Volumen 19 (2023): Heft 1 (January 2023)

Analysis of cultural heritage by non-destructive testing methods allows conducting an examination of the building while preserving its authenticity and integrity, as well as its historical and artistic values. As the material of this study, the Sivas Congress Museum, which witnessed a very important event in the history of the country, was discussed. The aim of the study is to determine the stone type, deterioration, hardness, and strength of the building and thus generate an idea about the quality of architectural practices in the 19th century. In addition, it aims to create a scientific basis for conservation measures and restoration works to be carried out in the following years and to determine whether there is any difference between the stone material used in the main building and the stone of the building annexed later on. At the end of the study, it was concluded that the poor economic conditions of the country have affected the quality of the building material, the stones – soft and low-strength limestone – have been exposed to atmospheric pollution and deteriorated. In addition, although one of the stones that had undergone black crusting was cleaned, it was found that mechanical cleaning was insufficient to eliminate the pollution.

Urban plazas provide opportunities for children to play, learn and explore. In particular, public art in urban plazas can be a medium to absorb more children. This research has developed the Inclusive Urban Plaza Design (IUPD) assessment tool, which complies with the principles and features of urban plaza design based on the children’s preferences, needs, wishes, and perceptions for their healthy growth. The AHP (Analytical Hierarchy Process) decision-making method was applied to measure the weights of the feature. AHP analysis determined that motor skills (W_C1.1 = 0.127) have the highest impact on children’s growth among all sub-criteria, followed by space shape and size (W_C2.1 = 0.100) and cognitive development (W_C1.6 = 0.097). The IUPD toolkit was implemented in Vivacity plaza in Singapore to be validated. The implementation analysis showed that Vivacity plaza was a ‘gold’ grade. It is a well-designed urban plaza that supports children’s growth through interaction with various shapes, colors, textures, and materials (like sand and water) that children love. However, it needs minor improvements in terms of inventiveness and creativity (WSM_C1.4 = 0.65), cognitive development (WSMC1.4 = 0.57), and time and program schedule (WSM_C2.7 = 0.65). The IUPD toolkit showed to be a universal tool that can evaluate the performance of urban plazas in children’s growth.

The aim this research was to develop and test the mapping methodology, that would be applicable in the process of community involvement into place-making process and would focus on functioning and usage of public spaces. The methodology is referred to a Present Map methodology and is structured as a one-day mapping workshop involving drawing from memory, fieldwork, identifying the locations in the geographical map, structuring of the collected information and entering data into interactive online Present Map. The application of the methodology in Sanciai historic district has demonstrated that this methodology allows both collecting the material about the people’s experiences in public spaces of the locality necessary for research and planning, as well as connecting community with the place and empowering it by providing the working tools for exploration and understanding of the place and platform for expression in a form of interactive online Present Map.

Art Nouveau architecture during the last century experienced drastic change of attitude – from complete denial to glorification. However, many publications still repeat the same stereotypes of style assessment, focusing on the decorative layer as the seemingly main feature of style. Some significant values of Art Nouveau heritage are still only partially or incompletely recognized. In this paper, several less known examples of Art Nouveau heritage in France, in particular, in the cities of Orléans, Dunkirk and Lille are analysed. The architectural-artistic qualities of these buildings are revealed in the context of both French and wider cultural heritage. Art Nouveau, having been the origin and basis of the entire stylistic system of modern architecture, completely meets the principles of contemporary Baukultur ideas.

This study examines ground-floor retail vacancies in Turku CBD in 2016–2021. It is based on a longitudinal database formed for the study, interviews, discussions with the stakeholders, and documentary analysis. The study found that three fourths of the vacancies were short-term. The long-term vacancies were spaces no longer meeting the requirements of contemporary retailing. In cases where property development was possible, planning disputes may prolong the vacancies for years or even decades.

As a result of the pandemic that emerged in China in the end of 2019, the user experiences with regard to the dwelling dramatically changed due to the fact that the dwelling was then used not only as place to live, but also to work, study, and socialize, and people had to readjust their expectations from their living spaces. This process also urged a revision of the distinctive user requirements for the dwelling spaces. The aim of the present article is to initiate a discussion about the parameters that should be prioritized with a view to dwelling designs and offer recommendations with regard thereof.

The north-eastern French city of Nancy is one of the centres of Art Nouveau. It has been analysed in detail in many classical reviews Art Nouveau, but mainly in relation to decorative applied art works produced at the Nancy School of Art. The study pays attention also to the Nancy architecture. The architectural and artistic qualities of the iconic Art Nouveau architectural monument Villa L. Majorelle are analysed in detail, and the basic data about works of É. André, H. Gutton, J. Hornecker, L. Weissenburger, and other Nancy architects are systematized, indicating their place both in the cityscape of Nancy and in the historical context of Art Nouveau architecture in general.

With the increasing rate of urbanization and decreasing percentage of overall greenspaces in the cities, the urban areas are becoming vulnerable to various hazards and climate change. The presence of adequate and well-maintained greenspaces plays a vital role in society’s well-being and the creation of a healthy environment. Despite being such an essential feature of urban areas, Indian legislative & regulatory documents still lack in terms of a standard working definition. Hence, this study aims to frame a standard working definition of “urban greenspace” in the Indian context. In order to achieve the goal of this work, a rigorous study of 237 research papers based on Indian scenarios was done. These papers were categorized based on the domain and the context of their study. From the literature review, the evolution of greenspace definition specific to the planning domain was traced and the criteria used to define urban greenspace in the various other domains were identified. The proposed definition of “urban greenspace” will incorporate the maximum criteria identified and shall best suit the heterogeneous nature of the Indian cities. This research is an initial attempt to trace the evolution of the definition of urban greenspace in the planning domain and to frame a standard working definition of urban greenspaces for the urban Indian context. The outcome of this work will help urban planners and policymakers to overcome the current issue of the dilemma about the standard definition of “greenspace”.

The cultural landscapes of the Baltic Sea coast in Rucava and Nica parishes consist of ancient fishing villages, lighthouses, natural objects such as seashore, dunes, pine groves, meadows, and others. They have been affected by transformation, especially in recent decades. During coastal surveys in 2019 and 2021, photo fixations, research of historical documents, interviews were carried out and it was found that cultural landscapes are losing quality under the influence of political, social and natural factors, especially coastal erosion. The aim of this work is to study the transformation processes affecting the landscape.

This study aims to evaluate hospital outdoor design landscaping requirements. In addition to taking into account user groups such as adult and child patients, hospital staff and visitors, also such elements as hospital entrances and exits, parking areas, hospital roads, children’s playgrounds, rest areas, water elements, art elements, field furniture, planting and maintenance subjects were determined to be important in a successful hospital garden design. A checklist has been prepared that includes these identified issues. The checklist was tested on five selected hospitals in Baku, Azerbaijan. According to a comparative analysis of hospital outdoor designs, it was determined that the Liv Bona Dea Hospital topped the list, followed by the National Oncology Hospital as having the most successful open space hospital designs.

The purpose of this paper is to assess the socio-cultural values of kulla, a traditional Albanian stone house found in the cross-border region of Kosovo, Albania, and Montenegro. Despite being recognized for its historical and cultural significance in respective countries, kulla as a vernacular heritage has not been commonly assessed for its distinct regional heritage values. To address this gap, the study draws on existing literature and field investigations in three countries. The findings suggest that kullas have retained much of their authenticity, and that its most distinguished regional values are historical, social, and traditional values, as well as architectural one.

Archaeological sites have always suffered from loss and degradation due to many human and natural hazards. In recent decades, interest in preserving archaeological sites has increased dramatically. Many modern techniques have emerged from the different disciplines that can be used in preservation works, and a large number of the techniques and their capability made it difficult for decision-makers and specialists to determine the appropriate technique that gives the best results in preserving the archaeological site. The research aims to identify the project needed to preserve the archaeological site and then choose the appropriate technique for it, based on the opinions of experts using the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) method, which helps decision-makers and specialists to choose the most appropriate technology. The archaeological site of Babylon was chosen as a case study. As a result of applying the AHP method, the priority weights of preservation stages for the archaeological site of Babylon were determined as follows: (diagnosis and monitoring 30.8 %), (intervention 21.2 %), and (tourism and media 16.6 %), while the appropriate technique was determined as follows: (infrared thermography 29.4 %), (maintenance 49.3 %), and (augmented reality 38.7 %).