Atime of Rapid Change

Raymond Isaacs is an architect and an Assistant Professor in the School ofLandscape Architecture at Louisiana State University. He recently completed his doctoral dissenation in landscape architecture. He has taught urban design at the Technical University ofDresden, Germany. His research involves the design and experience ofurban places,focusing on aesthetics, nature, and issues of contemporary urbanism. The condition of contemporary cities is one of change and fleetingness. Within this condition, the image of a city and individuals' identities with that city are ephemeral qualities. As culture and commerce become increasingly independent of local and regional boundaries, there is a tendency toward homogeneity ofboth the social environments of cities and their spatial environments. Throughout the twentieth century in Dresden, Germany, radical transformations in ideological views and social structures have brought about dramatic transformations in the urban landscape. The process of transformation continues following the renting of the iron curtain, the re-unification of Germany, the emergence of the European Union, and increasing international exchange. Though a bit extreme, the current situation of Dresden reflects those of other cities as they struggle to define their images and identities in a time of increasing globalization of commerce and culture. As the city emerges as a competitor in the global economy, a concerted effort is being made to establish an image that is unique and readily identifiable by the residents of Dresden and by outsiders. A single painting by Canaletto has become the blueprint for that image. However, how does that time­ frozen snap-shot made in the middle of the eighteenth century serve a contemporary community that is moving rapidly into the future? A closer look at both the city and the painting reveal that there is more to the picture than meets the eye.