A “Motor” for the Neighbourhood? Urban Planning and the Challenges of Relocating Cultural Infrastructures (original) (raw)
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IMAGINING THE CITY AS A SPACE FOR CULTURAL POLICY
On the basis of empirical evidence from a comparative study of public spaces in five European cities (Sofia, Budapest, Manchester, St. Petersburg and Lvov) the author comes to conclusion that more than ever urban public space at the present moment turns into arena of clash between private and public interests, on the one hand, and, on the other, a cross-point between official urban policy and increasing self-enlightened consciousness of the 'urbanites' as a process of critical public debate. From such point of view recent social developments on the territory of European cities contest the Habermasian diagnosis, that in late modern societies the critical discourse is non-public, while the public activities are non-critical. The public life of modern cities forms part of new cultural policy understood as a result of complex interplay between citizens and key actors of urban governance.
Practices of cultural production within a peripheral urban neighbourhood can contribute to foster the sense of place, community belonging and local collective action. Starting from a critical perspective on the interconnections between cultural practices and urban regeneration, and developing on the concept of place-making, the paper has two main purposes: to investigate the nature of embeddedness of these practices and explore the ways of self-organization of cultural actors and their relationships with public policies. The case study concerns ‘Barriera di Milano’, a large peripheral area in Turin (Italy), formerly one of the most industrialized zones of the city. Over the past few years, and particularly after the real-estate bubble burst of 2007–2008, in Barriera a lively concentration of initiatives of culture has been taking place, redefining the urban and social space. These initiatives seem to be innovative for many reasons: firstly, while demonstrating a peculiar but significant embeddedness in the neighbourhood, they are mostly self-generated; secondly, the institutional assets, the economic self-sufficiency and the low degree of connection among initiatives support new forms of citizenship and place-making based on a ‘not-for-profit entrepreneurship’.
Practices of cultural production within a peripheral urban neighbourhood can contribute to foster the sense of place, community belonging and local collective action. Starting from a critical perspective on the interconnections between cultural practices and urban regeneration, and developing on the concept of place-making, the paper has two main purposes: to investigate the nature of embeddedness of these practices and explore the ways of self-organization of cultural actors and their relationships with public policies. The case study concerns 'Barriera di Milano', a large peripheral area in Turin (Italy), formerly one of the most industrialized zones of the city. Over the past few years, and particularly after the real-estate bubble burst of 2007-2008, in Barriera a lively concentration of initiatives of culture has been taking place, redefining the urban and social space. These initiatives seem to be innovative for many reasons: firstly, while demonstrating a peculiar but significant embeddedness in the neighbourhood, they are mostly self-generated; secondly, the institutional assets, the economic self-sufficiency and the low degree of connection among initiatives support new forms of citizenship and place-making based on a 'not-for-profit entrepreneurship'.
Paper for the Conflicts in the city Congres: "Cultural centres as mediators for local conflicts"
2014
The urban space in European cities is undergoing deep transformation, through formal and informal initiatives. The gentrification of poor neighbourhoods is often counterbalanced by fast projects of local revitalization fostered by public or private actors which seldom leave time to local population to adapt to those changes. In these processes, previous existing inhabitants face difficulties to accustom themselves to an evolution in the commercial, housing and public space fabric that is targeted to the new wealthier segments of urban dwellers.
Cultural Studies Association Taiwan Annual Conference, 2023
The public space at cultural buildings overlaps with everyday urban space but possesses a more complex quality, as cultural spaces are carefully curated to reflect institutional value yet are constantly challenged by public and artistic actions. It is, therefore, not a neutral container of cultural events but a platform for discourse that plays an important role in a democratic society. At a time of rising tension between the public and the establishment, particularly in Hong Kong since the recent social movement, it would be timely to revisit the mediating capacity of culture and cultural spaces. How can we reimagine the monumental cultural architecture as an inhabited everyday space that contributes to cultural participation and development? Taking the Hong Kong Cultural Centre (HKCC) as an intrinsic case study, this paper set out to investigate spatial production against the framework of cultural democracy and participation. The research analyses spatial conditions and cultural expressions in public space with a socio-spatial approach in response to the hegemonic institutional influence. Furthermore, it will review the changing status of the HKCC from a late 20th-century cultural landmark and speculate on its future positioning as an everyday space. In the context of recent social changes, what would be the role of the HKCC if it is no longer the prime cultural venue and tourist destination? How do cultural practitioners work in institutional space against its implicit and explicit control? How can a dialogue between institutional power and the public happen through spatial and cultural practice? The findings lead to an agonistic urbanism perspective towards public space practice, with a proposal to reconsider cultural spaces as a network of symbiotic individual instances, moving away from the reliance on a singular, powerful institution for cultural provision.
about citizen participation in European cultural centres. It is motivated by a double challenge. The first challenge and motivation is to exploreand also createalternatives to the declining engagement in democratic and societal institutions across Europe. In the wake of the political and economical crisis of the early 21st century, many traditional institutions seem to be losing legitimacy. Partly as a reaction to this, new participatory repertoires are evolving. Public institutions respond to the challenge by attempting to engage citizens and turn users and audiences into active "participants". Simultaneously, we witness a bottom up response where citizens demand to be involved and expect that their contributions make a visible difference. This expectation is present in do-it-yourself initiatives, in civil attempts to solve current societal challenges, as well as in new demands to more traditional institutions.
Beyond Building Envelop: Urban Form of Cultural Public Space
International Seminar of Urban Form 2019 conference proceedings, 2019
Cultural buildings are the key-pieces that gives character to urban form, yet it is more often perceived as the iconic landmark, an isolated object that is devoid of context. The significance of cultural buildings should be more than its visual impact, but to play a greater part in the making of urban form. This paper explores the role of cultural buildings in the city beyond the nominal aesthetic or functional view. The architecture is then read as the container of social space, contributing to the public realm at a spatial and experiential dimension. Grounded in the approach of Nolli map and figure-ground drawings, cases of contemporary cultural buildings are examined in plan through multiple scale from building to site and districts, to review how they respond to the urban context. The review of two international cases of cultural architecture sets the tone of this approach, followed by a detail analysis of the recently complete theatre at the West Kowloon Cultural District in Hong Kong. The result of this study presents a renewed perspective on cultural buildings in the city, and their contribution to the creation of public space and urban form. ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………