THE BRIARWOOD SHOPPING MALL

THE BRIARWOOD SHOPPING MALL
CONRAD KICKERT M.U.D. WINTER 2006
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
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INTRODUCTION
HISTORY
THE BRIARWOOD MALL
CONCLUSION
BIBLIOGRAPHY
3
4
9
13
14
INTRODUCTION
“We want you to get lost.”
Tim Magill - designer Mall of America
This paper will revolve around two main themes. Firstly, the history of the institutions that created the mall will be analyzed,
as the paper will attempt to explain the reasoning behind the
mall. Secondly, the mall will be posed as an example of physical determinism. The relation between the physical design and
the (desired) human behavior will be researched, using theories explained in the course. The latter part will encompass most
of the physical analyses of the Briarwood shopping mall.
Both parts will be connected with a main conclusion, where
a final critique is given of the Briarwood suburban mall, and a
connection to current developments will be made.
THE DIXIELAND MALL - DESERTED AFTER THE BLUES BROTHERS RECORDING
In this paper I will analyze the prototype of the suburban shopping mall. The physical analysis will be performed on the Briarwood shopping mall, a few miles south of Ann Arbor. In this
case, the actual mall is used only as an example of the American suburban mall.
BRIARWOOD MALL - 3
HISTORY
THE GARDEN CITY AND URBAN FLIGHT
In order to understand the birth and life of the suburban
shopping mall, it is interesting to look at the conception of
its ideas, and its position in the social institutions in America.
It is important to divide the suburban shopping mall into two
notions:
Birkenhead Park in Liverpool and its predecessor, Central
Park in New York, were conceived as a way to bring nature
back to the citizen. The natural setting of a park created
an interesting balance between urban escapism and social
engagement.
-it is suburban
-it is a shopping mall
The balance between city and nature was emphasized in
the Garden City, written by Ebenezer Howard. It was a clear
response to the crowded conditions of the city, as it offered
an attractive alternative. The city and the countryside each
were considered as ‘magnets’, each with their advantages
and disadvantages. Through a new mix of city and countryside in Garden Cities, a new balance could be created
between the crowded but civic city and the natural but
savage countryside: the suburb was born. Even though
Howard’s proposal was complex in its attempt to create a
subtle balance between city and countryside, it is generally
considered as one of the main theories behind suburbanization1.
These two notions are not necessarily interlinked, and each
has its own position in history. The two can exist without each
other. Suburbs exist without a shopping mall, and shopping
malls exist not only in suburban settings. Perhaps a layered
approach is more appropriate, where the suburban shopping mall can be seen as one of the physical parts of a
suburb.
The suburban shopping mall has always been a part of suburban theory. From its conception, with the Garden City
model by Ebenezer Howard, all through its renaissance
through the Lifestyle Center, the mall and the retail experience has been engrained in American suburban culture.
The notion of the suburban shopping mall however, does
not originate from the United States, but from England. In
the context of 19th century industrialization, the population of British cities had grown at an explosive rate. As cities
became overcrowded places, with a lack of hygiene and
moral values, the call for an escape became ever greater.
Early movements such as the Park’s movement created
oases in the city through the creation of picturesque parks.
BRIARWOOD MALL - 4
While Howard was reserved in his approach to the physical
outcome of his diagrams, some elements are of great importance in the conception of the suburban shopping mall.
His radial city diagram clearly has an urban center, with
main civic functions grouped around a recognizable core.
Of great importance in the conception of the suburban
shopping mall in this diagram is the ‘Crystal Palace’, that
circles around the central park. Howard has the following
description of its function:
“Running all round the Central Park (except where it is intersected by the boulevards) is a wide glass arcade called the
‘Crystal Palace’, opening on to the park. This building is in wet
weather one of the favourite resorts of the people, whilst the
knowledge that its bright shelter is ever close at hand tempts
people into Central Park, even in the most doubtful of weathers. Here manufactured goods are exposed for sale, and here
most of that class of shopping which requires the joy of deliberation and selection is done. The space enclosed by the
Crystal Palace is, however, a good deal larger than is required
for these purposes, and a considerable part of it is used as a
Winter Garden… “2
1. The simplification of complex and well-balanced theories has created not only
the suburb, it also created the suburban shopping mall. More about this later.
2. Ebenezer Howard - the Garden City of tomorrow - p54
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The notion of a place, sheltered from the forces of nature,
where manufactured goods are exposed, and can be bought,
is a strikingly exact desciption of the contemporary suburban
shopping mall. However, Howard clearly conceived this palace as a place for public gathering and civic use. This notion
connects well to the theories behind shopping mall design,
conceived by Victor Gruen, the father of the enclosed shopping mall.
Parma - drawing by Camillo Sitte
Victor Gruen was born in Vienna, in 1938. He grew up in the
medieval core of Vienna, a part of the city cited and praised
by Camillo Sitte, and enjoyed education at the Academy of
Fine Arts. Even though he was mainly a retail architect, Gruen
was known as a socialist. In most of his professional career in
Vienna, he designed storefronts and interiors for the city’s most
prestigious department and specialty stores. With the upcoming of the nazi empire, Gruen decided to fled from Austria, and
arrived in New York with ‘eight dollars, an architecture degree,
and no English.”
Soon after his arrival he continued his work as a retail designer,
creating new shop types for prestigious stores on Fifth Avenue.
His tradition of breaking with the past, and a strong belief in
progress led to his contributions at the World’s Fair in 1939. He
participated in GM’s famous Futurama model that was a big
hit at the fair. Later Gruen commented on the model as ‘selling
the 1950s interstate highway plan’, as it displayed the American
public a modern world of the Automobile. This world revolved
around the new order of the private car, as it contrasted this
compelling image to the chaotic landscape of the US in the
late 1930s.3
Futurama - Bell Geddes and General Motors corp.
BRIARWOOD MALL - 6
The most important accomplishment of Victor Gruen however,
is the invention of the enclosed shopping mall. With a prelude
of his model at the Nortland mall near Detroit, the Southdale
mall near Minneapolis opened in 1956. A fully enclosed mall,
with 72 stores in a double storey structure, with ample parking
located at what was then the outer fringe of the city.
Even though his work was profoundly modern, his theories and
concepts were derived from his history in Vienna. Gruen saw
the modern shopping mall as a community center, a center
for civic gathering. His notion of the mall had close ties with
Howard’s model of the shopping mall. Another importance influence in his work was Camillo Sitte. The architectural expression of irregularity and a small human scale was closely woven
into the work of Gruen. The most important element he derived
from Sitte’s theories was the notion of a civic square, with central functions and a landmark element. Gruen supported the
notion of an esthetically pleasing public space that would reinforce civic culture.4
Northland Mall - Detroit - drawing by Victor Gruen
He basically inserted a romanticized model of the central European downtown into the increasingly car-dominated landscape of the US. As he acknowledged the importance of small
scaled variety, the interesting spatial forms of organic urban
models, he felt that mall design should incorporate the ““study
[of] the anatomy of the organically or sensitively planned old
urban pattern which consists of a rich vocabulary of clearly
defined urban spaces.”5
A truly traditional notion, merged with the modern ideal of the
shopping mall. Most of his early shopping mall designs incorporated a central square with an important non-commercial
function, such as a children’s playground, indoor tropical gardens and even animal exhibits.
Southdale Mall - Minneapolis - image by Maitland
3. Hardwick - Mall Maker-Victor Gruen, architect of an american dream - p18
4. “John Peter interviews Victor Gruen”, Library of Congress John Peter Collection,
Transcripts, Box 3, Title 32-33, Folder “Gruen, Victor”
5 Gruen - Centers for the urban environment - p83
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It is interesting to research the romantic escapism that was
an important part in Gruen’s conception of the enclosed
shopping mall. As he recognized the growing importance
of the automobile, but also the destructive effects on urban space, Gruen created the Northland mall. It removed
the large automobile from the public realm, and created a
small-scaled pedestrian environment. Slowly external variables were removed from the shopping mall experience,
as Gruen removed climate in his enclosed Southdale mall,
and in later designs even direct sunlight was removed from
the mall.
developers over-simplified his originall mall model and optimized it for profit, he retired in 1968 as a disillusioned man.
Currently, retail design is a very important part of the shopping experience. The model of the enclosed mall has been
optimized by generations of architects and developers, such
as Alfred Taubman. The mall has proven to be the optimal
enclosed environment, to fully focus on the shopping experience. The elimination of external variables has transformed
the contemporary shopping mall from a romantic medieval
model to an excellent example of physical determinism.
It can be argued that was an essentially utopian move,
as Gruen attempted to recreate the perfect (pedestrian)
shopping experience. One can also argue the other way
around, and state that modern mall design was an attempt
to remove the shopper away from the outside world and
place him/her into a retail machine. Both of these argumentations however, recognize that Gruen’s design of the shopping mall did not encompass the environment in which the
mall existed. The a-contextuality seems Modern in a sense.
Interestingly enough, Gruen did base his design on a theoretical framework that encompassed the urban environment, and the suburban crisis it endured in the 1950s and
1960s. Gruen created the mall as a ‘community center’,
and placed the model not only in the suburban automobile
context, but also integrated his vision of the pedestrian mall
into urban cores, as he did in downtown Kalamazoo, Michigan. He originally conceived the mall as an effort to revitalize the American city. In later decades, as his model was
picked up by developers, and further rationalized, Gruen
acknowledged that the suburban shopping mall did just the
reverse, as it further weakened the American downtown,
and increased car dependence. While he argued that
BRIARWOOD MALL - 8
Burdick street mall - Kalamazoo - postcard
THE BRIARWOOD MALL
MALLS AND PHYSICAL DETERMINISM
As described in the last chapter, the mall has shifted from a
romanticized utopia to an optimized model for retail profit. The
mall is an excellent example of physical determinism, where
human behavior is manipulated by physical surroundings. All
senses are served: sight, sound, smell and touch have been
extensively researched. The modern shopping mall is a laboratory, where the shopper is subject to a wide variety of psychological influences, all aimed at a maximum amount of money
spent in a shopping trip.
The Briarwood shopping mall has been built in the 1970s by
the Taubman mall development firm. The mall design is based
on a model that has been used for hundreds of mall all over
the United States, making it an excellent research subject. The
mall will be ‘reverse-engineered’: mall design strategies will be
projected on the actual mall layout, as the mall layout will be
uncovered. The approach is somewhat similar to Hillier’s theory of discovering social patterns behind physical spaces. In
contrast to his theories, where social patterns had to be uncovered from a certain space pattern, this research already
knows some of the social patterns. Others will be uncovered as
several aspects of the mall will be analyzed. (Certain elements
of the mall analysis are taken from an analysis made by me in
September 2005. )
The strategies used to maximize the expenditure of mall visitors are not easy to retrieve. They are generally considered as
trade secrets, and mall design associations do not give their
secrets too much exposure. However, most of these strategies
have been based on research performed in the field of behav-
Briarwood overview - image by Conrad Kickert
Design parti - image by Conrad Kickert
BRIARWOOD MALL - 9
ioral sciences. The psychological effects of physical environments have been researched, and results have been used in
strategies for profit maximization.
A very important element in psychological influencing is called
the ‘Gruen Transfer’, after Victor himself. It is “…the moment
a person senses the size the mall – their jaws may open, their
eyes may glaze over for a just a second. And they are transformed from a person who came to the mall for a purpose,
into a shopping drone. Ripe for the next battery of psychological assaults.”6 Interesting research has been done by Douglas
Rushkoff on the varied vocabulary of types of psychological
pressure that is exerted on mall visitors.7
The strategies can be divided into three main themes:
-attract the visitor
-keep in the visitor
-make the visitor spend money
Since malls are mainly along large car infrastructure, signage
is an important way of attracting potential visitors. An interesting comparison can be made between signage of shopping
malls, and the signs explained in Venturi’s famous book Learning from Las Vegas.8 Even through its banality it attracts the
visitor, giving the mall a strong overall image with an easy to
read logo. The attention span of the potential visitor is short
due to the high speed and the external variables, so a large
and simple logo has to leave a permanent impression.
Another way of attracting visitors is through anchoring the mall
with large department stores. These stores are magnets for mall
trips, since malls are usually a car trip away from the customer
base. Examples of anchor stores are grocery stores, clothing
stores and general department stores. The existence of anchors are very important for the profitability of all shops in a
BRIARWOOD MALL - 10
mall. So important that in some cases rents have been waived
for anchor stores, in order to attract them to a mall.9
Suburban malls are basically set up with anchors at the ends
of a route. The anchors will act as the bait, and once the mall
visitor is captured, the actual game can begin.
The most important goal of mall design is to keep visitors in as
long as possible. Once they are attracted to the mall, a large
vocabulary of strategies is used to retain visitors. A very important aspect is to disorient and confuse the mall user. At least
three turns are made between the car and the actual inside of
the mall, so visitors do not directly find their way out. Inside the
mall, ‘anchor realms’ are created. Each anchor has its own unobstructed space with shops, connected through bends with
other anchor realms. Inside a mall, one cannot see one anchor
entrance from another entrance. A lack of daylight and clocks
will take away the notion of time in the mind of the visitor. Any
outdoor views are obstructed, exits are carefully concealed.
Research has proven that the distance traveled between anchors cannot be longer than 600 feet, so malls have a different anchor points at this distance. Circular routes instead of
anchor connectors are another way of keeping visitors inside,
as there is no end to their walk. The latter strategy is also often
used in urban settings.
One thing is to keep in the visitor, another is to make him/her
actually spend money. Again all senses are used to create a
shopping impulse. Vista terminations are often used to draw
the sight and attention of passersby to billboards and shopfronts. The result is often a winding shopping passage, remark6. Douglass Rushkoff - CBS Sunday Morning Transcript 2002
7. www.rushkoff.com
8. Venturi et al. - Learning from Las Vegas - 1972
9. Robert Gibbs - Ann Arbor public library lecture transcript - 2005
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ably similar to a medieval organic road pattern. Eye contact
must be made with as much retail space as possible. Sense is
used: the touch of a hardwood floor and a soft carpet: each
have their own effect on the mood of the customer. Sound
is an important aspect. The unremarkable Muzak™ is actually
a highly engineered beat optimized for shopping experience.
Smell is used as bakeries and department stores spread the
smell of their products through their stores, as to appeal to the
hunger of the customer.
a Muzak stimulus progression chart from the 1950s
Shop entrances are more sparse around the exit corridors.
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The Briarwood shopping mall is no exception: the suburban
shopping mall strategies are all used to lure, please and empty
the pockets of the mall visitor. Truth must be said that the mall
is not necessarily oppressive place. The Briarwood mall actually
does function as a space for civic gathering in the southern
suburbs of Ann Arbor, as for instance elderly aerobic groups
gather in the mall to perform their exercises in an air-conditioned atmosphere. Even though the mall is geared towards
one function, multi-faceted urban life takes place inside it. An
interesting example is the right of free speech in an essentially
privatized space as the shopping mall. In the case of the Pruneyard shopping center in California, the California court has
ruled that “under the California Constitution, individuals may
peacefully exercise their right to free speech in parts of private
shopping centers regularly held open to the public, subject to
reasonable regulations adopted by the shopping centers.10
CONCLUSION
DEAD OR ALIVE
The suburban shopping mall can be seen as an example of
physical determinism. Derived from a romanticized model of
the central European downtown, the mall is a highly optimized
model. Essentially a modern retail principle, neglecting its context, combined with the postmodern eclecticism and quest
for simulation. It is arguable that with good intentions, Gruen
created the seed to sew for generations of developers. His
romantic Viennese model was combined with psychological
research on every sense of the mall visitor. The mall as a laboratory for ongoing psychological research, hidden from the
outside world.
Public opinion about the shopping mall is shifting, as the original psychological mall model is slowly replaced. The most recent development in mall evolution is undoubtedly the Lifestyle Center. As current indoor malls are deemed dark and
obsolete, the mall is opened up, and recreated as an original
Main Street. The circle is now closed. From the original model
to ‘enhance Main Streets’ to a suburban typology of the European main streets, to a highly researched laboratory for retail
optimalization, back to an exact replacement for the American Main Street. The best of American urbanism is collaged together inside a themed setting, with a dense mix of (profitable)
uses, while still a strictly private property.11 Would the real Main
Street please stand up?
Rampart Commons Lifestyle Center - images courtesy AIA
11. www.slate.com/id/2116246
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
Ebenezer Howard - the Garden City of to-morrow, 1902
Hardwick - Mall Maker , 2004
Barry Maitland - Shopping Malls, planning and design, 1985
Venturi et al. - Learning from Las Vegas - 1972
Gruen - Centers for the urban environment, 1973
Rowe, Koetter - Collage City, 1984
“John Peter interviews Victor Gruen”, Library of Congress John Peter Collection, Transcripts, Box 3, Title 32-33, Folder “Gruen, Victor”
Douglass Rushkoff - CBS Sunday Morning, transcript 2002
Robert Gibbs - Ann Arbor public library lecture, transcript - 2005
www.rushkoff.com
www.slate.com/id/2116246
“The’ve got everything here!” - Elwood Blues about Dixie Square Mall
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