TY - JOUR

T1 - Advertising and the metabolism of the city: urban spaces, commodity rhythms.

AU - Cronin, A. M.

N1 - "Cronin, Anne, 2006. The definitive, peer-reviewed and edited version of this article is published in Environment and Planning D : Society and Space, 24, 4, 615-632, 2006, 10.1068/d389t"

PY - 2006/8/1

Y1 - 2006/8/1

N2 - In this paper I explore the role of outdoor advertising in organising city space and framing people’s experience of that space. I examine how UK outdoor advertising companies remap that space, segmenting and pricing certain areas of cities, and routes to and around cities. I argue that, in this cartographic, taxonomising role, advertising constitutes one of the forces that continually makes and remakes city space. Using Lefebvre’s concept of city rhythms, I argue that outdoor advertising acts to align the urban rhythms of travel and work with the commercial rhythms of product innovation, promotion, and the life cycle of the commodity. This creates an urban time –space of ‘commodity rhythms’ which has important implications for people’s experience of cities whilst engendering new connections between commodities and people moving around cities. I argue that this constitutes an adaptation of Foucault’s biopolitics where it is precisely the rhythmic connections between populations of people and populations (and life cycles) of commodities that are at stake: it is a mutation of the metabolism of city spaces.

AB - In this paper I explore the role of outdoor advertising in organising city space and framing people’s experience of that space. I examine how UK outdoor advertising companies remap that space, segmenting and pricing certain areas of cities, and routes to and around cities. I argue that, in this cartographic, taxonomising role, advertising constitutes one of the forces that continually makes and remakes city space. Using Lefebvre’s concept of city rhythms, I argue that outdoor advertising acts to align the urban rhythms of travel and work with the commercial rhythms of product innovation, promotion, and the life cycle of the commodity. This creates an urban time –space of ‘commodity rhythms’ which has important implications for people’s experience of cities whilst engendering new connections between commodities and people moving around cities. I argue that this constitutes an adaptation of Foucault’s biopolitics where it is precisely the rhythmic connections between populations of people and populations (and life cycles) of commodities that are at stake: it is a mutation of the metabolism of city spaces.

U2 - 10.1068/d389t

DO - 10.1068/d389t

M3 - Journal article

VL - 24

SP - 615

EP - 632

JO - Environment and Planning D: Society and Space

JF - Environment and Planning D: Society and Space

SN - 0263-7758

IS - 4

ER -