Surely you know that feeling when you have high expectations for a heavily advertised book, but when the catharsis is missing, it becomes difficult to appreciate what is truly valuable in the work. Charles R. Wolfe's "Seeing the Better City" was such an experience for me, but I'll try to be fair to it.
It is a book that was published in 2016 and was nominated for various urbanist design awards. Its subtitle promises to introduce the reader to the mysterious methodology of discovering, observing, and improving urban spaces.
The approach employed by Wolfe is the creation of "urban diaries," typically through the use of a camera or a mobile phone camera. Throughout the entire book, the author argues that photographing urban spaces, observing details, or extending and incorporating this methodology into participatory planning can enrich the toolkit of urban design. Wolfe mentions two main ways of utilizing this approach: one is when urban designers themselves photograph urban spaces based on predetermined criteria (paying attention to people, sidewalks, shadows, flaws, spaces used by different functions, emerging conflict areas, etc.). The other is when residents are asked to photograph and map their living environment using some participatory methodology (e.g., capturing their favorite or less preferred places).
Afterwards, according to Wolfe, the analysis of the resulting photographic material can allow urban designers to construct new narratives and stories. The visual language depicted and brought to life by the photos can also help residents better express and communicate their own subjective "sense of the city" to decision-makers.
Interestingly, it briefly touches upon the new possibilities offered by analyzing photos using artificial intelligence to better understand the city. Algorithms analyzing urban and neighborhood photos posted on platforms like Instagram and Flickr already take into account factors such as the distinctive posture and facial expressions of people in the photos, and even whether women are wearing lipstick (which can suggest a more vibrant, lively, or potentially bustling area, even at night). Of course, it would be absurd to base the design of an entire neighborhood solely on conclusions drawn from the occurrence frequency determined by artificial intelligence. However, it is undeniable, and this is not a new revelation, that there is potential in this type of analysis that can drastically change the entire toolkit of urban design.
Regardless, "Seeing the Better City" will not be a revelation for those who already photograph the city, urban life, and have sharpened their perception on these details. However, it can provide interesting tips and, as it is a rather practical book, its question lists, perspectives, and case studies can be read as a checklist and utilized in the implementation of similar projects, participatory planning, or the preparation of urban sociology and environmental psychology research. In short, this is not the book that would establish new foundations for urbanism or introduce a radically new methodology. In fact, at times, it can be irritatingly trivial. It is the kind of book that has 3-4 pages or sets of questions that one refers to when practically attempting a similar design process or research.
The greatest and essentially the only "conceptual-level" thought-provoking question is the applicability of the methodology. From the "personal cities" that emerge from the photos, the face of a "better city" ultimately becomes apparent. These quite subjective urban images are undeniably capable of providing a much more nuanced depiction of what a particular space truly needs than regulatory requirements alone.
However, Wolfe himself acknowledges that the greatest limitation of the methodology lies in these regulatory requirements. Despite the clarity that emerges from the photo series on how to proceed in a particular urban space, and despite the "good city" appearing in our minds, it becomes impossible to achieve these visions due to rigorous regulations, precise spatial use, and mandatory site provisions. Therefore, urban photo diaries should play a significant role in providing an understandable, visible, demonstrable, and "empathetic" reasoning system to detach thinking from these constraints.
Note: The cover photo was taken on Wesselényi Street during the summer, where, without knowing anything about the technique of urban diary, I was photographing how people were struggling to navigate the street and how poorly the otherwise not-so-large public space was utilized.