Slumming in Utopia: Protest Construction and the Iconography of Urban America

Author(s): Lance Hosey

Source: Journal of Architectural Education (1984-), Vol. 53, No. 3, Beyond Expert Culture
(Feb., 2000), pp. 146-158
Published by: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. on behalf of the Association of Collegiate Schools of
Architecture, Inc.

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Slumming
in Utopia:
Protest
Construction
andtheIconography
of UrbanArnerica
LANCEH OSEY,Chcirlo
ttesville,Virginicl

theAnacostia
camp,tear-gassed
thefamiliessheltered
thereandset
fire to the compound(Figure1). One soldierranhis bayonet
throughthe leg of a fleeingboy,andtwo infantsdiedfromexposureto the gas.MacArthur,
who washailedby the Secretary
of
Defenseasa hero,calledtheveterans
"insurrectionists"
andtoldthe
pressthathadthepresident
delayedin dispersing
them,"theinstitutionsof ourgovernment
wouldhavebeenseverely
threatened."'
JohnHenryBartlett,a formerstategovernor,
laterwrotean
eyewitness
accountthatdescribed
theeventas "themostpowerful
governmentin the worldshootingits starvingveteransout of
worthless
huts."Unarmed,the BonusArmypresented
no physical
threat,fortheymerelysatandwaited.TheirrealeffectwaspsychoIt WClS
a strclnge city ofpoverty.
logical;theywerean embarrassment
to the cityandto theadmin-JohnHenry Bartlett
istration.Bartlettattributed
theincidentto a conflictof aesthetics:
the roughshackscreateda visualdisturbance,
spoilingthe monuINTHESUMMER
OF1932, 25,000 WORLD
WARI VETERANS
ANDTHEIR
mentalcapital's
grandatmosphere.
He wrote,"theseraggedpeople
familiesmarchedinto Washington,
D.C., to petitionthe governwith. . . theirhoveldwellings"
were"anoffensivesightto suchpermentfor relieffromthe Depression.Theycalledthemselvesthe
sonsasseetheaestheticbeforethehumane."3
Theimmediate
conBonusArmy,and theydemandedthe earlyreleaseof payments
trastof povertyandwealththattheshelterscreatedin Washington
promisedto veterans
butnotdueuntil1945. Throughout
thecity,
symbolized
a distressing
nationalproblem,namelythewidespread
theybuiltcrudesheltersoutof scrapmaterial
andcampedforeight
povertyexacerbated
by Hoover'spolicies.4
The banishment
of the
weeks.A reporter
described
thestructures
as "aconglomeration
of
veteranswas not aboutpublicsafetybut aboutpolitics.In the
tentedhutsmadeof tattered
clothfixedupon oldboardswithpacknation'spristinecapital,a cityon thevergeof a massivebuilding
ing boxesservingas props."The maincamp,at AnacostiaFlats,
campaign,the disorderlycampswerea blunt reminderof the
withinsightof theCapitolbuilding,
was"ajumbleof packingcrates,
acm1ntstratton
s ta1Sures.
fruitcrates,chickencoops,burlap-and-tarpaper
shacks,tents,leanThe BonusArmyaccountraisescertainissuesrelatedto
tos,wrecked
touringcars,anddun-colored,
tepee-like
shelters."
The
Americanurbanism,
specifically
the problemof representation.
If
campshada conspicuous
presence
in thecity,withhundreds
ofvetarchitecture,
liketherestof culture,maybeunderstood
ascommueranstakingshelterwithinthreeblocksof theCapitol.Downtown
nication,theproblemliesin thesourceandcontentof thiscommumerchantscomplainedthat the sight was depressing,and the
nication.Urbanformillustrates
values;howcitiesareshapedand
Hooveradministration
calledthecampsan eyesoreanda humiliamaintained
inevitably
reflectsthebeliefsof theirmakers.
In hisIdetion.The president,
whosepoliciesdeniedfederalaidto the poor,
ologyclndModernCulture,JohnB. Thompsondiscusses
howideolbarricaded
himselfin theWhiteHouse,closedoff thesurrounding
ogy is supportedby the distributionof whathe calls"symbolic
streets,andrefusedto meetwiththemarchers.
Vowingto end"de- forms,"
suchaslinguistic
expressions,
gestures,
actions,worksof art,
fianceof civilauthority,"
he orderedtheremovalofthe marchers.l and
so on. He definesideologyas "meaningin the serviceof
Earlyon July28, an initialattemptby policeto oust the
power,"andin the publicspheremeaningis createdby symbolic
squatters
on Pennsylvania
Avenueresultedin a smallaltercation
in formsin orderto
establishandsustainrelationsof domination.5
whichtwo of the veteransdied. GeneralMacArthur,
the Army Buildingsarejustsuchsymbolicforms,employedto upholdthe
Chiefof Staff,calledin the military.Latein the afternoon,
Major valuesof governing
institutions.
Historically,
civicarchitecture
has
Pattonleda cavalry
brigadedownPennsylvania
Avenue,brandish- provided
notsimplymaterial
evidenceofvaluesbuta symbolicnaring sabers.Behindthemwasa machinegundetachment,
infantry rativethatpromotesa desiredimageof society.
troops,andsixtanks.Theyfiredteargason theveteransandbeat
Yet, traditionally
this imageis confinedto the showpiece
them.Thatevening,led by MacArthur,
the soldiersmarchedinto spacesof officialAmerica,
andit disclaims
theactualsocioeconomic
conditionsof the communityat largein favorof an idealizedrepJournalof Architectural
Education,pp.146-l58
resentation.
American
citiesaresegmented
demographically
asthe
(C)2000 ACSA, Inc.
This article examines the use of construction as a means of protest, particularly as it relates to the established symbolic imagery of traditionalcivic architecture and urbanism.The iconography of cities is divided. Whilethe
idealized image of official America symbolizes the aspirations of society, the
image of the ghetto represents the failure of society. This article studies two
projects which manipulatethese images. The projects were built not by architects but by activists for various causes who coopted architecture as a
tool for political demonstration. Their position outside of conventional architectural practice allowed them to challenge the habits of that practice. While
the constructions were intended to protest specific social issues, they may
also be viewed as general indictments of conventional urbanismand architectural representation.

February
2000 JAE53/3

1 46

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All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

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Company.)

claims
classconflict,in whichdemocracy's
resultof a fundamental
unequalfinancialdisbattlewithcapitalism's
of equalopportunity
tribution.Citiesrevealthisconflictvisuallythroughthe splitbetweenimagesof wealthand powerin civicspaceandimagesof
povertyandneglectin ghettosandslums.Theseimagesconstitute
bothby
thathasbeenexploiteddramatically
anurbaniconography
officialAmericaandby protestgroups,who usurppublicspacein
a polemicalmessage.Thisarticleexaminestwo
orderto broadcast
suchprojects,one in New Haven,Connecticut,andthe otherin
asa meansof protest.
D.C., whichusedconstruction
Washington,
Eachof theseprojectsbroughttogetherimagesof the extremesof
andundertheirdifferences
urbanconditionsin orderto dramatize
Theywere
scorea problemthatcontributesto thosedifferences.
architectsbut by activistswho coopted
builtnot by professional
poTheactivists'
asa toolforpoliticaldemonstration.
architecture
practiceallowedthem
architectural
sitionoutsideof conventional
to foregothe customsandhabitsof thatpractice.Whilethe conwereintendedto protestspecificsocialissues,theymay
structions
uralsobe viewedmoregenerallyas indictmentsof conventional
Theychallengethe symrepresentation.
banismandarchitectural
bolicimageryof officialspace.

**nB

_S

#to

w-

-m!g-\

2. Plan of New Haven. (Courtesy of New Haven Colony Historical

Society.)

asa placeof rebirth,a NewEdenfreedfrom

"ThevisionofAmerica
of the
thehistoricsinsof theOldWorld,stillcolorstheself-image
people."7
American
thedreamof utopiato theAmeriThe Puritanstransported
cancolonies,shapingtheircommunityafterthe biblicalimageof
dithe"cityupona hill."8Thisvisionhadbothmoralandmaterial
When
asa molderof character.
mensions,forthecitywasconceived
and
the communalroleof the churchdeclined,civicarchitecture
a unaits functionin secularterms,expressing
redefined
urbanism
nimityof valuesin an attemptto strengthenthe community.In
is exhibitedby a
utopiandesigns,the ideaof socialunitygenerally
planwitha dominantcenter.The
verysimple,oftensymmetrical
a unifiedcommunity,as
unityof theplanis thoughtto encourage
"thegoodman
properdesignis seentO promoteproperbehavior:
Thecityis a
is a reflectionof a decentandhealthyenvironment."9
Ideals
of values,an edificationin a doublesenseof the
demonstration
word,bothto buildandto lift up.
culture.WhilespecuaspectofAmerican
formis theplan
community
Idealismis a fundamental
Anearlyexampleof theidealized
lationsaboutthe idealsocietyhadbeenpopularin Europesince of NewHaven,Connecticut.
In theoriginalplanof 1641,a simple
as
antiquity,interestin the topic increasedafterthe discoveryof squareis subdivided
into nine,withthe centralsquarereserved
America.Evenbeforecolonization,Europeenvisionedthe New an opengreenspace(Figure2). Primarygeometry,equatedwith
accountsonlyheight- idealbeauty,is meantto expressperfection.
Theplanis a vastPlaandexplorers'
Worldas an earthlyparadise,
Columbuswrotethatthe naturalamenities tonicfigureinscribedin the land,intendedto synthesize
artificial
enedthisexpectation.
anythingthatwouldbe believedby orderandthenaturaltopography.
"surpass
he hadencountered
descripupVitruvius'
It conjures
virgincontinentappeared tion of man'sbodyperfectlytracinga squareandcircle,geometry
onewhohadnotseenit."6Theseemingly
is rotatedjustslightly
to betheperfectsettingfora perfectsociety,a utopia.It is no coin- andnatureoverlaid.The plan'sorientation
cidencethatThomasMore,who coinedthe wordin his Utopiv
off of the north/southaxisto adjustto the riverandthe harbor;
deference
(1516),set his storyin the New World.Settlerssawthe newland otherwise,it alignswiththe cardinalpointsin apparent
as the fulfillmentof a divinepromise.As one historianhasput it, to a greater,
thecentralgreenarethebuilt
divineorder.Encircling
1 47

Hosey

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of all the institutionsthatmakeup society.Along

representatives
The simplisticformof utopianschemessuggeststhe more
buildings,andto the generalprobleminAmerican
representation,
of simplistic
urbanism
thesouthernsideof thegreenaremercantile
Thenorthedgewasat firstexclusively andthe cityof New Havenillustrates
this.Thepureoutlineof its
eastis thecitygovernment.
changcolonialhouses.To thewest originalplaneventually
linedwithwhiteclapboard
clashedwiththelatercommunity's
residential,
As thecommunitybecame
withthe college'sintendedinte- ingdemographics
andsocialdynamics.
In accordance
is YaleUniversity.
differentecowereonce moreethnicallydiverse,it wasdividedinto radically
brickbuildings
its Georgian
grationwiththecommunity,
of racialghettosresulted.While
to thetownandstoodin widegreen nomicspheres,anda proliferation
similarin scaleandproportion
streets.
the 1G41 planhadbeenanhomageto perfectorderandsocialunity,
spacesthatopenedontothesurrounding
Inthe
andracialdifferences.l4
thoughini- NewHavenbecametornbymaterial
At NewHaven'scentralgreenarethreechurches,
of
tiallytherewasa singlemeetinghouse,itselfsquarein plan.lLike 19G0s,New Havenwasinfamousforcivilunrest,theaftermath
the whichis stillfelttoday.
manycolonialtowns,thegreenwastheplaceof congregation,
Formostof its history,Yalehasbeena sourceor symbolof
common,at oncethephysicalandsocialcenterof thecommunity.
bytheconareembodied
Divisionsin thecommunity
to
the
local
tensions.
it
does
than
organization
Thislayoutrelateslessto pragmatic
the
dilapidated
and
of communal trastbetweenthe pristineIvyLeaguecampus
desireforsymbolicorder.Theplanoffereda diagram
areas.Theevolutionof thecampusplan
of societyandthecity werebalanced conditionsof neighboring
components
unity;theindividual
of thefriction.Followingriotsduringthe 1850s,
axesmarkthedivisionsof itselfis a measure
aroundthecommonspace.Thecardinal
openplanbeganto turninward.Whathadbeenan
Theplacesto liveandtheplacesto theuniversity's
publicandprivateinstitutions.
becamea seriesof privatecloisdormitories
line,and airyyardwithbarnlike
acrossthegreenalongthenorth/south
workfaceoneanother
scaleof theorigiandthedomestic
of thegrounds
line.At the ters.Theopenness
bodiesdrawtheeast/west
andeducational
thegoverning
of stonefacing
rampart
gavewayto averitable
center.Theplanwasmeantto have nalcolonialbuildings
of thetwois thespiritual
crossing
organization
thetowngreen.AsYalebeganto emulatethemonastic
theuniverse.
societyreflecting
cosmicimplications,
a distinctly
contour,butits re- as wellas the Gothicstyleof OxfordandCambridge,
Sucha planis compellingasa schematic
extea fortresslike
developed
Theuniversity
faceemerged.
whichmayormaynothaveaccommo- medieval
character,
ductive,simplistic
the
andevendrymoatsseparating
gateways
thecomplexities rior,withironportcullis
cannotencompass
dateditsfoundingcommunity,
of modernurbansociety.DoloresHaydenwritesin heranalysisof buildingsfromthestreets.Despitetheoriginalcityplan'simageof
sacredplacereutopiantownsthatsuchplansmustevolvefromideologi- unity,Yalepresentsitselfas a refuge,an ostensibly
American
comcallyhomogeneouscommunities,whichhistoricallyhavebeen movedfromthecommonspacearoundit.Asthesurrounding
by the
theidealismonceexpressed
Uto- munitybecamemorefractured,
aswiththePuritans.
convictions,
foundedon sharedreligious
walls.
by "anidealisticarchi- cityat largebecameconfinedwithintheuniversity's
piandesignscannotbe imposedexternally
tect or plannersitting at a drawingboard.''llYet, the formal
andimplicitoptimismof utopianschemeshasbeeninabstraction
Inhishistoryof idealismin urban Protest
urbanism.
fluentialonAmerican
ThomasReinerreportsthatthestudyof utopianschemes
planning,
its sense
However,theexecution In thelate 1980s,a seriesof protestsat Yaleunderscored
training.
is a basicpartof anycityplanner's
Duringthattime,theuniversity,
of suchschemesis usuallyno morethana roughsketchthatis ap- of removalfromthecommunity.
gesturethanasa proposal like manyotherinstitutions,hadextensivefinancialinvestments
pealingperhapsmoreasa metaphorical
still
theseplansis typically (nearly$400 million)in SouthAfrica,whenthatgovernment
behind
philosophy
live.
The
how
to
for
The
diracial
segregation.
legally
enforced
or
apartheid,
practiced
cerbased
on
is
community
the
ideal
while
writes,
As
Reiner
vague.
on
particularly
activists,
American
by
waged
campaigns
vestment
assumptions
are
these
rarely
about"thegoodlife,"
tainassumptions
A
media.
the
from
much
attention
attracted
campuses,
university
ideal
schemes
of
these
the simplicity
explicitlystated.Inevitably,
of
construction
was
the
protest
of
student
form
popular
the
contemto
up
as
a
contrast
collideswithreality:"Utopiais set
of livingconditionscommon
asa symbolicreminder
It shantytowns
imperfections.''l2
worldwithitscharacteristic
porary,inadequate
a groupat Yalebuilta
198G,
In
April,
Africa.
in
South
to
blacks
More
intended
this.
Thomas
reflects
word
itself
and
the
fiction,
is a
in
frontof Woodbridge
plaza,
Beinecke
on
of
shanties
collection
and
place,"
or
"good
eu-topiv,
of
thetermasa pun,a combination
from
building(Figure3).Assembled
Hall,themainadministration
existsnowhere.
Perfection
or "noplace.''l3
ou-topiv,
February
2000 JAE53/3

1 48

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qx=>!

7_

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#S

{.9;rs

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...................
.

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e

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t_

iconography
symbolized
a contrastof ideology.The shanties'aestheticdissonance
withtheirsiteexpressed
themoralironythatthe
protestors
sawln tne unlverslty
s lnvestments.
Academia
portrays
itS cultural
positionasthesanctuary
of enlightenment.
Former
Yalepresident
BennoSchmidt
hascited"reason
andorder"as "theessenceof a university
or anycivilizedcommu3. Anti-apartheidshanties. (Photograph courtesy of Marc
Harvey-Watt.)Yale University.
nity.''l8
RobertStern,thecurrent
deanof theYaleschoolof architecture,haswrittenofAmerican
collegecampuses
as"ideal,independent
villages,""amongthe greatestdreamplacesof our civilization.''l9
discarded
sheetsof plywoodandfabric,the shedsweresaidto be Hence,the university
is perceived
asa kindof intellectual
utopia,a
patternedlooselyaftera SouthAfricansquattervillagecalled stronghold
of progressive
ideasandfreeexpression.
In actuality,
it iS
''Crossroads.''ls
Thestudentsintendedtheconstruction
asanactof an ideologicalconstructlikeanyotherinstitutionandas suchis
civildisobedience
andtherefore
didnotobtaintherequired
permit drivenbyprejudices.
Communications
theorist
NeilPostman
seesthe
fromtheuniversity.
Consequently,
theadministration
immediately academyas inherently
biasedin thattheveryideaof a curriculum
orderedtheshantiesto be dismantled
on certainkindsof information
andthreatened
overothers.A college
thestudents placespriority
wlth suspenslon.
catalogue
definesandcategorizes
knowledge
andin so doingdevalSeveraldayslater,whenthe shantieswerescheduledto be uesorinvalidates
somefieldsof studysimplybyexcluding
them.He
removed,studentsinsteadattemptedto enlargethemandwere writesthata schoolis therefore
a mechanism
forcontrol:it regulates
stoppedby universitypolicewhilein the processof transporting information
bysituating
itselfasthearbiter
of legitimate
knowledge.20
newmaterials
to thesite.A scuffleensued,someseventy-five
It is this kindof culturalelitismthatthe Yaleshantiesatpeople
werearrested,and the shantiesweretorndown.Eventually,the tacked.Theythreatened
the authorityof the university
by underuniversity
succumbed
tO thepressure
of thebadpressit wasreceiv- scoringitS questionableactivities.Yaleis operatedby a private
ing andapprovedthe reconstruction
of the shanties.Two years corporation
which,throughsuchventuresasSouthAfricaninvestlater,an alumnusvisitinga reunionof the classof 1958set fireto ments,maychooseprofitoverethics,financialoversocialconsethereconstructed
shanties.He wasapprehended
by a 1968gradu- quences. Of the university'sresponse to the protest, U.S.
ateandturnedoverto campusauthorities.
Theperceived
disagree- Congressman
andYalegraduateBruceMorrisontold the media,
mentbetweenthe valuesassociated
with thoseparticular
decades "Weallmustredoubleoureffortsto redeemYale'ssoulfromthose
broughtfurthermediacoverage,andthe shantytown
waslaterre- who seem to care only for its money and the neatnessof its
builtwiththeuniversity's
permission.
grounds."2'
The shantiesattackedthe suggestedhypocrisyof the
Theanti-apartheid
construction
reproduced
in miniature
the university,
whichthroughitsrhetoriccelebrated
"civilized
commuenvironmental
consequences
of SouthAfrica'sdiscrimination.
The nity"andthroughits financialinvestments
supported
racism.
wordapartheid
itselfis a spatialreference,
a combination
The anti-apartheid
of apartconstructions
revealeda sideof the uni("separate")
and-heid("hood,"conditionor state).Understood
in versityunseenin itS architectural
representations.
Beineckeplazais
contrastto neighborhood
(roughly"neardwelling"),
apartheid
is the a typicalreflectionof the university's
virtuousimage.It resonates
conditionof dwellingapart.The Yaleshantytownimitatedthis withhistoricalallusionsto progressive
ideals.The plaza'sclassical
spaceof segregation
bothpolitically
andaesthetically,
throughguer- colonnadesuggeststheplaceasa kindof agoraor forum,a sitefor
rillaconstruction
andthrougha visualclashwiththe surrounding opencommunalexchange.Yet,this referenceconflictswith the
campus.The roughhovelsfashionedfromgarbage
activities.
A keyobjectionof theanti-apartheid
couldnot have university's
proteststoodoutmoreclearlyagainsttheirornatebackground.
Disapprov- orswasthe lackof a "forum"
in the university's
decision-making
ingalumnicalledtheconstructions
"aneyesore"
and"anarchitec- processin thatit excludedthemajorityof opinionin thecommuturaloutrageon a beautifulcampus."'6
One graduatesaid,"The nity,includingstudents,faculty,staff,andlocalresidents.
Matthew
wholethingwasan aestheticdisgraceto one of the mostfabulous Countryman,
a studentorganizer
of the shantyconstruction,
excombinations
of buildingsanywhere
in theworld."Thearsonthat pressesthisconflictin spatialterms,referring
to the"splitbetween
ashallowedgroundandas a siteforideodestroyedthemwascomparedto the removalof a cancer.'7
This a viewof the university
overthemeaningof institutional
controversy
emphasized
theshantytown's
socialresponmeaning.Thecontrast
of logicalcontestation
*

1 49

Hosey

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it alsohasan idealized,Edenicquality,conjuringup whatJames

theidyllicregionof
dreamof Arcadia,"
calls'Cthe
HowardKunstler
popular,thedream
became
style
neoclassical
the
As
Greece.
ancient
and
taverns
waterworks,
schools,
courthouses,
in banks,
materialized
new
that
the
explicitlybelieved
'Cas
thoughAmericans
farmhouses,
Amerinationwouldbecomethisfabledlandof peaceandplenty."'7
wasits priandWashington
canidealismhadfounditS language,
UrbanMyths
maryvoice.
to thepast
myth,thecity'srelationship
themythsof off1cial
Aswitha foundation
protestchallenges
As theYalecaseillustrates,
of values,it is in a sense suggests a cultural inheritance,a continuation of western
affirmation
culture.If thecityis a narrative
domeof the Capitol,the
thepoliticalmyth civilization's
advance.The ever-visible
a typeof politicalmyth.HenryTudordescribes
Monument,thevillalikeWhiteHouse,
asa storytoldto promoteanideology.A mythof anykindis aview obeliskof theWashington
andLincolnenshrinetheintoJefferson
of theworld,a wayof makingsenseof thecurrentstateof things, andthetemplememorials
of thepast.Politicalmythsdra- stitutionsand historicalfiguresof Americansociety in what
usuallythroughan interpretation
completely'posinamelyto strengthen ManfredoTafuricalls"atimeless,indisputable,
eventsforpoliticalpurposes,
matizehistorical
the city corresponds
the tive'Olympus.")8
The designof Washington
of thestatusquo.AsTudorwrites,they"establish
theauthority
a perfectlyto the imageof Washingtonthe man as portrayedin
Thisis not necessarily
claimof a certaingroupto hegemony."23
whichtransforms
portrait,
famoussculptural
party.Suchmyths HoratioGreenough's
orconsciousdeceptionbya particular
calculated
toga-clad
reliesnoton fact thefatherof thecountryintoa Romangod,a Herculean,
arebasedon realbeliefs,thoughtheireffectiveness
situated
seatedon a throne.Lincoln,of course,is similarly
theirstrength,aswellastheirdif- physique
buton faith,andthisis precisely
This
a colossaleff1gylikeAthenain theParthenon.
ficulty.Becausea mythdoesnot appealto logic,it cannotbe dis- in hismemorial,
valuesandhistoryasan
American
collectionof civicidolspresents
so it evadescriticism.24
provedlikea rationalargument,
tableauof politicalidealism.
A prevalenttypeof politicalmythis the foundationmyth. epic,a monumental
mythof thefoundingfaTudorgivestheexampleof theAmerican
theearlypoliticalleadersof theIJnitedStates
thers)whichportrays
by thedesireto createa Absolutes
asmotivatedonlybyvirtuoushumanism,
equality.
ideaof universal
newnationbasedsolelyon thealtruistic
suggestsauthority
urbandesign,likeits architecture,
forces Washington's
socioeconomic
the
complex
depictionignores
Thissimplistic
of the
configuration
baroque
The
iconography.
historical
in orderto positiontheUnitedStatesas through
thatledto theRevolution
and
as
Paris
such
capitals
to
European
Thestoryis toldto inspirena- cityplaninvitescomparisons
of westernprogress.
theculmination
Tiber.
or
the
Seine
for
the
in
standing
Rivereven
Rome,thePotomac
tionalistprideandfaithin thedominantvaluesystem.
layoutwith
1791plancombinedanaxialbaroque
on interpreta- PierreL'Enfant's
capitalizes
Thecity aspoliticalmythsimilarly
the inf1nite
with
the
one
of
byWashing- a colonialgrid,mergingthe hierarchy
tool,andthisis exemplified
tivehistoryasa persuasive
usesthenaturaltopogof theother.Thearrangement
ton, D.C. Fromits inception,the capitalcity wasintendedas a extendibility
atthemostcombuildings
thechampionof raphyof thesiteto placekeygovernment
symbol.EvenforThomasJefferson,
monumental
economy,theperfect mandingpositions,suchastheCapitolon its hilltop.Thisstrategy
andagrarian-based
government
decentralized
are."'WideavThe in itselfmakesclearwhatthedominantinstitutions
capital.25
of thenewnation'sidealswasa grandiose
declaration
at thetermiare
that
they
so
conveysan imageof stabilityandor- enuesradiatebetweentheselandmarks
of Washington
iconography
4).
(Figure
city
of thepastand nusof everymajorvistaasthefocalpointsof the
civilizations
bothto powerful
derthroughreferences
when
1900,
designhadnotbeenfullyexecutedby
L'Enfant's
to classicutopianprinciples.Justas the socialmodelsareGreek
that
campaign
initiateda restructuring
andthe Romanrepublic,thephysicalmodelsforpub- theMcMillanCommission
democracy
Exposition
the 1791plan.The 1892World'sColumbian
expanded
lic spacearetheGreekagoraandtheRomanforum.
ideasintourbanform clas- in Chicago,dubbed"WhiteCity,'' hadinitiatedtheCityBeautiful
ofJeffersonian
In thetranslation
Whiletheuse movementandset an examplethatwasto be copiedin America's
imagein civicAmerica.
sicismbecametheprevailing
overthe nextfewdecades.Pompousclassicism
andpower,26 civicarchitecture
is meantto suggestauthority
imagery
of suchhistorical
The protestconstructionchallengedthe imageof the
sibility."2'
thecampusasa superIt rendered
ground."
as"hallowed
university
oneof
by
highlighting
privilege
and
of
wealth
ficialrepresentation
wealth.
that
create
tacticsthat
theunderlying

February2000 JAE53/3

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"nw
s

'S'S'-l

'AL
W1>S^-Sw

''A'H:

4. Plan of Washington, D.C. (Courtesy of George Washington

University.)

encesof itsarchitecture
andurbanism
arenotrecognized,
Washingtonsufficiently
conveysanimageof prominence
throughthesheer
sizeof its civicspaces,throughthedramaof theirdimensions.
In typicalbaroquefashion,thecity sacrifices
functionality
in
favor of monumentalspace. Lewis Mumfordwrote that in
L'Enfant's
planthe ratioof openspaceto usablebuildinglots is
absurdandthatthestreetsystemcouldbejustifiedonlybya populationsometen timeslargerthanthe planwouldactuallyallow.35
The inflatedscalerelatesagainto Versailles,
wheretheaxialvistas
aremeantto projectviewsbeyondtheimmediate
spaceandsuggest
endlesscontinuationClassicFrenchlandscape
designusedrigorous
Cartesiangeometryto reducethe landvirtuallyto pureline and
shape:theparterres convertthe groundto seeminglydepthless
planesthatappearto hoverabovethewaterof thebassins.
Vincent
Scullywritesthatthispracticerelieson the theoryofpoSrtraitSre}
whichconceivesthelandscape
asa portraitof theuniverse.Geometryis intendedto transform
the environment
intoan abstraction
that"releases
us fromthe normalscaleof the earthto something
vastandgrand,"
to theuniverse
itselfbutalsoto thepoliticalstate.36

and formalityin planningappearedan apt expressionof the

country's
growingwealthandperceived
stability,a neobaroque
celebrationof affluence.LikeVersailles,
whichwasscarcely
a century
old in L'Enfant's
nativelandwhenhe drewhis plan,the cityis a
theatrical
spectacle,intendedto displaythestrengthof thegovernment.30
Ironically,
in thecaseof historicParisandRome,thegovernmentswereauthoritarian:
the FrenchEmpireandthe Roman
CatholicChurck.
The historianMel ScottdescribesWashingtonas the "supremeparadoxamongcities"becauseof the conflictbetweenits
politicalsystemanditsaestheticagenda,whichexpressed
American
idealsthroughthe "legacies
of autocrats
andnobles,fromallthese
seemingly
timelesssurvivals
of departed
ordecayedsocieties.''3l
The
apparent
ironystemsfromtwosimultaneous
strainsinAmerican
ar- The Garden
chitectureandurbanism-idealismandauthoritarianism-which
represent
theambivalence
of a newculturecaughtbetweenlooking Thehistorical
traditions
thatinformWashington's
overallplanreaheadandlookingbackward.32
Thecapitalof theAmerican
democ- appearin the designof theNationalMall,whichin itselfactsasa
racysimulates
thecapitalsof European
absolutism
in orderto evoke microcosm
of thecultureandasa politicalallegory.
Charles
McKim
thecultural
strength
andpoliticalpowerassociated
withthosemod- restoredL'Enfant's
visionof a greatalleeo extendingeastward
from
els.Likemythandlikepropaganda,
it is a narrative
of instruction, theCapitolto thePotomac,buthe shiftedtheaxisa littlein order
and it appealsto a presumedcommonalityof values.Tafurire- to centeron theWashington
Monument.At theendof thatspace
countsthatthe impulsebehindthe foundationof the American nowstandstheLincolnMemorial,
whichvisuallyconnectsviathe
capital"presupposed
greatoptimismandwasthoroughly
opposed MemorialBridgeto ArlingtonNationalCemeteryacrosstheriver.
to anypolemicaldoubt.'33Throughregalexhibition,the city as The buildingsalongthe perimeter
of the Mallaremonumentsto
politicalmythpersuades
throughemotion,not throughreason.
government
(theCapitol,theWhiteHouse,andso on),theartsand
Washington's
primary
roleasa symbolicshowpiecemadeits sciences(themuseums
andlibraries),
andgreatleadersandmomenfunctionasa workingcitypurelyincidental.
Itsgrandiose
planning tous events(the memorials).The green,on whichthey center,
schemeswererelatively
easyto implement
in thattheydidnothave stretchesout to givethe buildingstheirscale,theirmeasure;
this
to accommodate
industryandinfrastructure,
unlikeHaussmann's lawnis to theMallwhattheland,theexpansive
continent,is to the
Paris.Becauseof its lackof realcommerce,
Washington
hasbeen nation.It is likea Frenchparterre,
withthereflecting
poolforming
characterized
as"theleasteconomically
necessary
cityin America."34a bassin
at thefootof theLincolnMemorial.
Thenationalcapitalwasatfirstlocatedin NewYork,thenin PhilaTheMallsignifiesthe congruence
of natureandculture,the
delphia,boththrivingfinancial
centers,butinWashington,
govern- individual
andthe community,
an idealisticvisionthatAmericais
ment becamethe centralinstitution,the community'sprimary purported
to fulfill,as thephilosopher
CharlesGriswolddescribes:
reasonforbeing.The formof the citycouldbe devotedprimarily "OntheMall. . . matteris putto rhetorical
use.It is madeto eduto itsrepresentational
role.Theoverblown
scaleof itspublicplaces cateandedifythecitizensof thepresentaswellasformthoseof the
andavenuesis spatialfanfare.In theeventthatthehistorical
refer- futureby persuading
themto liveout thevirtuesof the past.It is
1S 1

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articulated
by meamemoryin stone,earth,andwater,a patrimony
In 1960,nearlyhalfof allblackfamilieslivedbelowthefedsymbols....
[T1he erallydefinedpovertyline,andtheemployment
symmetrically
arranged
and
the
interplay
of
sured
expanses
rateforblackswas
andinwhatit omitstoportray, halfthatof whites.41
Mallsaysa greatdeal,inwhatit portrays
At thattime,however,thenationaleconomy
wishto thinkof themselves....[T1heMallis a wasexceptionally
abouthowAmericans
prosperous.Cut off fromthatprosperity,the
aspirations
toward ghettos were marginalizedspace, referredto as the "Other
ourcommunal
mandala
expressing
sortof political
In otherwords,theMallis a formof politicalmyth, America."
wholeness."37
Setapartfromsocietystheghettosbecamelikea placeof
currentauthority.Placebe- exile,a foreignland.MartinLutherKinghadspokenof themillions
pasteventsto strengthen
glamorizing
in thetradition of Americans
comesanapologyfortheorderof things,a portrait
living"ona lonelyislandof povertyin themidstof a
is meantto vastoceanof prosperity."42
recently
of theFrenchgarden.Likepoliticalmyth,thenarrative
ThecriticCamiloJoseVergara
of theselfforthecommongood. wroteof theeffectsof ghettos:"Ghettos,
andthesacrifice
inspirenationalism
asintrinsicto theidentity
scaleof theMall,ratherthanrein- of the UnitedStatesas New Englandvillages,vastnationalparks,
Yet,in reality,theoverwhelming
andsociety,is simply andleafysuburbs,nevertheless
remainuniquein theirsocialand
forcinga connectionbetweenthe individual
monumentsandpublic physicalisolationsfromthe nation'smainstream.
Discardedand
alienating.Tafuriwritesof Washington's
scaletheseworkssimplydo notattempt dangerous
becomingfaspaces,"Intheirenormous
places,theyarerarelyvisitedbyoutsiders,
onlythroughtelevisionandmovies.
Theonlythingof interesthereis thepub- miliarto thelargerpopulation
to relateto theindividual.
Charles
Dickensfoundthecapitalto Ghettosarepervaded
andruin;theyopenlydislic,social,worlddimension."38
by abandonment
thatare
andfacilities
andaboundin institutions
thatneed playcrudedefenses
emptyspace,a city of"publicbuildings
bea psychologically
Theconditionof thesecivicplaces rejectedby'normal'neighborhoods."43
Whileghettosare"intrinsic
onlya publicto be complete."39
anyneedforactualinhabita- to theidentity"of America,theirimagecouldnot be furtherfrom
outweighs
suggests
thatthesymbolism
andurbanism.
of civicarchitecture
symboliclanguage
wereirrelevant
to society'sdreams. theidealized
population
tion,asif society's
spaceas theirpopulaTheirformis as removedfrominstitutional
tionsarefromthedominantsociety.
the centralinitiathisdisparity,
As a meansof highlighting
Protest
of a large
wastheconstruction
tiveof thePoorPeople'sCampaign
wasbuiltdirectlyon
in generalwasnot shantytown
Theencampment
of theMallandof Washington
in Washington.
Thesymbolism
poolbetween
the intentionof a singleparty;it evolvedovertimeandtherefore theMall,on thelonglawnjustsouthof thereflecting
"ResurrecWashington
Monument.
Memorial
and
the
the
Lincoln
society.
As
the
represents
theongoingwillandvaluesof dominant
dozens
of
A-frame
civicplaceandthespatialcenterof tion City,"as it wascalled,consistedof many
nation'scapital,its preeminent
multi-ethnic
popupoliticalmyth,thecityhasbeenthesiteof innumer- andlean-toshackswhichforsixweekshouseda
theAmerican
thisan alconsidered
built lationof hundreds(Figure5). The residents
One projectin particular,
ableprotestsanddemonstrations.
clearchallenge ternativecommunity,a makeshiftcity, with a meetinghalland
on theMallin 1968,wasanespecially
temporarily
andtheaislesin
In thespringof thatyear,the otherfacilities,andtheygavethe shedsaddresses
urbaniconography.
to Washington's
frommid-Mayuntillate
povertyand betweenstreetnames.Theybivouacked
to underscore
wasorganized
PoorPeople'sCampaign
outsidegovernment
June,conductingralliesanddemonstrations
tO
of fundingfromGreatSocietyprograms
denouncethediversion
forlocal
Attentionfromthemediabecameembarrassing
that buildings.
theVietnamWar.MartinLutherKing,whowasassassinated
allowedthecampto
April,hadintendedto shiftthe focusof activismfromcivilrights andfederalofficials,whohadonlyreluctantly
ofwealthandpower openandwho werenow underpublicpressureto closeit down.
thedistribution
to economicissues,specifically
bytheprosto havebeen"appalled
Johnsonwasreported
the livingconditionsof minoritiesin President
in America.At midcentury,
en massein his
confined pectof the invisiblepoorsuddenlymaterializing
urbanareaswerebleak.Povertyandracialdiscrimination
the majorityof blacksto slumareas.Through1950, the Federal belovedWashington.The thoughtof an encampmentof the
out withinthe shadowof theWashsprawled
"pre- nation'sunderclass
advisedoutrightthatneighborhoods
HousingAdministration
on CapiCongressmen
servethesamesocialandracialclassesin orderto assurestability."40ingtonMonument. . . deeplyhurthim."44
By
theirgazefromtheshanties."45
jobsin the tol Hillweresaidto be"averting
of agriculture
eliminated
mechanization
Astheincreased
wasreadyto reclaimthe Mall.
South,manyblacksmigratedto Northerncitiesin the 1960s,and the end of June,the government
Closeto twothousandpoliceofficersin riotgear,armedwithshottheghettosbecamegrosslyovercrowded.
February2000 JAE 53/3

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City.(Photograph
courtesyof JillFreedman.)
5. Resurrection

In the contextof the

yachtscruisedcloseto look at the show."53
Mall,thesymboliccenterof Americanidealism,the imageof destitutionanddecaythattheshantiespresentis utterlyforeign.What
evena mileawayin Washington
is a commonconditionelsewhere,
itself,becomesa noveltyhere.
Formostonlookers,tourists,thoseconditionswerein fact
Citywasbuilt,a
In 1968,the sameyearResurrection
unfamiliar.
that
concluded
Kerner
Commission
appointed
studybythefederally
of
racerelationsandslumconditionswerecausinga "polarization
andpovertyhavecreated
"Segregation
community":
theAmerican
totallyunknownto
environment
in the racialghettoa destructive
haveneverfullyunWhatwhiteAmericans
mostwhiteAmericans.
in theghetto.
derstood. . . is thatwhitesocietyis deeplyimplicated
Whiteinstitutionscreatedit, whiteinstitutions,maintainit, and
quotedsummafrequently
whitesocietycondonesit." Thereport's
oneblack,one
tionwas,"Ournationis movingtowardtwosocieties,
City,the urban
In Resurrection
white separateandunequal.''54
of thesetwo societiescametogether.Iconographimanifestations
continuesthelegacyof the 1893ChicagoExpocally,Washington
of the
"WhiteCity."It is the embodiment
sitionas a permanent
blamedfortheghetto.If
commission
whichtheKerner
institutions
theghettois aninvisCityBeautiful,
is theexemplary
Washington
on the
society.Theshantytown
iblecity,neglectedby mainstream
Citywaslikean
Mallmadetheinvisiblebrieflyvisible.Resurrection
in the
imageof povertythatmaterialized
an ephemeral
apparition,
of urbanAmerica
momeniconicdisplayspace.Thefailures
capital's
of nationalpride.
tarilycoexistedin onespacewiththemonuments

thecampandemptiedit out,arrestgunsandteargas,surrounded
in theprocess.
ingsome100protestors
of thesquaa graphicillustration
Citypresented
Resurrection
American
cities.MartinLutherKing,Jr.hadsaid
lorthatpervaded
"mockedthe notionthatracialjusthattheghettosin themselves
The sociologistHerbertGanshasdefineda
tice wasa reality."46
slumasan area"whichbecauseof the natureof its socialenvironThevery
andpathologies."47
mentcanbeprovedto causeproblems
spaceridiculesthe mythicimageof stapossibilityof pathological
bility and unitywhichtraditionalcivic spacesuch as the Mall
to feellike
wrotethatslumscauseresidents
projects.LeeRainwater
"Theirphysicalworldis tellingthemtheyarein"moraloutcasts":
perhapsasdo theirhumaninteracferiorandbadjustaseffectively
tions."48
Thiseffectis the oppositeof the intendedroleof public
areas
to poverty-torn
spaceto providea moralexample.Relegation
fromthe community,as if the aspiracreatesa senseof separation
tionsdepictedin officialspacearenot to be shared.
from
relocated
slumconditions
Citytemporarily
Resurrection
to its centerstage,thenationalMall.It
thewingsof urbanAmerica
it transtransformed
theMallintoa ghettoitself,or,moreaccurately,
portedtheghettoto theMall.In TheDeathandLifeof GreatAmerithe The Structure of Protest
theconceptof "unslumming,"
can Cities,JaneJacobsdiscusses
City
Resurrection
deteriorated
neighborhoods.49
process
of revitalizing
of theMall.Thepov- Thefirstaimof protestis to drawattention,whichit doesthrough
thatprocessasa "slumming"
in effectreversed
City,Yale,
of Resurrection
action.The shantytowns
anexhibition provocative
ertythatdefinedurbanspaceacrossthecountrybecame
chieflybecauseof theirdisin thisspace.The campexposedpartsof societynot widelydocu- andthe BonusMarchareprovocative
thanthey'dwantedto cordantrelationto theircontext:physicaloppositionsignalspolitithetourists
moreofAmerica
mented,"showing
Cityat- calopposition.Theycommandattentionthroughtotalcontrastto
AsResurrection
see,"in thewordsof oneof theoccupants.50
of scale,form,
throughdisparities
environment,
it becamea touristdestination.People the surrounding
tractedcuriousspectators,
value,
andconstrucmonetary
"camefromalloverjustto lookatus,. . . oglingwhattheywouldn't function,material,craftsmanship,
theyexploittheicoon theMall.''5l tionmethodsandprocesses.
Mostsignificantly,
weresaidto be "slumming
seeathome."Sightseers
of
urbanneglectwith
defined
as
"to
an
image
is
of citiesbysuperimposing
nography
Inthissecondsenseof theword,"slumming"
pictures
of povertyand
Overlaying
Thisidea an imageof urbancelebration.
fromcuriosityor amusement."52
visita slum,especially
divisions
of urban
play
up
class-defined
as display:viewersbecomevoy- wealth,theseinstallations
characterizes
protestconstruction
city.
of
the
The space,theeconomicsegmentation
eurs,"ogling"the shantiesas a kindof luridentertainment.
montages
to a seriesof photographic
Thiseffectis analogous
as it
a similarrole.Reportedly,
BonusArmycamphadperformed
the
late
1960s,
in which
Martha
Rosler
in
by
the
artist
produced
in
sat on the bankof the Potomac,"well-to-doWashingtonians
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ticcentralizes
a marginal
place,narrowing
thepsychological
distance
byapparently
eliminating
thephysicalorvisibledistance.
In thissense,demonstration
sitesbecomewhatMichelFoucaultcalled"heterotopias."
Traditional
civicspaces,represented
in
thesecasesbytheinstitutions
of government
andtheuniversity,
are
utopian,asFoucault
described:
"Theypresentsocietyitselfin a perfectedform,orelsesocietyturnedupsidedown,butin anycasethese
utopiasarefundamentally
unrealspaces."
Protestconstructions
converttneseplaceslnto counter-sltesor neterotoplas,wnlcnare
"capable
of juxtaposing
in a singlerealplaceseveralspaces,several
sitesthatarein themselves
incompatible."59
Protestfoilssociety's
perfectimageof itselfbyexposingit to its actual,imperfect
conditions.Withthe shanties,Foucault's
"counter-site"
is not simplya
figurative
conditionbuta physicalconstruct.In them,politicaldivisionsbecometangible,
andmaterial
opposites
vieforasinglespace.
.

-w

(s

,,

(s

..

iFei..z

6. MarthaRosler's patio view from gBringingthe War Home:

House Beautiful."(Courtesy of Jay Gorney Modern Art, New
York.)

Paradigms

Theprotestconstructions
discussedherepresenta particular
chalHouseBeautifulillustrations
of moderndomesticity
arecombined lengeto architectural
authorityin thattheyturnarchitectural
lan-

withscenesof theVietnamWar.The photostakethe phrase"liv- guageagainstitself.If theurbanenvironment

is thematerialization
ingroomwar"literally:
"PatioView"(Figure6) showslawnchairs of officialvalue,thento buildprotest
is to opposethatrepresentaat a picturewindowwithdraperies
forminga kindof proscenium tion on its own terms,namelythroughthe mediumof construclookingontoa war-torn
landscape,
asif thebackyard
werea battle- tion. Yet,whileadoptingthe formsof architecture,
the shanties
ground.The coexistence
of the twoseeminglyirreconcilable
envi- defyitsconventional
functions.Theyrejectitstraditional
rolesand
ronmentscreatesaneerieimbalance,
asBrianWalliswrites:"These criteria
forjudgment,forthecharacteristic
descriptions
of architecfiguresriseup likeghostsin architectural
settingsrichin the trap- turedo not accurately
applyto protestconstructions.
Underthe
pingsof consumer
society."55
Likethephotographs,
theprotestcon- guiseof building,protestquestionsthedefinitionsof architecture
structionsarespatialmontage,a combination
of two incongruous by frustrating
theorthodoxstandards
of criticalevaluation.
Comscenes.Architecturally,
whatoccursis a kindof typological
dislo- paringthe protestconstructions
to certainclassic,evencanonical,
cation,andthephysicalrepresentative
of anothervvise
absentsocial ideasfromarchitectural
theoryillustrates
thisresistance.
Thethree
conditionappears:
theghettosignifiespoverty,theshantytown
rac- paradigms
belowareattemptsto classifyor definearchitecture
acism.56Transplanted
fromtheirnormalcontext,theseimagesbe- cordingto aesthetics,symbolicprogram,andclarityof construccomepurelysymbolic.The city'scelebration
of material
wealthis tlon, respectlve. hy.
foiledby unavoidable
reminders
of society'snegligence.57
Ideologically,
the officialrepresentations
of publicspaceare
similarto Rosler'sconceptionof documentary
photography,
as re- Cathedrals and Sheds
countedbyWallis,whostatesthatit is "aclass-based
genre,operating from a position of social and moralprivilegeand always Architecture
is customarily
definedbyanaesthetic
standard.
Nichoinscribing
intoits practices
certainsharedassumptions
aboutaudi- lasPevsner
beginshisOutlineofEuropean
Architecture
withthestateence,objectivity,
otherness
andtheconstruction
of meaning."58
Civic ment,"Abicycleshedis a building;LincolnCathedral
is a pieceof
spacenormally
is anideological
shelterwhichconfirms
theseassump- architecture.
Nearlyeverything
thatenclosesspaceon a scalesuffitionsaboutsocialprivilege.
Withprotest,the tragicmanifestationscientfora humanbeingto movein is a building;
thetermarchitecof socialandpoliticalpractices
invadethisprotected
space.Thistac- tureappliesonly to buildingsdesignedwith a view to aesthetic
.

February
2000 JAE53/3

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appeal."60
Thedistinction
betweenbuildings
andarchitecture
creates sense;its meaningderivesfromcontextratherthanform.TheYale
a problemof categorization.
of Crossroads,
the SouthAfriByPevsner's
definition,
theshantiesare shantiesmaymimicthe appearance
afterwhichtheywerepatterned,
clearlynotarchitecture.
buttheirintentis
Whiletheyincidentally
mayormaynotof- canshantytown
fer"aesthetic
appeal,"
theyarenot"designed"
in theirtragic
withthispurpose,
but verydifferent.The originalshanties,whiledramatic
thisis partof theireffectiveness.
areusedfirstasshelter,notasa symbolicstatement.
Theaimof protestconstructions
The
is conditions,
not aesthetics
butmeaning,andhencetheychallenge
architecture'ssignificance
of theshantyasa buildingtypedependson itscircumtraditional
emphasison form.Formally,
the shantiesareno more stance.Inserted
in theenvironment
of theuniversity,
it conjures
up
thanPevsner's
bicycleshed,butsymbolically
theyarememorable. itsoriginalsettingin a unexpected
place.Venturiandhiscoauthors
Theycooptarchitectural
formin orderto achievesomethingquite state,"Weshallemphasize
image imageoverprocessorform in
nonarchitectural,
namelya senseof politicalimmediacy.
asserting
thatarchitecture
dependsin itsperception
andcreationon
Theeconomic,bureaucratic,
andsociopolitical
practices
that pastexperience
andemotionalassociation."63
Boththeprotestconallowconventional,
permanent
buildings
to comeintobeing such structions
andtheirofficialsurroundings
manipulate
theemotional
aslandacquisition,
programmatic
use,codecompliance,
andcom- associations
of architecture
in orderto persuade
viewers.Through
munalreview virtually
eliminate
thelikelihoodof broadcasting
an viewers'pastexperience
withtheiconography
of buildings,theimovertpoliticalmessagethatcountersofficialideology.Temporary ageof theshantyconnotespovertyanddeprivation,
justastheimandespecially
unauthorized
installations
maycircumvent
thesein- agesof historicized
monuments
suggestprosperity
andpower.
stitutional
processes
aswellasthecomplexity
of functionsthatconventionalbuildingsserve.Further,by reducingarchitecture
to
rudimentary
construction
yetstillinvestingit withsocialrelevance, Primitive Huts
theshantieseffectanunusually
conciselanguage.
Whilelanguage
in
architecture
oftenconsistsof complex,codifiedrepresentations,
the Theimageof theshantyasanelementary
shelterrecallsthehistorishacksbreakdownthisgrammar
in orderto asserta clearmessage. caltheoryof the primitivehut,whichspeculates
on the natureof
In the debateoverthe Yaleshanties,the constructions
oftenwere the firsthumanconstruction.
ForLaugier,theeighteenth-century
characterized
as"freespeech"(andtherebylegallyprotected).6'
The Frenchtheorist,thesimpleshedbuiltof fourpostsanda gablerepideaof construction
as"speech"
suggestsa direct,unmediated
com- resentedall thatwasessentialin architecture,
everything
elsehavmunication buildingasdeclaration.
ingdeveloped
fromthesecomponents:
"Thelittlehut. . . is thetype
on whichallthe magnificences
of architecture
areelaborated.
It is
by approximating
to its simplicityof executionthatfundamental
Ducks and Sheds
defectsareavoidedandtrueperfectionattained."64
Asthispassage
shows,Laugier
considered
theprimitive
hutnotonlyasanarchet,vpe
In theirfamousstudyof urbaniconography,
Learningfi;om
Las Ve- butalsoasa model,thestandard
against
whichallbuildings
shouldbe
gas,Robert
Venturi,DeniseScottBrown,andStevenIzenourdivide gauged.65
Thecanonof theprimitive
hutbecamea rationale
forforbuildingsintotwotypesof symbolicimagery:
theso-called"duck" malsimplicit,v,
structural
logic,andeconomyof means.As thearguandthe"decorated
shed."In a "duck,"
namedfora roadside
drive- mentgoes,trabeated
structures
areseento be morerational:the
in shapedlikea duck,space,structure,
andprogram
conformto an columnprovides
minimal
support
formaximum
load.
overallsymbolicshape,a "building-becoming-sculpture."
In a
Theprimitivehutbecametheparadigm
forrationality
in ar"decorated
shed,"spaceandstructure
servetheprogram,
andorna- chitecture,
particularly
as an apologyforneoclassicism,
the Greek
mentis appliedseparately.
Thedistinction
betweenthetwois in the templebeingseenas thedirectdescendant
of theprimitivehut.A
relationship
betweenformandsymbol."Theduckis the special buildingliketheLincolnMemorial
wasintendedto continuethis
buildingthatis a symbol;the decoratedshedis the conventional conceptual
lineageastheincarnation
of reasonandenlightenment.
shelterthatappliessymbols."62
Theprotestshancyeludestheseclas- Yet,its refinedopulencelookeddecadentnextto the propped-up
sifications,
or ratherit combinesthem:it is a conventional
shelter shacksof Resurrection
City.The protestshanties,as actualhuts,
thatisa symbol.Itis "decorated
shed"withoutthedecoration,
asym- confronttheprimitive
hutwithitsliteralimage.Therealhutsmake
bolicshed,meaningful
justbyvirtueof its beinga shed.
themetaphoric
hutappearanabsurdmodelformonumental
civic
Theshackasa formis not necessarily
symbolicin a political buildings,and the paradigmseemsan affectation.Hence, the
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in the cannibalism,"
fromolder
originsis appropriated
of architecture's
the ancienthabitof removingmaterials
mythicrepresentation
perpetrated
was
this
>
lmage.
Usually
s
lnst1tuttona
new
construction.
use
in
buildingsfor
crltlclsmorarcn1tecture
divided.Laugier's byonecivilization
hutaresomewhat
on theprimitive
on anextinctone,asin theuseof ancientRoman
Theories
Anfromthe
of
meaning.
but
useof limestone
notonlyof form
ortheArabst
cathedrals,
a reductiveness
bricksin medieval
viewespouses
the
context,
historical
In
this
in theircitadelin Cairo.67
sawthehut asinnocentcon- pyramids
thonyVidlerpointsout thatLaugier
obcultural
implies
of architectural scavenging
forprotestconstructions
of material
struction,untaintedby the arcanepermutations
wereseento beineffecsym- solescence,
to thetraditional
presentincarnation
allreference
asif society's
hadeliminated
styles:"Laugier
of
builtfromdebrissuggeststhe reformation
andsecular. tual.Demonstration
religious
of architecture,
meanings
bolicandallegorical
thever- societyfromits ruins.Thecity7swasteis recycledin itscritique.
overtones,
of thecircleheldno cosmological
Thegeometry
Forthe
hutis ambiguous.
theprimitive
Asa socialmetaphor,
ticalityof thecolumnno echoof a standingstoneerectedforprimishelterof the
, philosopherRousseau,the hut wasthe prehistoric
tlveworsllp. Hor_augler,arclltecturewasnonrepresentatlona
it housedtheoriginsof societyasthefirstloThe hut, then,wassymbolic family,andtherefore
"nota languagebut a construct."66
theprimitivehutimpro- cusof humaninteraction.
In thisargument,
developedmetaphorical
tabularasa,predatingthe culturally
primitive pliesthe mostfundamental
socialbond.68Seenin thislight,the
The protestshanty,asa latter-day
gramsof architecture.
hut,is anapttoolto questionthepoliticalagendaof civicspace.Its protestshantiesreturnthe scaleof the individualto monumental
commuthearchetypal
of officialarchitecture. civicspacein theimageof theproto-house,
theesotericlanguages
candorundercuts
a most
huts,theyillustrate
primitive
Ascontemporary
thearchaichut onlyforits ar- naldwelling.
AlthoughLaugierconsidered
theyremindusof themost
lessons,manytheoristsexaminedit forits socialimpli- basichumanneed,shelter,andtherefore
chitectural
On
Musingson theprimitive basictaskof society,to providefortheneedsof itsconstituents.
of humanprogress.
cations,asanallegory
alsosawthe buildingof hutsas theoriandthe theotherhand,Rousseau
betweenthecaveasfoundshelter
distinguish
hutcommonly
fromwhichdisputesandwarfare
firstattemptto gin of propertyandentitlement,
mankind's
hutasbuiltshelter.Thestoryglamorizes
andasserthumanwill onto the land.The arise.So, withtheprimitivehut comesthebestandworstof socishapethe environment
The protestconandthestrugglefordomination.69
hutassimpleshelter,contrast ety:fraternity
shanties,whileechoingtheprimitive
leanedto- structionssuggestthisfriction,questioningthe inequitiesof land
its meaning.Theyareconstitutedof sheetsof plyxvood
andmaterial
or cursoryway.Theirmakeshiftassembly divisionandsociety'sinabilityto reconcileideological
getherin a precarious
theorinot
glorify
do
the
shantytowns
cities,
ersatz
As
hut's
strucdifferences.
of
the
philosophical
the
opposite
is
fromcrudematerial
the
of
community,
breakdown
the
they
protest
community,
like
gins
of
than
of
cards
house
like
a
turalclarity.The shantiesaremore
environment.
humane
a
contributes
to
provide
failure
four-posttemple,andthisfragileappearance
Laugier's
withpovertyor neglect.The protestshanties
to theirassociation
presentingthe hut
but deprivation,
symbolizenot determination
notasa tributeto primitiveingenuitybutasanattackon primitive Conclusion
society.
advanced
livingconditionsin a technologically
one,a longingforsome
hutis a nostalgic
man'sconfidentoccu- Thestoryof theprimitive
of the hutrepresents
If theparadigm
the desireto
suggestsan mythicEden.As a modelforbuilding,it represents
pationof the land,the shanties'tenuousconstruction
of thatlost
withthecharacter
environment
tentative imbuethecontemporary
towardtheirspace;theyhavean uncertain,
ambivalence
asidyllicfrozenin
In thisimage,publicspaceis portrayed
in thatsetting.Whilethe paradise.
a lackof belonging
thatbespeaks
presence
modelor anynumberof histhisprchistoric
arein- time.It memorializes
withnature,theshanties
hutharmonizes
primitive
archetypal
the
alwaysvalorizing
references,
furtherimpliesanantagonistic toricimagesthrougharchitectural
vaders.Thesourceof theirmaterials
to thecontestbetweenprois theuseof sec- past.The issueof timeis fundamental
withprotestconstructions
practice
role.A recurrent
createsmonuments
sites,andde- test andofficialAmerica.Civicarchitecture
construction
scrapsfromfactories,
ondhandmaterial,
It dealswithtimeon
millennia.
centuries,
molishedbuildings.In boththe BonusArmyshacksandtheYale meantto lastgenerations,
Harrieshaswrittenthatthisis anessential
doorsbecamewallsandceilings.Thetheoretical anepochallevel.Karsten
shanties,discarded
thehumanfearof theinfinitetshelfromthelandaroundit, buttheprotest aspectof building.It confronts
hutdrawsnaturalmaterial
byleavinga lastingmarkon the
time"
of
frompiecesof thesurrounding teringusfrom"theterror
parasitically
shantiesareassembled
leads.. . not onlytO
architecture
of
the
origin
into
"Inquiry
ofwhatJohnFitchencalls"architecturalearth.
city.Thisuseis reminiscent
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the needforshelter,but alsoto the needto controlspacethrough phrasefromtheBeatitudeshepreachedthattheChristiancommunitywasto bea

in whichthe citizenswereto be "asmembers
of the same
symbols.It is homelessness
thatletsmanbuild:the terrorof space modelof brotherhood
body'1
to "keeptheunityof thespirit."Quotedin KarenOrdahlKupperman,
ed.,
provokes
himto creation."70
Protestcompetes
withofficialAmerica MajorProblemsin AmericanColonialHistory (Lexington,MA:D.C. Heathand
'etocontrolspacethroughsymbols,"
namelytheiconography
of cit- Company,1993),pp. 124-126.
ies.If the meaningof thesesymbolsis not directlyrelevantto per9. ThomasReiner,ThePlaceof the Ideal Communityin UrbanPlanning
(Philadelphia,
PA:University
of Pennsylvania
Press,1963),pp. 19-20.
sonallife,thenarchitecture
risksbecoming
disingenuous
andtrivial.
10.It hasbeensuggestedthatthe multiplechurchesof differentdenomiRarearethosepermanent
structures,
suchastheVietnamVeterans
nationsaremoredemocratic
thanthesinglemeetinghousein thattheyrepresent
a
Memorial,
whichbecomepublictouchstones
forpersonal
emotions. pluralityof religion.SeeCraigWhitaker,
Architectureand theAmericanDream
Theephemeralicy
of protestconstruction
allowsit to address (NewYork:ThreeRiversPress,1996),p. 101.
contemporary
socialandpoliticalproblemsandpresentitselfwith
11.Dolores Hayden, Seven American Utopias: The Architecture of
MA:MITPress,1976),pp.
anurgency,
whichmostarchitecture
doesnot.At thesametime,by CommunitarianSocialism,1790-1975 (Cambridge,
349-350.
appropriating
architectural
imagery,the demonstrators
givetheir
12.ThomasReiner,ThePlaceof the Ideal Communityin UrbanPlanning,
messagea formthatrivalsthe symboliclanguageof civicinstitu- pp. 15-17.
Manfredo
Tafurimakesthesameconclusions,
statingthatthe philotions.Protestbrieflyadoptsthe timelessimageof architecture
in sophicaltheorization
of architecture
"contains
no socialutopiato supporttheurorderto suggestthegravicy
of its message.
A decadeaftertheanti- banreformism
proclaimed
at a purelyformallevel."SeeArchitectureand Utopia:
apartheid
shantiesandapartheid
itselfhavevanished,Yale'sstone Designand CapitalistDevelopment,BarbaraLuigiaLaPenta,trans.(Cambridge,
hallsremainintact.Thircy-six
yearsafterthe BonusArmycamps MA:MITPress,1976),p. 12.
13.SeeLewisMumford,"TheFoundations
of Eutopia,"
p. 217.
disappeared,
theCapitolandtheWashington
Monumentpresided
14.Sociologists
see the correspondence
betweenracialdemographics
and
overResurrection
Cicywhenit temporarily
occupiedtheMall,and theconditionof theurbanenvironment
asa keyfactorin thetensionsthatleadto
theystillguardtheMalltoday,thircyyearslater.Protestconstruc- violence.See,forexample,ArnoldR. Hirsch,Makingthe SecondGhetto:Raceand
University
Press:1983),p. xii.
tionsarenot monumentsandcannotcompetewith the material Housingin Chicago,1940-1960 (Cambridge
15.New HavenRegister,Apr.5, 1986,p. 1.
longevicy
of thesurroundings
theychallenge.
Likeallpoliticaldem16.New YorkTimes,June6, 1988,pp. B1, B5.
onstration,
theyaresimplya criticaltool,butonewhichmayinsti17. New HavenRegister,June6, 1986,p. 8.
gatesocialif not physicalchange.Theyaremeantto temperthe
18.Quotedin New HavenRegistern
June6, 1988,p. 8.
uncheckedidealismof officialspaceby dramatizing
the conflict
19.RobertStern,Pride of Place:Building theAmericanDream, (Boston,
betweenambitionandobligation,betweensociety'spossibilities MA:HoughtonMifflinCompany,1986),p. 41.
20. NeilPostman,Technopoly:
TheSurrender
of Cultureto Technolov (New
andits basicresponsibilities.
Fromthiswork,architects
canlearn
York:VintageBooks,1992),pp.74-75.
somethingaboutsocialrelevance.
21. Quotedin New HavenRegister,Apr.14, 1986,
Notes
1. WilliamManchester,
TheGloryand the Dream:A NarrativeHistoryof
America,1932-1972 (NewYork:BantamBooks,1974))pp.4-15.
2. Ibid.,pp. 16-17.
3. JohnHenryBartlett,The BonusMarch and the New Deal (Chicago:
M.A.Donohue& Company,1937),pp. 10-25.
4. A UnitedStatessenatorcalledthecamps"anoutwardmanifestation
of
a nation-wide
condition."
QuotedinJohnHenryBartlett,ibid.,p. 26.
5. John B. Thompson,Ideologyand Modern Culture (Stanford,CA:
StanfordUniversity
Press,1990),p. 7.
6. Quotedin KarenOrdahlKupperman,
ed.,MajorProblemsin American
ColonialHistory(Lexington,
MA:D.C. HeathandCompany,1993),p. 5.
7. GeorgeBrownTindallandDavidE.Shi,America:A NarrativeHistory,
3rded.,Vol. 1 (NewYork:W.W.Norton& Company,1992),p. 10.
8. Governor
JohnWinthropof Massachusetts
Baycolonyexpressed
the
Puritans'
missionin his ;'Cityupona Hill"sermonof 1630,jUSt elevenyearsbeforetheoriginalplanof NewHavenwasdrawnup (seeFigure2.) Takingthetitle

p. 1.
22. MatthewCountryman,
interview
withauthorFeb.,1999.To illustrate
Yale'slackof communal
responsibility,
andalsoperhaps
to senduptheineffectuality
of thestudents'
ownefforts,Countryman
refersto a politicalcartoonthatappeared
irltheNewHavenRegisterin 1986anddepicted"anivorytower(Yale)surrounded
bya shantytown
(NewHaven)witha voicecomirlg
outof thetowersaying,'Iknow.
Let'sbuilda shanty."'
The cartoonironically
suggestsa comparison
betweenthe
shantytown
on campusandthedeteriorated
conditionof NewHavenitself.
23. HenryTudor,PoliticalMyth (NewYork:Praeger,
1972),p. 139.
24. Ibid.,pp. 13-17.
25.Jefferson
wasinstrumental
in theconception
andimplementation
of the
capital,and,asManfredo
Tafuriwrites,he evidentlyabandoned
orforgothisantiurbanphilosophyin favorof founding"asymbolplacein whichthe ideaof the
Unioncouldbecompletely
expressed."
SeeManfredo
Tafuri,Architecture
and Utopia, p. 33.
26. Fora discussionof historicalimageryas a persuasivemedium,see
MichaelSorkin'sintroduction
to Variationson a ThemePark:the New American
Cityand theEnd of PublicSpace (NewYork:Hill & Wang,1992).
27.JamesHowardKunstler,The Geographyof Nowhere:TheRiseand DeclineofAmercia'sMan-MadeLandscape(NewYork:Touchstone,1993),p. 42.
28. Manfredo
Tafuri,Architectureand Utopia,p. 36.

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hasshownthata city'sskylinemaybe readas an

29. HaroldD. Lasswell
49.JaneJacobs,TheDeathand Lifeof GreatAmertcanCities, p. 270ff.
placedcorporate
indexof the relativepowerof differentinstitutions.Randomly
PubCity (NewYork,Grossman
OldNeuJs:Resurrertiorl
50.JillFreedman,
indicatethe dominationof privatebusiness,whilea centralcapitol lishers,1970),p. 34.
skyscrapers
SeeTheSigrlatureof Power:Buildof government.
thedomination
domeillustrates
51. Ibid.,p. 98.
Books,1979).
NJ:Transaction
arldPoliry(NewBrunswick
irlgs>Commurlivatiorl,
52. The Amerivan Heritage Dirtiorlary, SecondCollegeEd. (Boston:
in thatVersailles HoughtonMifflinCo., 1981).
wasreciprocal,
influence
thetransatlantic
30. Historically,
in 1791,whichinfluencedParis,whichthenagaininfluWashington
influenced
TheGloryarldtheDream}p. 16.
53. WilliamManchester1
occurred
thattiedAmerica
in 1900.A kindof cross-fertilization
encedWashington
1968 ig Ameriva:Musir}Politirs, Chaos,
54. Quotedin CharlesKaiser1
andplanningat leastthroughWorldWarII.
to Europein architecture
arld the Shaping of a Gerleratiorl(New York:Weidenfeld&
Courlterrzglture,
CA:Univer- Nicolson,1988),p. 142.
Sirlve1890 (Berkeley,
31. MelScott1AmerivarlCityPlarlrlirlg
1992,
sity of CaliforniaPress,1969), pp. 51-52. LewisMumfordconcurs:"Despite
55. BrianWallis,"LivingRoomWar,"in Art irlAmerira,February
convictions,thedesignhe broughtforthforthe new p. 107.
firmrepublican
L'Enfant's
hadorigiof despotism
andservants
a similareffect.
capitalwasin everyrepectwhatthearchitects
in 1968achieved
builtbystudentprotestors
56. Barricades
particularly
He couldonlycarryoverintothenewagethestaticimagethathad In Paris,theycarriedovertassociations
nallyconceived.
withthe FrenchRevolution,
into
Seei'TheLessonsof Washing- withthebarricades
coercionandcontrol."
of the 1848revolt,andweremeantto convertcampuses
beendictatedbycentralized
spaceconveyedtheseriouston,D.C.,"in TheLewisMumfordReader>p. 149.
of university
Themilitarization
symbolicbattlefields.
refer- nessof intent.
andabsolutism,
a linkbetweenidealism
32. DoloresHaydensuggests
who proposeperfect
of pubstanceof plannersandarchitects
llOW in theoccupation
ringto "theauthoritarian
57.Thisconditionis,of course,widespread
Shere- lic spaceby thehomeless.Today,thecvnstruction
societies."
organized
of perfectly
of theimageasdemonstration
forms(idealcities.. . ) as theexpressions
physicaldesignshaveoftenbeenappro- is possiblyredundant.
historyvisionary
countsthatthroughout
priatedto servethe prevailingsocioeconomicorder.For example,fortified
RoomWar,"p. 107.
58. BrianWallis,"Living
idealizedinstitudespots,ninteenth-century
geometriccitiessuitedRenaissance
59. MichelFoucault,"OfOtherSpaces,'Diarritirs,spring1986 pp. 24towns,and 25.
corporate
of jails,workhouses,
to organizers
tionalbuildingsappealed
Pen60. NicholasPevsnerOutlirleof EuropearlArrhiterture(Baltimore:
sv on. SeeSeverlAmerivarlUtopias,p. 349.
Tafuri,Arrhiterturearld Utopia,p. 30.
33. Manfredo
guin,1961),p. 7.
arld Utopia>p. 33.
recounts,a facultycommitteedetermined
Tafuri,Arrhiterture
34. Manfredo
61. As MatthewCountryman
D.C.,"in The Lewis thatthe administration's
of theshantieshadbeena violationof the
35. LewisMumford,'iTheLessonsof Washington,
destruction
feelsthattheuniversity
alsopersonally
of GeorgiaPress, protestors'
freespeechrights.Countryman
MumfordReader,DonaldL.Millered. (Athens,GA:University
decision-n1aking.''
showeda "disdainforfreespeechanddemocratic
1995),p. 150.
continually
withauthor,Feb.1999.
36. VincentScully,Arrhiterture:TheNaturalarldtheMarlmade(NewYork: Interview
St. Martin'sPress,1991),p. 272.
62. RobertVenturi,DeniseScottBrown,andStevenIzenour,Leartlislg
MA:
andtheWashing- f om Las Vegas:the ForgotterlSymbolismof ArrhiterturalForm (Cambridge,
Memorial
"TheVietnamVeterans
Griswold,
37. Charles
in HarrietF. Senie MITPress,1985),p. 87.
Thoughtson PoliticalIcvnography,"
ton Mall:Philosophical
63. Ibid.
andSallyWebster,eds.,CritivalIssuesirlPublirArt: Corltent,Corltext,arldCorltroOsAdam'sHouseirlParadise:TheIdeaof the
1992),p. 74.
64. QuotedinJosephRykwert,
versy (NewYork:Harper(:ollins,
MA:MITPress,l 981),p. 44.
History (Cambridge,
arzdUtopiaap. 36.
PrimitiveHut irlArrhitertural
Arrhitecture
TaSuri,
38. Manfredo
D.C.,"in
hutasiithetrue
offeredtheprimitive
writesthatLaugier
39. Quotedin LewisMumford,('TheLessonsof Washington,
65.JosephRykwert
AnthonyVidlerrecountsthat
p. 150.
Ibid.,p. 44. Similarly,
[sir]forarchitects."
TheLewisMumfordReadera
examplar
'sCivilRightsMove- Laugier
of originsintoa manifestoforaestheticjudgment
"turnedthe narrative
FreedomBourld:A ElistoryAmerira
40. RobertWeisbrot,
See
statusforallarchitecture.'
a paradigmatic
andthat"thehutasoriginassumed
merlt(NewYork:Plume,1990),p. 154.
(Princeton,
ratewaspartlydue to the factthatmanybusi- TheWritirlgof the Walls:ArrhiterturalTheoryirltheLateErllighterlmerlt
41. The low employment
of whitesto thesub- NJ:Princeton
followedthemovement
Press,1987),pp. 18-19.
companies
Architectural
nessesandmanufacturing
66. AnthonyVidler,The Writirlgof the Walls,pp.20-21.
urbs.Ibid.,pp. 155-156.
G7.SeeJohnFitchen,BuildiHgCoHstrutioHBeforeMerAflnizatiorl(Cam42.Ibid.,pp.158,161.
NJ: bridge,MA:MITPress,1992),pp.33-35.
TheNew AmerivanGhetto (NewBrunswick,
43. CamiloJoseVergara,
68. SeeJosephRykwert,Os Adam'sHouseisl Paradise,pp.44-47. He rePress,1995),p. 2.
RutgersUniversity
it is fromthe familyhousedin its primitivehut thatRousseau
44. GeraldD. McKnight,TheLast Crusade:MartirlLutherKirlg,Jr.>the callsthat"always
of symbolism
dictionaries
(p.47). Similarly,
Press,1998),p. l 10. conceives
humansocietydeveloping"
CO:Westview
FBI,arldthePoorPeople'sCampaigrl(Boulder,
listthearchaichouseasa symbolof humanity.
FreedomBound,p. 273.
45. RobertWeisbrot,
69. AnthonyVidler,The Writirlgof the Walls,p. 16.
46. Ibid.,p. 180.
70. KarstenHarries,"Buildingand the Terrorof Time,"Perspertv19,
47. Quotedin JaneJacobs,The Death arldLife of GreatAmerivarlCities
1982,p. 59.
(NewYork:Vintage,1961),p. 272.
48. Quotedin Cami]oJoseVergara,TheNew AmerirarlGhetto,p. 7.

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