''The Image of the City'' is a 1960 book by American
urban theorist
This is a list of urban theorists notable in their field, in alphabetical order:
* Christopher Alexander (1936-2022)
* Donald Appleyard (1928-1982)
* Michael E. Arth
* Christopher Charles Benninger (1942)
* Walter Block (1941)
* Ernest Burgess (1 ...
Kevin Lynch. The book is the result of a five-year study of
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
,
Jersey City
Jersey City is the second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, after Newark.Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
on how observers take in information of the city, and use it to make
mental maps
Mental may refer to:
* of or relating to the mind
Films
* ''Mental'' (2012 film), an Australian comedy-drama
* ''Mental'' (2016 film), a Bangladeshi romantic-action movie
* ''Mental'', a 2008 documentary by Kazuhiro Soda
* ''Mental'', a 2014 O ...
. Lynch's conclusion was that people formed mental maps of their surroundings consisting of five basic elements.
Imageability
Lynch argues that for any given city, a corresponding set of mental images exist in the minds of the people who experience that city. Contributing to those images are five qualities which Lynch identifies as Paths, Edges, Districts, Nodes, and Landmarks.
* Paths
**These are the
street
A street is a public thoroughfare in a built environment. It is a public parcel of land adjoining buildings in an urban context, on which people may freely assemble, interact, and move about. A street can be as simple as a level patch of dirt, ...
s,
sidewalk
A sidewalk (North American English), pavement (British English), footpath in Australia, India, New Zealand and Ireland, or footway, is a path along the side of a street, street, highway, terminals. Usually constructed of concrete, pavers, brick ...
s, trails, canals,
railroad
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
s, and other channels in which people travel
**They arrange space and movement between space
* Edges
**Boundaries
**They can be either Real or Perceived
**These are
wall
A wall is a structure and a surface that defines an area; carries a load; provides security, shelter, or soundproofing; or, is decorative. There are many kinds of walls, including:
* Walls in buildings that form a fundamental part of the supe ...
overpass
An overpass (called an overbridge or flyover in the United Kingdom and some other Commonwealth countries) is a bridge, road, railway or similar structure that crosses over another road or railway. An ''overpass'' and ''underpass'' together form ...
es, etc.
*
Districts
A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...
**Medium to large areas that are two-dimensional
**An individual enters into and out of these areas
**Have common identifying characteristics
* Nodes
**Large areas you can enter, serve as the
foci
Focus, or its plural form foci may refer to:
Arts
* Focus or Focus Festival, former name of the Adelaide Fringe arts festival in South Australia Film
*''Focus'', a 1962 TV film starring James Whitmore
* ''Focus'' (2001 film), a 2001 film based ...
of the city, neighborhood, district, etc.
**Offers the person in them multiple perspectives of the other core elements
**"...the most successful node seemed both to be unique in some way and at the same time to intensify some surrounding characteristic"
*
Landmark
A landmark is a recognizable natural or artificial feature used for navigation, a feature that stands out from its near environment and is often visible from long distances.
In modern use, the term can also be applied to smaller structures or f ...
s
**Points of reference person cannot enter into
**These are buildings, signs, stores, mountains, public art
**At least one aspect of them is unique or memorable in the context they exist
**Mobile Points (such as
Sun
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is a nearly perfect ball of hot plasma, heated to incandescence by nuclear fusion reactions in its core. The Sun radiates this energy mainly as light, ultraviolet, and infrared radi ...
) can be used as well
Influence
''The Image of the City'' has influenced the fields of
environmental psychology
Environmental psychology is a branch of psychology that explores the relationship between humans and the external world. It examines the way in which the natural environment and our built environments shape us as individuals. Environmental Psychol ...
and environmental behavior as well as a generation of researchers working within them. Researchers that include
Amos Rapoport
Amos Rapoport (28 March 1929, Warsaw) is an architect and one of the founders of Environment-Behavior Studies (EBS). Ingold, Tim (2002) ''Companion Encyclopedia of Anthropology'', Taylor & Francis He is the author of over 200 academic publications ...
William H. Whyte
William Hollingsworth "Holly" Whyte Jr. (July 11, 1917 – July 11, 1999) was an American urbanist, sociologist, organizational analyst, journalist and people-watcher. He identified the elements that create vibrant public spaces within the city ...
,
Kenneth Craik
Kenneth James William Craik (; 1914 – 1945) was a Scottish philosopher and psychologist.
Life
He was born in Edinburgh on 29 March 1914, the son of James Craik, a solicitor. The family lived at 13 Abercromby Place in Edinburgh's Second New ...