Urban Form, Morphological Changes and Spatial Patterns of Perforation/Growth in Japan and France

Highly urbanized countries around the world are increasingly concerned with demographic decline or stagnation, a situation often leading to urban shrinkage. Yet, urban shrinkage is hardly studied from a morphological point of view. Urban shrinkage is indeed mostly studied in relation to population dynamics rather than changes in urban form. This talk is divided into three parts. First, we focus on the spatial structure and form of the contemporary Japanese city (case studies of Osaka and Kobe). Second, the morphological evolutions of the buildings within the very same area and the substitution of building types over time are discussed in relation to demographic changes. Building types in France are then briefly compared to the buildings types in Japan. Finally, the talk concludes with an analysis of the spatial patterns of urban perforation and growth (cases studies of Chiba Prefecture in Japan, and the Var department in southern France).

Speaker: Joan PEREZ (UMR ESPACE-CNRS, Côte d’Azur Univ., Nice, France)

Moderator: Guillaume LADMIRAL (FRIJ- MFJ)