Umbrella Project

Archive

Van Alen Report

Van Alen Report (VAR) is a broad, sweeping examination of the present and things to come, intended to catalyze fresh thinking among those who shape cities—designers, planners, policymakers—as well as anyone eager to learn more about how the future of the built environment will impact their minds, bodies, and everyday lives. An interdisciplinary digest that explores how people and communities can successfully adapt to change, the report gathers expert perspectives on subjects that are redefining society’s relationship to cities and the built environment on a local, national, and global scale.

January 2019

Cognitive and behavioral science research is revealing more and more about how cities impact people physically, emotionally, and neurologically. With more people expected to live in cities than ever before, this growing body of knowledge is most welcome. However, knowledge alone is not enough to produce better, healthier cities. Just as new technologies and scientific approaches have provided fresh insight into how cities impact the mind and body, it will take new thinking among city-makers to harness that information and re-imagine the role that design can play in promoting mental health and well-being.

September 2017

For the first Van Alen Report in twelve years, we examine the dire condition of America’s infrastructure. Experts from various disciplines participate in a sweeping exploration of how leaders may repair the nation’s infrastructure in ways that support better and more just outcomes for all.

June 2005

VAR 18 looks at recreation, featuring projects on a competition for a new information system for Lower Manhattan, a competition for a recreational pavilion in Coney Island’s amusement park, and an exhibition about the accessibility of recreation and leisure across cultures and economic levels.

October 2004

VAR 17 centers on the Variable City project, which looks at Fox Square from multiple perspectives and interdisciplinary methods to emphasize art’s role in city design.

June 2003

Van Alen Report 16 is a special edition focusing on the exhibition OPEN: Design for Public Space. To view a hard copy at Van Alen’s offices, email vai@vanalen.org.

April 2003

VAR 15 explores the exhibition, The/Swiss/Section, on designing and building in Switzerland, while paying attention to signature cultural projects and spaces of everyday life.

2003

VAR 14 is a special edition on the exhibition “Renewing, Rebuilding, Remembering” about how cities change after disaster, which features 7 cities: New York, Beirut, Berlin, Kobe, Manchester, Oklahoma City, San Fransisco, and Sarajevo. To view a hard copy at Van Alen’s offices, email vai@vanalen.org.

August 2002

VAR 13 follows the R train, focusing on new projects along the way such as SHoP’s Rector Street Bridge and MoMA QNS as a reflection on culture centers and the arts.

April 2002

VAR 12 asks, “What is Urban Design?” and features the exhibition, “Renewing, Rebuilding, Remember” on seven cities that have rebuilt after disaster.

January 2002

VAR 11 looks at the design ideas competition for Queens Plaza, which considered the space as representative of both change and continuity in the city.

December 2001

In the wake of 9/11, VAR 10 explores how to rebuild after tragedy in an interview with Natalie Fizer and Mabel O. Wilson on Monuments and Memorials, and features a piece on BAM and cultural districts by Barrett Feldman.

May 2001

VAR 9 features the exhibition “Architecture + Water,” an interview with Lewis.Tsurumaki.Lewis and a letter from Nicholas de Monchaux on the design of Olympic cities.

December 2000

VAR 8 explores urban park design through a competition to design Toronto’s Downsview Park. The winning design, Tree City, is a combination of park lands that connect to the city around it while remaining a natural site.

May 2000

VAR 7 focuses on the design competition “TKTS2K: An Icon at the Crossroads” to design the iconic ticket booth in Times Square.

November 1999

VAR 6 asks, “Is public space dead?” and features TKTS2K in Times Square, Megadesign vs. Other Urbanisms and Pier 40 Park.

March 1999

VAR 5 asks “How can a city get the best public architecture while fully engaging the community in the process?” The edition features the “Pier Pressure: Design By Collage” competition, Community Design and other issues in public design.

October 1998

VAR 4 explores the transfer of New York City’s waterfront to the public realm and what that means for recreation, entertainment, and tourism.

May 1997

VAR 3 looks at topics from the “In Recovery” forum like Public Health/Public Space, Defensible Space and Environmental Justice, in addition to Green Skyscrapers, Governors Island, Culture Exchange Competition Dinkeloo Fellowship, and River Project Exhibition.

September 1996

VAR 2 covers the Fall 1996 Program Schedule about Heath and the City and Public Private Property, as well as the 1996 Paris Prize Competition, the Future of Work and the Future of Downtown Forums.

1996

The very first Van Alen Report defines the issues and programs that make up the 1996 Projects in Public Architecture: Real Downtown/Virtual Downtown, Public-Private Property and Health and the City.