Guerrilla Architecture
“…The question of what kind of city we want cannot be divorced from the question of what kind of people we want to be, what kinds of social relations we seek, what relations to nature we cherish, what style of daily life we desire, what kinds of technologies we deem appropriate, what aesthetic values we hold.” –David Harvey, The Right to The City
Intrinsically, architecture will
affect the urban and social fabric of a city. It is our right and our duty to
seek out ways to be involved in decisions that will ultimately impact our way
of life. If we want to change as a society, making a change in the urban fabric
would be a great place to start.
Unfortunately, this is oftentimes
easier said than done. Architect Santi Cirugeda from Seville, Spain has been
fighting a losing battle for nearly two decades. Spain experienced a financial
crisis from 2008 to 2014, in which the people were plagued with unemployment
and a government unable to help or even ensure basic human rights. During this
time, the people came together and formed collectives in an effort to better
their communities and themselves.
As stated by Cirugeda, “We are
citizens, we can intervene – this is fundamental. If citizens can reclaim their
role as protagonists, which we have lost in recent years when we became
indiscriminate consumers, then the people themselves can say what they need.”
Santi is a part of a nationwide
architects’ collective, which works to help other collectives across Spain reclaim
abandoned public spaces and building skeletons. Santi and his team stretch the
limits of legality in order to complete these projects. Operating in a unique
design-build style, which is not yet legal in Spain, these architects are
taking on all liability with the hope of making their communities a better
place.
Yo yo to my fellow community builder. Based on this post, do you believe that in terms of community impact, design-build firms can have a much bigger role in the architectural fabric than corporate firms? Something about the design build process is so deeply rooted in the community. From the predesign community dialogues to the job site conversations with the users. These projects, to me at least, seem like they have an enormous effect on the morale of the surrounding areas. obviously buildings like new community centers can also have a big impact, but at a bigger cost that some neighborhoods can not always afford. To me it is the down and dirtiness and the lower expenses that make design builds more successful.
ReplyDeleteBrittany, I really liked the quote that you pulled for your post this week. There were several pieces of that article that stood out to me, but I do think that this one was one of my favorites. People do not realize the impact that they have on a city and how much they can impact it in a good way if they would just speak up a little. As John said, the projects help boost the morale of the surrounding areas.
ReplyDeleteBrittany,
ReplyDeleteI love the quote you pulled for this blog post. During our time in Charleston, we worked exclusively with community based projects while also reading a ton of books on craftsmanship. I love how Santi Cirugeda also looked at the same basic notions we were taught to help transform neighborhoods in Spain. I hope that the idea of architecture continues to move in this direction!