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The Barbican

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723 points farslan | 1 comments | 12 May 25 15:28 UTC | HN request time: 0.203s | source
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DrakeDeaton ◴[12 May 25 19:29 UTC] No.43966676[source]▶
Part of the thinking behind the Barbican's somewhat hidden entrances to the estate and tts maze-like layout was that they would reduce foot traffic, and it totally worked. Not many people use the public estate high-walks as a shortcut to get across the City. This has a wonderful effect wherein you're surrounded by the hustle and bustle of the City, while being just a touch insulated from it.

I lived there for the better part of a year and it completely changed my perspective on living in London. More city-life should be like the Barbican.

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1. crabmusket ◴[13 May 25 03:20 UTC] No.43969409[source]▶
I visited after having read Jane Jacobs the year before and becoming quite sympathetic to her vision of city life and active neighbourhoods through mixed uses. The Barbican felt like the philosophical opposite.

I read somewhere, I wish I could remember where, that some urban designers in the 60s had the feeling that people should spend their recreation time in their private homes rather than outside.

The Barbican felt like it had achieved that ideal of lifelessness, with bizarrely large and featureless open spaces, scant seating, etc. Of course that contrasted with the spaces around the arts centre which were bustling.