representation

Article: Critical Imagination

Seizing the means of rendering

There is a history of the future written in renderings; images of fantasy assembled as marketing, escapism and policy toolkits. Images of ‘the’ future hold a powerful grasp over the things we orient towards as we innovate and disrupt our way to a receding hyper-real horizon.1 For example, the relationship between science fiction and technological […]
Article: Wishful Thinking
Larisa-Bulibasa_The Labyrinth of the city of London

The Labyrinth of the City of London

In Greek mythology the Labyrinth was a palace extremely difficult to navigate and almost impossible to escape from. Would there be a more suitable metaphor to describe the City of London, the heart of the world’s financial sector? This labyrinth is composed gradually: each addition contributes to the sense of disorientation of the financial workers […]
Article: Wishful Thinking
Architecture Snob, Building not Available, 2014

Building Not Available

The Internet makes us used to the fact that everything is available everywhere. In principle we don’t have to travel anymore to know what is happening on the other side of the globe. The vernacular could be called the old fashioned way of saying geo-protected content. What if the unknown and undiscovered places were depleted […]
Article: Critical Imagination

Urban Branding and the Violent Ghosts of the Politics of Representation

City branding is a relevant issue among urban policy makers. In a nutshell, it refers to the promotion of the image of a city, mostly in order to attract tourists, investments, mega-events, such as the Olympic games, and new wealthy residents, such as the members of the so-called ‘creative class’.1 This commentary will summarize some […]
Article: Wishful Thinking
Dillon Marsh - Nababeep South Mine

For What it’s Worth: Nababeep South Mine (1882 to 2000) – 302,791.65 tonnes of copper extracted

What if we could always get a preview of the breakdown that shows what things are made of and the values of those ingredients? What is our lack of knowledge (and sometimes also ignorance) on where things come from, how and what were they are made of actually worth? Would it change our thinking if […]
Article: Wishful Thinking
Norby - Glitch - houses throwing up trees

Houses throwing up trees

What if virtual glitches could happen in reality? Sometimes digital image stitching does not get the reality quite right. These images are both funny and amusing but all of us know they are just a result of a silly mistake. Even though it is hard to imagine, it is not altogether impossible to think that at some point […]