Monday, September 27, 2004

 

So, I've never been able to make it all the way through The Poetics of Space. First, it's translated from the French in a way that's kind of clunky. Or perhaps the prose was clunky in the original, or what I might think of as clunky--a sort of overwrought, too-excited method of delivery. But on top of that, all the spaces that get so much treatment -- attics, basements, sea shells, drawers, etc, are not the spaces I inhabit. They are hardly spaces I even know. Therefore, I call for a new urban poetics of space that will address the meanings of spaces in transit: airport lounges, subways, cars, trains, offices -- spaces that do not actually belong to anyone, but are inhabited by everyone, often repeatedly, for staccato bursts of time. No more wrangling over the psychological meaning of garrett staircases; let's talk about elevator shafts! Let's give the public bathroom stall its due! Whither the anonymity of the company break room? What daydreams are inspired by the headspace you create with a walkman and earphones, huh?

posted by Reen |link| 0 comments

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