056 - Marthinus Grobler: Free City Design, Fiat Architecture & New Urbanism

15-12-2023 • 1 hr 31 mins

Urban Design, Modernism, The Elite Class, Progressivism, Fiat Architecture, Central Planning, New Urbanism, Dubai & The Emirates.

Timothy Allen talks with Marthinus Grobler.

Todays’ show is an episode about architecture & Free City planning with Marthinus Grobler.

Marthinus is the chief architect at Tipolis, a company that I would describe as being at the forefront of planning, building and operating Free City projects throughout the globe.

I loved talking to Martinus. Not least because he let me rant about one of my personal bugbears: Modernist architecture. However, during our discussion we also touch upon subjects such as urban design, progressivism, central planning, new urbanism, fiat architecture and I get Martinus’s opinion on what he thinks of the way that the design of the modern Emirates have evolved as a possible case study for urban planning in the future, something that has left me wondering whether skyscrapers and high rise buildings are a good idea at all.

Enjoy the conversation.

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LIBERTY IN OUR LIFETIME CONFERENCE

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://libertyinourlifetime.org/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

TIMESTAMPS

0:30: Introduction.
6:08: What is your career history?
10:44: The Modernist movement in architecture and its impact.
15:24: Postmodernism and its impact on society.
20:46: Intellectual ideas about architecture.
23:12: Fiat architecture.
27:54: Urban planning and new urbanism.
33:28: Designing a Free City with a focus on property rights and beauty.
39:55: Building styles and preferences in a hypothetical Free City.
44:21: Power dynamics in society and the importance of alternative networks.
50:00: Decentralized planning and architecture.
54:08: Architectural design and urban planning in the Middle East.
1:02:16: Is high rise living a good idea?
1:06:07: Architecture, beauty, and urban design in Prague.
1:13:06: Which buildings should be centrally planned?
1:18:17: Can you speak about any current Tipolis projects?
1:22:43: Modernist buildings and longevity.