The City: Perceptions and Interpretations of Urban Spaces

Kay von Keitz
Author, Curator & Initiator of »plan Architektur Biennale Köln«, Cologne

What do we actually mean when we talk about »the city«? There are various perspectives, whether chosen by ourselves or given to us by common standard, to experience and cope with the term »city« and urban life. In this talk, we hold Cologne as an example for the European city in order to elaborate on different approaches towards this idea of coming together in shared urban spaces – and in a societal unit that has been for so long encompassing both transformation, change, and perseverance. The talk of the Cologne-based author and curator Kay von Keitz will shed light on different realities, perceptions, and action patterns, invisible, visible, top-down or bottom-up, the power of architecture, time and space, images of our longings and our design ideals in the past, present, and future. Still, one issue remains: Whose ideals and what ideas of a city are we told to realize? Von Keitz will debate these topics in order to increase consciousness of the city and to work on alternative urban development strategies.

www.plan-project.com

The talk will be held in English language.