Una historia desconocida: Le Corbusier frente al “Academicismo” de Jan de Ranitz en los preparativos para la nueva sede de las Naciones Unidas en Nueva York (1946)

Soon after the second world war the general assembly of the United Nations decreed that the seat of the organization were to be located in the United States of America. A search commission started a research of the possibilities in this country. The commission amongst others counted three experts: the Frenchman Le Corbusier, the Soviet–Russian Bassov and the Dutchman Jan de Ranitz. Le Corbusier worried about the composition of the commission: “I am obliged to inform you about the characteristic distressing situation here in NY in the commission for the Headquarters of the UN created by one of the members of the commission, that I am part of: the Jenkheer de Ramitz (sic!), who graduated from the university of Delft and tries to get a position from which he may drag down everything into the darkest academic catastrophe.” In this article I will explain what happened in New York in 1946. A fight between big ‘frames of mind’, incapable to butch an inch where it came to principles of town planning.Poco después de la Segunda Guerra Mundial, la Asamblea General de las Naciones Unidas decretó que la sede de la organización debía estar ubicada en los Estados Unidos de América. Una comisión para la búsqueda de un emplazamiento comenzó a investigar las posibilidades de este país. La comisión contó, entre otros, con tres expertos: el francés Le Corbusier, el soviético-ruso Bassov y el neerlandés Jan de Ranitz. Le Corbusier estaba preocupado por la composición de la comisión: “Me veo en la obligación de informarle sobre la angustiosa situación creada aquí en Nueva York en la comisión para la Sede de las Naciones Unidas, provocada por uno de los miembros de la comisión, y de la que yo formo parte: Jenkheer de Ramitz (¡sic!), quien se graduó de la Universidad de Delft y que trata de conseguir una posición desde la que puede arrastrar a todos a la más oscura catástrofe académica”. En este artículo voy a explicar lo que sucedió en Nueva York en 1946. Una lucha entre grandes “estados de ánimo”, incapaces de ceder una pulgada en el campo de los principios urbanísticos

Collective organisation of knowledge in the early phase of the Dutch-Friesian dairy industry (c. 1880-1914)

During the last quarter of the nineteenth century, science and technology opened up new avenues for dairy farmers. Improved techniques for measuring the percentage of fat content in milk and new mechanical production processes had a considerable influence on the dairy production system. However, knowledge was essential to make the most of these opportunities. Historians have offered diverse explanations for the implementation of a knowledge infrastructure within pre-existing dairy networks. Some studies have emphasized the role of individual actors, while others focused on the influence of cooperative structures. This article contributes to the latter and adds a geographical dimension to the organizational history of dairy knowledge. Based on research in archives and newspapers, it investigates two knowledge institutions in the Dutch province of Friesland: a dairy consultancy and a dairy school, both founded in 1889. The conclusion is that the implementation of knowledge institutions was encouraged by the interplay between regional initiatives and national economic policiesDurante el último cuarto del siglo xix, la ciencia y la tecnología abrieron nuevas posibilidades a los ganaderos de leche. La mejora de las técnicas para medir el porcentaje de grasa en la leche y la mecanización de los procesos productivos tuvieron una influencia considerable sobre el sistema de producción lácteo. Sin embargo, el conocimiento fue esencial para aprovechar estas oportunidades al máximo. Los historiadores han ofrecido diversas explicaciones de la implantación de una infraestructura del conocimiento dentro de las redes lácteas ya existentes. Algunos estudios han enfatizado el papel de actores individuales, mientras que otros se centraron en la influencia de las estructuras cooperativas. Este artículo contribuye a esta segunda línea de investigación, añadiendo una dimensión geográfica a la historia organizativa del conocimiento lácteo. Basado en fuentes de archivo y periódicos, el artículo investiga dos instituciones relacionadas con el conocimiento en la provincia holandesa de Frisia: una consultoría láctea y una escuela láctea, ambas fundadas en 1889. El artículo concluye que la implantación de instituciones relacionadas con el conocimiento fue alentada por la interacción entre iniciativas regionales y políticas económicas nacionale

Jan Duiker: un hotel junto al río en Dolní Zálezly nad Labem,República Checa 1929-1930

After the early death of Jan Duiker, his compatriot Han van Loghem wrote: “By no means everything in Duiker is sound in the sense of the mathematical technique, and often not from the viewpoint of centuries long utility. But precisely this makes that his work contains the freshness of the continuously renewing nature.” (De Hollandsche revue, jrg 41, 1936, no 8, p. 366). Van Loghem’s book Bouwen Bauen Building Batîr (1932) has been the only publication in Duiker’s life time in which some space was dedicated to his highly interesting entry for a competition for a riverside hotel in Salesel an der Elbe, now (Dolní) Zálezly nad Labem in the Czech Republic. In this article the writer has tried to understand the project with his knowledge of Jan Duiker’s work in general, from what Van Loghem published, and some additional drawings discovered and published in later years. Duiker’s archive contains nothing. A detective story.Después de la temprana muerte de Jan Duiker, su compatriota Han van Loghem escribió: “De ninguna manera en Duiker todo es inalterable en el sentido técnico de las matemáticas, y sobre todo desde el punto de vista de la utilidad a lo largo de los siglos. Pero precisamente esto hace que su trabajo contenga la frescura de la naturaleza que continuamente se renueva” (De Hollandsche revue, jrg 41, 1936, no 8, p. 366). El libro de Van Loghem Bouwen Bauen Building Batîr (1932) ha sido la única publicación sobre Duiker en vida en el cual, algunas partes, estaban dedicadas a su interesantísimo proyecto para el concurso para un hotel junto al río en Salesel an der Elbe, ahora (Dolní) Zálezly nad Labem en la República Checa. En este artículo, he intentado entender el proyecto con el conocimiento que tengo, en general, del trabajo de Jan Duiker, con lo publicado por Van Loghem y algunos dibujos adicionales descubiertos y publicados años más tarde. En el archivo de Duiker no hay nada. Ha sido una labor de detective

The case of Johannesburg Development Agency officials, Johannesburg

Honours Research Report 2016Public participation is the cornerstone of democracy in South Africa, and it is at the local government that most of the community engagement is undertaken. However with this being said there are a number of signs that indicate that South African people are unsatisfied with how the state engages with them. This paper looked at public participation from the official’s perspective, as it attempted to understand some of the challenges they face, the complexities of undertaking community as well how they navigate these challenges and complexities. The research study was conducted on officials of the Development Facilitation Unit at the Johannesburg Development Agency. Two dimensions of community engagement were presented. Firstly community engagement meetings and how they were conducted, and secondly what officials do with the information that is received from communities, this is what the research refers to as ‘the behind the scene work’.Post Graduate Merit AwardJJ201

Layering time : the representation of tradition in contemporary multimedia performance

DVD entitled: Water feels / directed by Moratiwa Molema.Includes abstract.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 35-37).As a culminating thesis project my Master of Fine Arts degree in Film and Television, chose to create a theatrical production that incorporated multiple video projections as well as performance forms such as dance, drama, music and ritual. This explication then begins answering the question, 'how does a student of film and television production engage with live performance and create a theatrical event as opposed to a DVD as a final outcome?' The 'why' lies in the hypothesis contained in the title of the explication "Layering Time: The Representation of Tradition in Contemporary Multi Media Performance." I was exposed to multimedia techniques at the University of Hartford in America while pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. Through the Master of Fine Arts in Film and Television programme at the University of Cape Town, South Africa, J wished to expand and deepen what I had learnt as an undergraduate student. The result of this effort was my thesis production. The theme of the production and the concept of layering time dealt with the importance of continuity and representations of traditional culture in a contemporary world, which is a layering of past and present. As a multi-media production,WaterFeels, was also an exploration of conceptual relationships between different art forms and the potential in this use of mixed media for notions of past and present time to exist simultaneously