There is much to discuss regarding what kinds of changes and shifts the coronavirus pandemic might bring to cities. Some of these could be spatial, subtle changes triggered by social distancing, confinement, and lockdown measures, and others might be articulated in new modes of social interaction and domestic activities. There will certainly be long-term effects on politics, socioeconomics, culture, and the environment. This issue of ‘MONU’ addresses what effects pandemics have on cities, both today and in the past, and analyses their urban impact, yet also looks for new ideas and approaches that improve our dealings with the current situation in these strange times.

As a complex urban system, the city constantly seeks balance. The rise of new ways to co-create or experience cities is breaking down traditional urban planning dichotomies. Interactive maps, mixed realities, 3D environments, and multiplayer settings are the new mediums through which an entire generation perceives the urban world. However paradoxical “designing for the self-organising city” may sound, today’s designers are challenged to propose new methods that in turn support the functioning of this system. ‘Play the City’ investigates “city gaming” as a valid method for transforming urban planning into an inclusive and self-organising process that will generate humane cities.

To provide for ever-growing populations, cities build new neighbourhoods, transform old industrial areas, and renew the existing urban fabric. The focus now is on energy-neutral neighbourhoods, but in order for these to work, residents must be engaged and the tactics embedded within a broader social policy. This book revisits the neighbourhood as the appropriate scale to build our urban futures: it is small enough to be tangible, large enough to make a difference. Introducing the concepts of neighbourhood arrangements and ecologies, it provides a new perspective on the relation between participants, resources, and rules to spark change and realise future sustainable living.

'Japan: Nation Building Nature' is the first book to map out the views of nature that have shaped the widely acclaimed but often misunderstood modern architecture of Japan. By connecting the dots between philosophy, design, geopolitics, and an earnest quest for a greener tomorrow, this book explains how Japanese culture can shed new light on our understanding of ecology, and vice-versa. Using a distinctive blend of academic research and personal experience, Joachim Nijs draws on architectural history to navigate Japan's complex and unique ecological ethic through the lens of four stereotypical phenomena: earthquakes, monsoon climates, nuclear erasure of life, and insularity.

This publication presents an in-depth study of collective housing through ten masterworks from the 20th century. For the first time, a+t research group has carried out a graphic architectural analysis, which includes 3D models of the buildings and highlights the most important contributions made by each of the works toward developing desirable housing. The publication recognises masters such as Ignazio Gardella, Michiel Brinkman, Ralph Erskine and Fumihiko Maki – individuals who have defended their personal visions of architecture – and includes such projects as Cité de la Muette, Casa Borsalino, Justus van Effen Complex, Byker Redevelopment and Le Centre Jeanne Hachette.

This publication considers urbanism as a fundamental preventive discipline, one which has the capacity to enhance the health and living quality of urban populations. It investigates the relationships between urbanism, urban health, and the built environment, with a specific focus on physical activity as one of the principal contributors to health conditions in the city. From an urban design and planning perspective, author Elena Dorato tackles the complex relationships and cause-and-effect processes that link the characteristics of cities to the well-being of their populations. A particular focus of her essay is on the dichotomy between the urban and human bodies.

'Socialist Architecture – The Reappearing Act' is a cooperation between the architect Srdjan Jovanovic Weiss and the photographer Armin Linke. Since 2009, Jovanovic Weiss and Linke are documenting the current state of selected places of socialistic architecture in the former Yugoslavia. After the disappearing of Yugoslavia, the inherited architecture often remained empty, in a kind of limbo between reutilisation and modern archaeological ruin. This documentation considered this indecisiveness in the five emerging democracies and investigates the relative impact on the spatial perception and the fate of the former ideological architecture of Yugoslavia.

This book tells the story of the sea-land continuum based on the case of the North Sea – one of the world’s most industrialised seas, in which the Netherlands plays a central role. The space of the North Sea is almost fully planned and has been simultaneously loaded with the task of increased economic production both from new and traditional maritime sectors, and emptied of cultural significance. Through different projects from academia, art, literature, and practice, from analysis to design, the book explores synergies for designing this new spatial realm.

'Real Urbanism' is a book for and by lovers of cities. Eleven authors (urban designers) wrote the stories of places in the world that may be considered to be examples of successful urban planning. This large volume contains work in Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Tokyo, Sao Paulo, Venice, Barcelona, London, New York, Edinburgh, and Saint Petersburg. Four young urban designers made the drawings to each chapter. New photography by Theo Baart and the graphic design by Irma Boom will lead to a unique presentation in book form.

In view of the current climate crisis and looming ecological catastrophe, environmentalism has become a key driver to rethink the architectural discipline. The publication 'Habitat: Ecology Thinking in Architecture' aims to highlight some of the historical sources of ecological approaches that are currently reshaping the architectural field. The book points out the paradigmatic shift in thinking about the built environment as something inherently contextual and relational. By demonstrating the continuities, disruptions and transformations at stake, the book deepens the ongoing conversations, while suggesting directions for future research.

Det var omkring sin tiende fødselsdag at Kengo Kuma kom i kontakt med Kenzo Tanges fiskelignende Yoyogi National Gymnastics-bygning, som ble fullført til OL i tokyo i 1964, og bestemte seg for at han skulle bli arktiekt. I løpet av de ti tiårene som har gått i mellomtiden, har han blitt en av verdens mest fascinerende og innflytelsesrike arkitekter. Hans utforming av det nasjonale stadiumet for OL i Tokyo slutter på poetisk vis sirkelen i hans karriere som arkitekt, og er en mulighet for ham til å reflektere over sin egen utvikling.

Kuma er kjent over hele verden for sine formalt dristige og materielt ekspressive bygninger; anerkjent for sin innovative bruk av tradisjonelle materialer, og sin bruk av innovative materialer i tradisjonelle former. Han er kanskje mindre kjent for sitt arbeid i hjemlandet Japan, hvor han jobber aktivt for å bevare gamle byggeteknikker og tradisjonelt håndtverk. En stor nysgjerrighet på alle former for bygninger og en rik kunnskap om verden etter omfattende reising gjør Kuma til en unik kommentator av Tokyos dynamiske arkitektur.
Gjennom tjuefem historier maler denne intime lille publikasjonen et bilde av hvordan en bygning inspirerte en gutt til å bli arkitekt, hvordan Japans nasjonale kulturarv formet hans tenkning, og hvordan hans profesjonelle erfaring har gjort ham til en av de mest suksessfulle arkitektene i sin generasjon. 
 

In contrast to the Western world, furniture does not have much of a presence within traditional Japanese architecture. Kengo Kuma believes that this unique stance towards furniture is not due solely to the practice of sitting on tatami matting on the floor, but rather also stems from the transparent nature of this architecture. Bringing large furniture with a strong presence into transparent spaces such as these would ruin the carefully crafted aesthetic. Over the centuries, Japanese designers have sought sophisticated designs that minimise scale and create delicate pieces. In this book, Kuma explores how to design modern furniture as an extension of these innovations.

Japan is renowned worldwide for its traditional crafts. 'Urushi' (lacquer), with its history of more than 1300 years and remarkable development of technique, is particularly noteworthy. This exhibition celebrates the 35th anniversary of the first 'Japan Traditional Urushi Works Exhibition'. The exhibition provides a comprehensive overview, ranging from artists from the Edo period to the new generation of urushi artists whose innovations are shaping traditional Urushi's future.

An integral part of everyday life in Kyoto, ikebana flower arrangements can be found gracing spaces from restaurants and inns to temples and art galleries. Although these unassuming presentations are often not made by specialists, they speak to the origins of ikebana as sacred offerings while also reflecting the attitude of respect toward the sacred and others that has been nurtured for hundreds of years in this ancient capital. This book presents the traditional spirit of Kyoto as it lives on through the seasons in flowers and vessels selected for each unique context, including some decidedly contemporary settings. With a foreword by textile dye historian Sachio Yoshioka.

Over the past decade, EcoShape has collaboratively designed, realised, monitored, and researched multiple projects that involve building with nature, not only in the Netherlands but also across Europe and in South East Asia. These projects demonstrate the ability to build nature-based solutions which create safe and sustainable flood protection as well as ecologically rich and resilient environments that provide attractive places to live, work, and visit. Here a dialogue with experts and stakeholders is presented on methodologies and experiences, illustrating key concepts and linking them to a range of landscapes and their underlying ecological, economic, and social systems.