TEMPORARY URBAN INSTALLATIONS: TOOLS TO INSPIRE LONG-TERM CHANGES IN PUBLIC SPACES

Abstract

This research aims to highlight a contemporary trend of architects involving themselves in the creation of temporary urban installations with the common aim of intensifying public spaces. It seeks to show that these installations in the urban landscape not only temporarily change the social and spatial relationships of the spaces they are situated in, but also act as tools to catalyse further changes with regards to the reimagining of and using of public spaces even after the original installation no longer stands. In light of current debates regarding the decline in quality and accessibility of public spaces, the challenge today is to further imagine public spaces as more than just designated city spaces with pre-determined functions in which the public may gather or linger, but as places where the multiplicity of social interactions and practices can be played out continually through actions of the public themselves. Installations, being small-scale, temporary, site-specific works that create spaces which encourages one’s total immersion and experience, are tactics to challenge the status quo and create awareness, to reveal sometimes suppressed layers of relationships. This study focuses on installations that occur within small-scale urban open spaces and “everyday spaces” that the public encounters during their daily casual use. This is with the belief that installations in such can spark actions that directly affect the social and spatial relationships of these spaces. The paper will first present a brief background of spatial tactics and common urban phenomena related to temporary actions in urban spaces, then the groups Atelier d’Architecture Autogérée, Raumlabor and Rebar will be analysed. This is to understand their strategies employed in engaging the public and their collaborations within their cities, regions and around the world. Specific examples from each group will show how architect’s role can extend to that of an initiator and facilitator, empowering the public to reinterpret and act on spaces in the city for themselves. These will then be used to assess the impacts of their installations on the public, on architecture and on the city. It is hoped that this paper will show why these temporary urban installations are important in urban public spaces, as they are not end products in themselves, but processes and useful tools to affect further changes beyond their physical lifespan.