I have never looked at Edmonton the way that I look at other cities, not because I feel like I know it very well (since I rarely leave the west end), but because it has never occurred to me to really learn or understand the city in which I live. I definitely stay in my area of the city, where I live and work. This article has challenged me to some extent to find my own understanding of Edmonton outside of the small area I know. I would like to be able to tell people things about Edmonton that are interesting and do it in an enticing way, the way I would if I were to describe Rome or New York.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
City Limits
The way in which we viewed maps today was very interesting to me. I have to say I have never looked at any city the way that Michel de Certeau explains in his essay "Walking in the City". Walking definitely is a way to tell a story about a city. After our discussion in class I realized I have created stories in my mind about cities, but never the one in which I live. Cities that have had an impact have left clear and distinct images in my mind and they fall in a sort of sequence which creates a map. Not necessarily a logical map or one that someone could follow but one that sums up the city in terms of what had the greatest impact on me.
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The way that you describe not being able to envision that same sort of mind map of Edmonton really resonates with the way that I similarly view the city. For myself I feel that I know my area of time very well, but the areas outside of that route remain as voids in my imagining of the city limits. When you bring up New York and Rome I instantaneously begin to imagine snapshots of those cities, which have become ingrained within me. But when I think of Edmonton I don’t seem to have a single image in mind that encapsulates the city (perhaps the view of downtown from Connor’s Hill?). I’m going to venture a guess that you have lived in the city for an extended period of time (???), which makes me wonder if the lack of exploration is due to the fact that Edmonton has been “home” for so long? It makes me wonder if it is different for people that are newer to the city?
ReplyDeleteOh and if you’re looking for good local galleries, the Artery usually has some really interesting shows. Haven’t been there in a while but it has been consistently excellent (and free!).
You're definitely right about why I don't look around more. I have lived in Edmonton all of my life. It wasn't until I started traveling for longer periods of time that I learned to appreciate "home". Especially when a guy I met from Germany said all he remembered from Edmonton was strip malls and pick up trucks, which made me go on the defensive and realize Edmonton is definitely cooler than that. So apparently others do have images of Edmonton, maybe not as positive as our images of Rome but at least they see something.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the tip for that gallery, I'll be sure to check it out.