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Many contemporary commentators suggest that urban space and public space have no settled form – that they are forever subject to contestation. It follows that the spaces most of us occupy, act in and pass through day after day are, if not overtly antagonistic, then somewhat fraught and compromised. My practice explores this terrain by engaging with specific spatial controversies, getting embroiled in arenas of friction, overlapping with a variety of different ‘actors’ and processes. Works develop as I try to do things in spaces, often in urban environments, probing situations in order to try to grasp their dynamics. Trying things out in space as an independent practitioner, I run into many kinds of structures, boundaries and rules. How such encounters unfold and are responded to and/or recounted – these questions lie at the heart of my work. The form of the work has varied. I have, for example, created posters, performances and a film. Some works have taken the form of insertions of objects into existing arenas and processes. On other occasions, my exploratory investigations and activities are narrated in the work. The work has appeared in diverse contexts: fly-posted across a town; inserted into a planning-consultation meeting; hidden beneath an exhibition space. This thesis will introduce five specific projects. An iteration of Four Anecdotes forms my Preface; this work is then discussed in Chapter One. Chapter Two introduces Huis Clos Planningline; Chapter Three Reverse Consultation (Old New Town) and Cushion Distribution (Public Inquiry). Chapter Four is accompanied by a short film (attached) and is entitled The Vessel. Elaborations and analyses of these works will be augmented by discussions of works by other artists that are particularly relevant, among them Gordon Matta-Clark, Allan Sekula and Francis Alÿs. Uncaptioned images will run throughout the thesis, in parallel with the text. Overall, I will argue for the value of a type of ‘site-oriented’ practice that probes and investigates spatial dynamics and power relations through experimental involvements with a range of sites and actors. In particular, I will contend that practices involved with everyday encounters and mobilities – including my own practice, which focuses on mobile things as they traverse boundaries and jurisdictions – allow structures and relationships to be encountered and tested in their day-to-day operation, with the twists turns and wriggles of practice generating new materials, works and ideas.

This research thesis presents an organisational framework for the management of virtual cities for hosts to adopt when seeking to produce and maintain a virtual city for use as a tool for urban planning related activities. The framework functions as an over-arching business model or structure, a general methodology for defining the organisational processes of virtual city enterprises. In achieving this aim, the research outlines standards and protocols for its creation, legal issues for its distribution and suggested processes for the update of 3D data. The diverse issues and needs of various stakeholders are addressed (Horne et al., 2006) in order to challenge the organisational issues and common concepts involved in creating, hosting and managing a city model (Voigt et al., 2004). Preliminary investigations showed that extensive research has been carried out on 3D and virtual city modelling techniques and their application, but the theoretical organisational and management issues for hosting 3D virtual city models needs to be addressed (Hamilton et al., 2005; Dokonal and Martens, 2001) through a ‘guiding source book’ for the creation and use of 3D city models(Bourdakis, 2004). This thesis explores the current state of virtual city modelling and its origins through literature research as well as an investigation into suitable business modelling practice. Pilot studies and an interview process with current virtual city hosts informed the research of current practice in the field. An organisational framework is subsequently put forward that combines elements from each of these investigations using a business model ‘canvas’ that can be adopted by current or prospective hosts and adapted to suit their circumstances, applications and users. The framework addresses the technical aspects of establishing a virtual city model, such as 3D data capture methods, spatial data infrastructure and modelling protocols in order to present a roadmap for virtual city enterprises. This correspondingly outlines a development from traditional and static datasets of geometry in ‘3D city models’ to more serviceable and user-centric ‘virtual city enterprises’. The organisational framework introduces 7 key areas that virtual city hosts should address for sustaining their enterprise that encompasses the technologies and expertise. Hence, this research makes significant contribution to knowledge by bringing together the many considerations that virtual city hosts must consider when creating a sustainable process to support urban planning.

Over the past few decades, the issue of downtown revitalization has been a priority for planners and civic leaders. One strategy of attracting people, jobs and investment to the downtown is by constructing a catalytic facility that facilitates further growth, of which the sports stadium is ???by far??? the most prevalent example (Coates and Humphreys, 2011; p.5). However, the outcome of downtown stadium development has been inconsistent in cities across North America. The purpose of this thesis is to determine whether the built urban form impacts the outcome of downtown sports arenas and whether it contributes to civic image. An urban morphological analysis is conducted in order to evaluate the outcome of two multi-purpose sports arenas: Budweiser Gardens in London, ON and Copps Coliseum in Hamilton, ON. The analysis traces the evolution of both cities??? downtown urban form over time, identifying patterns to development by categorizing the townscape into three elements: the town plan unit (consisting of the street pattern, lot pattern and building pattern), the building fabric and land use. The urban morphological analysis was undertaken utilizing fire insurance maps, tax assessments and planning documents. In addition, a questionnaire was distributed to 200 residents of both case cities in order to gauge each facility's contribution to civic image. The results show that Budweiser Gardens has emerged as the more successful facility, namely due to two factors: (a) the arena is sited close to the central business district, in an area where the historical townscape has been preserved to a greater extent; and (b) because the unique design of the facility (which incorporates a replica of a historic building into the contemporary development) contributes to a higher degree of civic image than Copps Coliseum, which lacks both historic and current place references. The ultimate conclusion of this thesis is that urban morphological analyses should be incorporated into urban plans, so that the siting of future projects can be improved in order for cities to accrue the maximum benefits and return-on-investment.

Thesis (M. U. D.)--University of Hong Kong, 2007. / Also available in print.

Thesis (M.U.R.P. 1979) from the Department of Architecture, University of Adelaide.

Thesis (Ph. D.(Town and Regional Planning) -- University of Pretoria, 2009. / Summary in English. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M. Arch.)--University of Detroit Mercy, 2004. / "23 April 2004". Includes bibliographical references (p. 75-78).

Thesis (M.Arch.)--University of Detroit Mercy, 2005. / "2 May 2005". Includes bibliographical references (p. 121-122).

Thesis (M. Sc.)--University of Hong Kong, 1997. / Year of submission on cover: 1997. Includes bibliographical references (leaf 69-75).