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https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2020/apr/13/smart-lifts-lonely-workers-no-towers-architecture-after-covid-19-coronavirus>
"From antibacterial brass doorknobs to broad, well-ventilated
boulevards, our cities and buildings have always been shaped by disease.
It was cholera that influenced the modern street grid, as 19th-century
epidemics prompted the introduction of sewage systems that required the
roads above them to be wider and straighter, along with new zoning laws
to prevent overcrowding.
The third plague pandemic, a bubonic outbreak that began in China in
1855, changed the design of everything from drainpipes to door
thresholds and building foundations, in the global war against the rat.
And the wipe-clean aesthetic of modernism was partly a result of
tuberculosis, with light-flooded sanatoriums inspiring an era of
white-painted rooms, hygienic tiled bathrooms and the ubiquitous
mid-century recliner chair. Form has always followed fear of infection,
just as much as function.
With each of us now living in socially distanced self-isolation, with
shops shuttered, offices abandoned and urban centres reduced to ghost
towns, it’s hard not to wonder what kind of lasting impact Covid-19 will
have on our cities. Will homes need to adapt to better accommodate work?
Will pavements widen so we can keep our distance? Will we no longer want
to live so densely packed together, working in open-plan offices and
cramming into lifts? Will the beloved British pastime of queuing ever be
the same again?"
Via Sheila Nagig.
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://www.xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
http://www.glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
http://www.sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
