Life in the Sky: The Elevated City

As communities worldwide grapple with the effects of extreme weather, Asian and Middle Eastern cities contend with increasing congestion, and older North American and European cities seek urban regeneration and increased pedestrianization, the concept of elevated walkways have come into the fore again. The exhibition Life in the Sky: The Elevated City examines the evolution of these pedestrian networks, or “streets above streets,” focusing on a number of examples drawn from across the world and throughout history, whether built urban networks or unrealized radical concepts. Among numerous examples considered are: London’s proposed but incomplete Pedway system conceived after the destruction of World War II; Leonardo Da Vinci’s Ideal City scheme; Hong Kong’s complex, multilevel system that negotiates the city’s steep terrain; Mumbai’s shaded walkways that operate in tandem with its congested railway system; the various visionary schemes for New York City over the centuries, including its most recent and popular High Line; and, of course, the systems of St. Paul and Minneapolis, which are among the world’s most extensive networks, each linking miles of downtown buildings.

Life in the Sky: The Elevated City includes important new scholarship on the history of skyway concept that will form the basis for the first comprehensive book of its kind on the topic; a specially designed installation by VJAA that maps numerous built urban skyway networks; and a series of public programs and classes held in partnership with the Department of Architecture at the University of Minnesota.

Curators: Andrew Blauvelt, Senior Curator of Design, Research, and Publishing, Walker Art Center; and Jennifer Yoos and Vincent James, co-curators and partners in the architectural office of VJAA

Photo courtesy of the organiser/s

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