The Architecture of Democracy, Power and Performance in Neoliberal Societies

Summary

The current social and political movements in the world have led architects to shift their practices into a mainstreaming of small-scale interventions, many of which focus on contesting the architecture of public spaces. Further notions of public performance and democracy practices are historically deeply-rooted in the profession, however, it is yet limited to provide examples that use architecture as a form of cultural critique. Architects continue to use their conceptual and visual elaborations and spatial mapping to enrich these shifts. This research tends to investigate the legibility of such elaborations and the manner with which users and spectators engage with architecture and public spaces of democracy with reference to its spatial dynamics with the social movements in neo-liberal societies. The way these trends of architecture and public spaces of democracy are envisioned present a world of new opportunities for architects and planners to develop new meanings and practices in the city.

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