to examine whether or not poets are stuck to a negative myth about life in cities as exemplified by recent trends in poetry while urban planners are facing questions of sustainability.

a) for the analytical group: urban planning and urban concepts

Pavlos DelladetsimaThe rhetoric of urban planners”


 

b) poetic observations about life in cities

Anna Borne “The city – ‘gemme of all joy or the place where Houses thick and sewers annoy the air – with Reference to the Reith Lectures”


c) first attempt at a synthesis of the experiences in Chania

Eleni Iliopoulou “Introduction into the realities of Chania”

11.30 Coffee break

12.00

Second session - differences between analytical and poetic approaches - two parts: a) Analytical and b) Poetic Thoughts about the city

Part a) - analytical questions linked to the urban agenda related issues

  1. Does there exist urban planning? Who are the real decision makers?
  2. What evaluation methods are used to assess current affairs?
  3. What technical options are available?
  4. What constraints do decision making processes face?
  5. What unresolved problems exist in urban environments?
  6. Which values of the city are structured hierarchically? Set of priorities?
  7. How does the city compare itself to others within what networks?
  8. What conceptual solutions have been offered and tried out so far?
  9. Do people see in cities livable solutions, if any at all?

Introducing the questions: Juergen Eckhardt (architect) and Sue Tilden (planner)

 

Richard Meheux with Maya, Juergen Eckhardt Reina Palazon

Photo: Hartmut Schulz

Participants of the analytical group:

- This discussion was meant to take place with officials from the Municipality of Chania about matters of urban affairs linked to urban planning, economic development, tourism, culture etc.

 

Part b) Poetic thoughts about the city

Opening the discussion:

Bruno Kartheuser: „The city as the tension field between utopia and coercion

The city as spiritual locality, as a place of freedom where experiences can be made; but then, what would be modern descriptions of the city? Likewise, what is the difference between metaphors and mythological attributes given to cities e.g. 'a micro world of ants'. When such analogies are used to describe overcrowding in cities, how does this affect man's self perception and what governs then the relationship between cities and its 'civitas'? If the city is considered as an utopian society, ever since Moses talked about 'the city of God', what has religion contributed towards making cities become viable communities on this globe? There are also reminders that cities crumble to pieces under the sheer weight of unresolved problems, or as depicted in the 'Tower of Babel' when aspiring to go too high i.e. beyond any natural proportions. What shall follow the industrial cities and the cities of the twenties century?

In search for sustainable cities, the usefulness of poetic observations as a kind of imaginary mapping of life in cities can be illustrated on hand of the poems by Voula Mega (research manager of the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions).

There follow more questions out of such poetic observations:

What is the relationship between urban planning concepts and poetic remarks about cities?

What is ‘poetic life’ and what seems to be driving life out of cities (Bapiste Marray)?

What changes in the urban landscape can be observed?

Here Brendan Kennelly observes about modern cities fulfilling the new concept ‘rururb’: a mixture of urban and rural land without either having anymore a distinctive character.

What can be done to retain in cities ‘wild’ or ‘untamed places'? This poetic question was posed by Paula Meehan

What will the poets say to the analytical group within this theme of ‘myth of city’?

What are poetic measures of life in cities?

 


14.30 Bus returns everyone to ‘Old town’ – afternoon free

 

19.30 Bus departs for evening program

 

20.00 Reception at the Technical University of Crete held at the French School

Introduction by Yannis Phillis, President of Technical University and poet

Introducing the poets: Hatto Fischer

Poetry reading by:

 

 

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