resource, dialogue, & projects wiki for the "Engaged Media Workshop" @ REMAP-TFT-UCLA
a module of Remapping-LA
Collette
From En_gag_e
[edit] Third Place
Ray Oldenburg wrote several articles in the 1980s, which eventually lead to a book called "The Great Good Place:Cafes, Coffee Shops, Bookstores, Bars, Hair Salons, and Other Hangouts at the Heart of a Community." These places, often referred to as 'The Third Place' function as sites of congregation and community building for friends, strangers, neighbors, and anyone otherwise engaged with the merits of 'hanging out' and socializing in public space. The Third Place is distinct from the private home or workplace (Places 1 and 2, respectively) as it is designed for leisure, entertainment, public discourse and simply 'hangin out.'
In Oldenburg's words, when "citizens of a community find places to spend pleasurable hours with one another for no specific or obvious purpose, there IS purpose to such association. Further, the most important of the purposes or functions served by informal public gathering places cannot be supplied by any other agencies in society" (Oldenburg, 1999, ix). I believe that with the growing influence of corporatized space in public life, these independently owned and operated third places such as the neighborhood cafe, coffeeshop and independent bookstore, remain a vital site of informal social gathering as well as contributing to a sense of shared community identity.
I have always loved the neighborhood coffee house, whether it was in a community i was already a member or not. In fact, the best coffee houses for me were the ones that I found while hitchhiking across the US in my early twenties. While travelling alone, it was always a source of comfort to find the local cafe where I knew I could park my backpack for a few hours and savor a cup of coffee on the cheap, while meeting new people and learning about cool events. Because these cafes are open to everyone in the community, I often find a rare social layering of diverse peoples, and the cafe often cuts across class boundaries in ways that other institutions do not.
Los Angeles has a plethora of these independently owned and operated business that cater to various groups and communities, and with varying cultural objectives. Some of the places I have visited and regularly spend leisure time are:
The Bourgeois Pig in Franklin Village [1] Lucy Florence Cafe and Cultural Center in Leimert Park [2] Sabor y Cultura Coffee Shop on Hollywood [3] Psycho Babble Coffee House on Vermont, in Los Feliz [4] Skylight Books on Vermont in Los Feliz [5] The Coffee Table in Silverlake [6] Counterpoint Books on Franklin [7] Cafe Metropol on 3rd, downtown LA [8]
Each of these places offers a range of activities and fun things to do, and a good cup of coffee.
The Third Place at Wikipedia [9]
[edit] Friction of Distance
“The concept of "friction of distance" is based on the notion that distance usually requires some amount of effort, money, and/or energy to overcome. Because of this "friction," spatial interactions will tend to take place more often over shorter distances; quantity of interaction will decline with distance. Distance will have more of an attenuating effect on some types of interaction than on others.”
I am interested in this concept as it relates to spatial affect, relationships people form to their environments and the influence of both on interpersonal relationships...
