The Use of the Graphic Medium in the Method of the Urban Planner C.A. Doxiadis.

Abstract

The communication deals about C.A. Doxiadis, Greek architect and urban planner, known in our schools especially for his Architectural Space in Ancient Greece (Doxiadis 1972), a late publication of his doctoral thesis, although not so much for his work as city planner and theorist. As such, he developed an extensive activity, in which the graphic medium plays a leading role. Here we analyze his graphic production, reflection of a particular way of understanding the urban, around his concept of “ekistics”, as science and art of human settlements.

After a brief review of his work, we continue through three sections. The first corresponds to the theoretical model of the ekistic object of study, the so-called “Anthropocosmos”. The second and third correspond to two main and complementary project issues, the dynamic city or “Dynapolis”, and the City of the Future or “Ecumenopolis”.

The analyzed images are all part of the numerous publications with which the author spreads his method. They are therefore black and white images, depurated and encoded with respect to a first production and they show, by this same fact, the result of personal reworking of a material initially produced collectively.