The picture at left illustrates Jerde's
idea of "a series of special districts", with the winding
canal and concave and convex structures pushing and pulling one's
gaze and attention. And it is this picture that I find the most
intriguing, and disturbing. The basic parti of the American indoor
mall, a double-loaded corridor, is taken outside, warped and
filled with water. The canal limits one's movement through the
development and, therefore, manipulates one's experience to a
greater degree than a mall. Since Canal City is a private development
the "rules" of the street fade away. The freedom of
movement of the street is replaced by precise circulation patterns
and staged spectacles; the antithesis of the city. The eclectic
architecture attempts to replace what is taken away: instead
of the discovery of the unexpected that the city offers, Canal
City offers the manipulated detour towards the usual.
