Document Type
Dissertation
Publication Date
2008
Abstract
Since 1970, oil has given the Arab Gulf cities the opportunity to break regional and international records in urban development and economic growth, experiencing dramatic changes in the political, economic and socio-cultural domains, and especially in architecture and urbanism. The development of oil urbanization was shaped by the different practices of "Urban Branding" and city marketing processes. More important, "Urban branding" presents the duality of the emerging cityscape, in which the "perceived images" of the city as a tangible experience of the "urban landscape" interacts with the "brand image" of the city created by the media generated image or "urban Mediascape", establishing new approaches and directions for research and interpretation. The research aims at examining whether a balance between the presentation of the identity of places and the urban development of the Gulf cities can be achieved. Also, it aims to establish a planning framework that incorporates the practice of urban branding in the design and planning of cities. The research is based on a "thematic" approach combining empirical descriptive approach and comparative analysis method in analyzing and assessing selected examples and the interpretation of case studies.
Recommended Citation
Helmy, M. (2008). Urban branding strategies and the emerging Arab cityscape: the image of the Gulf city, Dissertation, Stuttgart University.