Arts district

Last updated

An arts district or cultural district is a demarcated urban area, usually on the periphery of a city centre, intended to create a 'critical mass' of places of cultural consumption - such as art galleries, theatres, art cinemas, music venues, and public squares for performances. Such an area is usually encouraged by public policy-making and planning, but sometimes occurs spontaneously. It is associated with allied service-industry jobs like cafes, printers, fashion outlets, restaurants, and a variety of 'discreet services' (see the back-page small-ads of almost any cultural events-listings magazine).

Contents

There may also be some artists' studios located in nearby back-streets. But, as Richard Florida has found from his research, cultural production facilities are often better sited some miles away from cultural consumption facilities - except in some very tolerant cities and in countries where a boisterous alcohol-based nightlife scene does not lead to aggressive and anti-social behaviour.

In the UK the term sometimes used is "Cultural quarter" or "Arts quarter".

Types of districts

According to Americans for the Arts

Americans for the Arts defines the following types of cultural districts: [1]

According to Steiner and Butler

Steiner and Butler outline five types of arts districts commonly found in the United States. [2]

  1. Cultural compounds - tend to be the oldest art districts often established in cities before the 1930s. These tend to be well-known art districts engrained into the mentality and culture of a community or nation.
  2. Major Cultural Institutions - large institutions that serve as anchors for an arts district such as large concert halls, playhouses, libraries, or museums.
  3. Arts and entertainment centers - focus primarily on smaller, popular attractions such as small theaters, private galleries, restaurants, and other entertainment that often has a more bohemian feel than larger more established districts.
  4. Downtown Arts Districts - occasionally art districts encompass an entire downtown and especially when tourism and walk-ability is the focus of downtown.
  5. Cultural Production Districts - cultural production districts are characterized by production spaces such as specialized studios, arts centers, and media facilities. These areas are often tied to affordable studio housing for artists and prioritize the cultural life of the neighborhood.

Theories of cultural districts

The creation of a cultural district implies collaboration between the arts and the local community. Cultural districts may be seen by local authorities as a way to revitalize the “brownfields” of the urban core: areas of abandoned buildings that encourage businesses and residents to leave the cities. [3] [4]

The developing theory of cultural districts increasingly conceives them as development models for local systems, where the term ‘district’ refers to supra-urban area. [5] [6] [7] At supra-urban or regional level the complexity of a cultural district is even more marked than at urban level, due to potential interdependencies among a greater multitude of actors. [8] A useful approach towards a deeper understanding can be to conceive cultural districts as complex adaptive systems. [5] Indeed, complexity is definitely not a management fad and fashion, a mere metaphor or methodology, but a deeper perception of reality. [9] Organizations are classically seen as purpose-driven entities with a structural form, exhibiting a certain degree of order and determinism. Such a linear top-down approach to analysis and design, however, exhibits many limitations when used for organizational settings characterized by a complex web of interdependencies. [7] The view of a cultural district as a complex adaptive system suggests new ideas and approaches for policy-makers, designers and managers. It also opens up debate on issues of organizational design and change.

All cultural districts are unique, reflecting their cities’ unique environment, including history of land use, urban growth and cultural development. There is no standard model. Most cultural districts are built to take advantage of other city attractions such as historic features, convention spaces and parks and other natural amenities.

Structural considerations within or near the district, community leadership and social forces all influence the development of a cultural district and the type of district that results. Factors influencing the siting of cultural districts include: perceived need for urban revitalization, existing investment, property value and preexisting cultural facilities.

Unlike a cultural center or a shopping mall, a cultural district comprises a large number of property owners, both public and private, who control the various properties involved, hence a structural complexity. The effectiveness of the coordinating agency in guiding the direction of the cultural district varies according to its size, budget, mandated functions and degree of authority, resulting in widespread variation in the coordinated cultural programming and administration services offered by cultural districts. The coordinated agency appointed for the district must work carefully to ensure inclusiveness of concerns and to balance potentially conflicting interests.

Cultural districts offer two major types of services: one targets the arts community, providing marketing /promotion, box office services and property management; the other targets the district's business and property owners, offering urban design and development services or administrative support.

The excitement and attraction of a cultural district is a high mixture of interesting things to do, places to see, and places to visit (both cultural and noncultural), across the day and evening.

Some artist-activists are promoting the concept of a "Naturally Occurring Cultural District," or NOCD, patterned after the demographic concept of a naturally occurring retirement community. A NOCD "supports existing neighborhood cultural assets rather than imposing arts institutions somewhere new," according to Tamara Greenfield, co-director of NOCD-New York. Co-director Caron Atlas explained: "If a cultural district has emerged 'naturally,' then it grows from, builds on and validates existing community assets rather than importing assets from outside a community." [10] Indeed, different conceptions of cultural districts include self-organization and emergence in different degrees (e.g. Lazzeretti, 2003; Le Blanc, 2010; Sacco et al., 2013; Stern & Seifert, 2007). Many authors argue that districtualization is essentially spontaneous and that the conditions for formation can be recognized and sustained, not created from the top. [11] [12] If the conception of a cultural district as a complex adaptive system were accepted, the design process would be conceived as something more flexible, dynamic and in evolution. Complexity theory and complex adaptive systems should move understanding of supra-urban cultural districts towards a more holistic and bottom-up approach [11] [13] rather than a linear top-down approach to analysis and design. This does not suggest inhibiting any attempt at prediction or planning. The use of qualitative analysis and rough estimations or agent-based modelling can represent a fertile ground for both future research, policy-making and managerial implications. [5]

List

Notable arts districts in the United States (alphabetical by city):

Art districts in London include:

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Urbanism</span> Urban design movement promoting environmentally friendly land use

New Urbanism is an urban design movement that promotes environmentally friendly habits by creating walkable neighbourhoods containing a wide range of housing and job types. It arose in the United States in the early 1980s, and has gradually influenced many aspects of real estate development, urban planning, and municipal land-use strategies. New Urbanism attempts to address the ills associated with urban sprawl and post-Second World War suburban development.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neighbourhood</span> Localised community within a larger area

A neighbourhood (CwE) or neighborhood (AmE) is a geographically localized community within a larger city, town, suburb or rural area, sometimes consisting of a single street and the buildings lining it. Neighbourhoods are often social communities with considerable face-to-face interaction among members. Researchers have not agreed on an exact definition, but the following may serve as a starting point: "Neighbourhood is generally defined spatially as a specific geographic area and functionally as a set of social networks. Neighbourhoods, then, are the spatial units in which face-to-face social interactions occur—the personal settings and situations where residents seek to realise common values, socialise youth, and maintain effective social control."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area</span> MSA in Illinois, United States

The Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, also known as Champaign–Urbana and Urbana–Champaign as well as Chambana (colloquially), is a metropolitan area in east-central Illinois. As defined by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the metropolitan area has a population of 222,538 as of the 2020 U.S. Census, which ranks it as the 207th largest metropolitan statistical area in the U.S. The area is anchored by the principal cities of Champaign and Urbana, and is home to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Downtown Orlando</span> Area of Orlando in Florida, US

Downtown Orlando is the historic core and central business district of Orlando, Florida, United States. It is bordered by Marks Street in the north, Mills Avenue in the east, Orange Blossom Trail in the west, and Kaley Avenue in the south. There are several distinct neighborhoods in downtown; "North Quarter" to the north, "Lake Eola Heights Historic District" just north of Lake Eola, "South Eola" contains Lake Eola Park and continues to the east and south of Lake Eola, "Thornton Park" in the east, "Parramore" in the west, "Lake Cherokee Historic District" to the south, and the "Central Business District" between Colonial Drive and Lake Lucerne in the center. In 2010, the estimated population of downtown was 18,731. The daytime population was estimated to be 65,000. The 5-mile radius population of downtown is 273,335.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Downtown Phoenix</span> Central business district of Phoenix, Arizona

Downtown Phoenix is the central business district (CBD) of the City of Phoenix, Arizona, United States. It is in the heart of the Phoenix metropolitan area or Valley of the Sun. Phoenix, being the county seat of Maricopa County and the capital of Arizona, serves as the center of politics, justice and government on the local, state and federal levels. The area is a major center of employment for the region, with many financial, legal, and other national and international corporations housed in a variety of skyscrapers. Major arts and cultural institutions also call the area home. Downtown Phoenix is a center of major league sports activities, live concert events, and is an equally prominent center of banking and finance in Arizona. Regional headquarters for several major banks, including JP Morgan Chase, Wells Fargo, US Bank, Bank of America, Compass Bank and Midfirst Bank are all located within or close proximity to the area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Downtown Las Vegas</span> Human settlement in United States

Downtown Las Vegas is the central business district and historic center of Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. It is the original townsite, and the Downtown gaming area was the primary gambling district of Las Vegas prior to the Strip. As the urban core of the Las Vegas Valley, it features a variety of hotel and business highrises, cultural centers, historical buildings and government institutions, as well as residential and retail developments. Downtown is located in the center of the Las Vegas Valley and just north of the Las Vegas Strip, centered on Fremont Street, the Fremont Street Experience and Fremont East. The city defines the area as bounded by I-15 on the west, Washington Avenue on the north, Maryland Parkway on the east and Sahara Avenue on the south.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Downtown Calgary</span> Neighbourhood in Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Downtown Calgary is a dense urban district in central Calgary, Alberta. It contains the second largest concentration of head offices in Canada, despite only being the country's fourth largest city in terms of population. The downtown is divided into several residential, commercial, corporate, and mixed-use neighbourhoods, including the Financial District (CBD), Eau Claire, Chinatown, East Village, Beltline, and the West End.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Avenue of the Arts (Philadelphia)</span> Neighborhood of Philadelphia in Pennsylvania, United States

Avenue of the Arts is a city-designated arts cultural district on a segment of Broad Street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States that includes many of the city's cultural institutions, most notably the theater district south of City Hall. The designation can be found as far south as Washington Avenue and as far north as the Cecil B. Moore neighborhood.

Community art, also known as social art, community-engaged art, community-based art, and, rarely, dialogical art, is the practice of art based in and generated in a community setting. It is closely related to social practice and social turn. Works in this form can be of any media and are characterized by interaction or dialogue with the community. Professional artists may collaborate with communities which may not normally engage in the arts. The term was defined in the late 1960s as the practice grew in the United States, Canada, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and Australia. In Scandinavia, the term "community art" more often refers to contemporary art projects.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Houston Theater District</span> Neighborhood of Houston in Harris County, Texas, United States

The Houston Theater District, a 17-block area in the heart of Downtown Houston, Texas, United States, is home to Houston's nine professional performing arts organizations, the 130,000-square-foot (12,000 m2) Bayou Place entertainment complex, restaurants, movies, plazas, and parks. More than two million people visit the Houston Theater District annually.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Placemaking</span> Approach to public space design

Placemaking is a multi-faceted approach to the planning, design and management of public spaces. Placemaking capitalizes on a local community's assets, inspiration, and potential, with the intention of creating public spaces that improve urban vitality and promote people's health, happiness, and well-being. It is political due to the nature of place identity. Placemaking is both a process and a philosophy that makes use of urban design principles. It can be either official and government led, or community driven grassroots tactical urbanism, such as extending sidewalks with chalk, paint, and planters, or open streets events such as Bogotá, Colombia's Ciclovía. Good placemaking makes use of underutilized space to enhance the urban experience at the pedestrian scale to build habits of locals.

The Cultural District is a fourteen-square block area in Downtown Pittsburgh, USA bordered by the Allegheny River on the north, Tenth Street on the east, Stanwix Street on the west, and Liberty Avenue on the south.

The City of Oklahoma City uses Special Zoning Districts as a tool to maintain the character of many neighborhood communities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lincoln Park, Newark</span> Neighborhood in Newark, New Jersey

Lincoln Park is a city square and neighborhood, also known as "the Coast," in Newark, Essex County, New Jersey, United States. It is bounded by the Springfield/Belmont, South Broad Valley, South Ironbound and Downtown neighborhoods. It is bounded by Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. to the west, West Kinney St. to the north, the McCarter Highway to the east and South St., Pennsylvania Avenue, Lincoln Park and Clinton Avenue to the south. Part of the neighborhood is a historic district listed on the New Jersey Register of Historic Places and the National Register of Historic Places. Lincoln Park as a street turns into Clinton Avenue toward the south and north edge of the park.

AS220 is a non-profit community arts center located in Downtown, Providence, Rhode Island, United States. AS220 maintains four dozen artist live/work studios, around a dozen individual work studios, six rotating exhibition spaces, a main stage, a black box theater, a dance studio, a print shop, a community darkroom, a digital media lab, a fabrication lab, an organization-run bar and restaurant, a youth recording studio, and a youth program. AS220 is an unjuried and uncensored forum for the arts, open to all ages.

Activity centre is a term used in urban planning and design for a mixed-use urban area where there is a concentration of commercial and other land uses. For example, the central business districts of cities (CBD) are also known as “Central Activities Districts” (CAD) (also known as Downtown in North America or "Central Activities Zone" in the United Kingdom in recognition of the fact that commercial functions are not the only things that occur there. The term activity centre can also be used to designate an area for mixed-use development, whatever its current land use happens to be.

Downtown Tulsa is an area of approximately 1.4 square miles (3.6 km2) surrounded by an inner-dispersal loop created by Interstate 244, US 64 and US 75. The area serves as Tulsa's financial and business district; it is the focus of a large initiative to draw tourism, which includes plans to capitalize on the area's historic architecture. Much of Tulsa's convention space is located in downtown, such as the Tulsa Performing Arts Center and the Tulsa Convention Center, as well as the BOK Center. Prominent downtown sub-districts include the Blue Dome District, the Tulsa Arts District, and the Greenwood Historical District, which includes the site of ONEOK Field, a baseball stadium for the Tulsa Drillers opened in 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Main Street</span> Primary road of a human settlement

Main Street is a metonym used to denote a primary retail street of a village, town or small city in many parts of the world. It is usually a focal point for shops and retailers in the central business district, and is most often used in reference to retailing and socializing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Discovery District (Columbus, Ohio)</span> Neighborhood in Columbus, Ohio

The Discovery District is a special improvement district in downtown Columbus, Ohio, the home of Columbus State Community College, Columbus College of Art and Design, Columbus Museum of Art, and Columbus Metropolitan Library. It is considered a cultural district because of its close proximity to higher educational campuses and art destinations. It was named to imply that the area is full of possibility due to the number of learning and creative campuses in this small area. "Culture, art, and academia converge and present the Discovery District." While not typically viewed as the most prominent Columbus neighborhood, the density of academic and arts-based institutions in this area are what make this creative campus unique.

References

  1. ↑ Americans for the Arts
  2. ↑ Steiner, Frederick; Kent Butler (2007). Planning and Urban Design Standards. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons. p. 242. ISBN   978-0-471-76090-0.
  3. ↑ "Cultural Districts". Archived from the original on 2008-12-01. Retrieved 2008-12-02. Cultural Districts, Americans for the Arts
  4. ↑ Cultural Districts, ‘The Arts as a Strategy for Revitalizing our Cities’, Americans for the Arts, 1998
  5. 1 2 3 Francesconi, Alberto; Dossena, Claudia (2016-01-19). "Learning to design cultural districts and learning from designing them". European Planning Studies. 24 (4): 704–722. doi:10.1080/09654313.2015.1133565. ISSN   0965-4313. S2CID   155363647.
  6. ↑ Sacco, P. L., Tavano Blessi, G., & Nuccio, M. (2008). Culture as an engine of local development processes: System-wide cultural districts (Art and Industrial Design Working Papers). University IUAV of Venice. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/234167196
  7. 1 2 Francesconi A. (2015). Advanced Cultural Districts. Innovative Approaches to Organizational Designs. Basingstoke: Palgrave-Macmillan. ISBN   9781137555342.
  8. ↑ Trist, Eric (1983-03-01). "Referent Organizations and the Development of Inter-Organizational Domains". Human Relations. 36 (3): 269–284. doi:10.1177/001872678303600304. ISSN   0018-7267. S2CID   145070626.
  9. ↑ Lewin, Arie Y. (1999-06-01). "Application of Complexity Theory to Organization Science". Organization Science. 10 (3): 215. doi:10.1287/orsc.10.3.215. ISSN   1047-7039.
  10. ↑ Urban Omnibus, Naturally Occurring Cultural Districts, Nov. 17, 2010
  11. 1 2 Lazzeretti, Luciana (2003-09-01). "City of art as a High Culture local system and cultural districtualization processes: the cluster of art restoration in Florence". International Journal of Urban and Regional Research. 27 (3): 635–648. doi:10.1111/1468-2427.00470. ISSN   1468-2427.
  12. ↑ Stern, M. J.,&Seifert, S. C. (2007). Cultivating “natural” cultural districts. Creativity&Change. Social Impact of the Arts Project, University of Pennsylvania's School of Social Policy & Practice. Retrieved from http://www.trfund.com/resource/downloads/creativity/NaturalCulturalDistricts.pdf
  13. ↑ Blanc, Antoine Le (2010-08-01). "Cultural Districts, A New Strategy for Regional Development? The South-East Cultural District in Sicily". Regional Studies. 44 (7): 905–917. doi:10.1080/00343400903427936. ISSN   0034-3404. S2CID   219711822.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.