Cities literary factory: The mobilization of literature in urban planning in Europe

Abstract

Over the past twenty years or so, cities have been including literature and writers on architectural and urban projects, by more readily asking them to participate in the urban policy creation process. In response to requests, writers have collaborated with architects on planning projects involving tangible depictions of literature in the city. The present article proposes an analysis of this increasing literary presence within urban planning and landscapes: How is literature physically incorporated into the layout and management of today's cities? Results from qualitative surveys conducted across various French and European cities over the past several years help frame this investigation. A number of “literary” urban planning projects built in French cities during the mid-1990′s will serve as a focal point for this endeavor. The projects analyzed herein were executed by members of the OuLiPo movement (a literary group dedicated to enhancing the potential of literature). Intended for both scholars and practitioners alike, this study explores how such new literary practices interact with the modern city, in revealing the professional realignments and changes in operating patterns occurring in both urban planning and urban design. It also critically assesses the models, values and paradoxes underlying today's cityscapes. The integration of literature into urban projects influences modern spaces in a way that contrasts: between striving towards democratization and social inclusion, between an initially subversive project and a shift favoring the mainstream, between a collaborative contextual approach and the dual effects of exclusion and relegation, all of which stem from stamping a “high-minded culture” on the city.