Abstract

<span style="color: #000000;">Considering the successive iterations of the fence surrounding the London 2012 Olympic site in Stratford, east London, I demonstrate that during the five periods of enclosure considered, these boundaries have highlighted the London Games’ contested past, present, and future. An examination of the material and discursive constructions of each of these boundaries shows the Janus-faced nature of their relationship to the wider ‘mega-event’. I conclude that though the purpose of such enclosures may initially seem obvious, in actuality they, as parts of a wider assemblage, can act unpredictably both to support and challenge the Olympic brand and its existence in this part of east London.</span>

Highlights

  • In the computer-generated visions of the 2012 Olympic Park in Stratford created prior to the Games, something crucial was missing: any sign of its vast security infrastructure – no cameras, no police, and no fences of any kind.1 The Games’ construction was overseen by the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) who were careful to present a particular view of the project, one that relied upon an uncontested representational denial of certain elements and reinforcement of symbols of officially sanctioned entertainment, order, and corporate sponsorship (Marrero-Guillamón 2012: 134)

  • The existence of an Olympic fence is informed by such ideological positions; it was built in support of a particular interpretative structure

  • The Park is experienced differently by individuals who relate to its materiality in varied ways: a former employee of a business demolished for the Olympic Stadium might look in the contours of the site for a recognisable trace of his employment, whilst a tourist standing in the same place might perceive a banal concrete esplanade that barely registers consciously

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Summary

Jonathan Gardner*

Considering the successive iterations of the fence surrounding the London 2012 Olympic site in Stratford, east London, I demonstrate that during the five periods of enclosure considered, these boundaries have highlighted the London Games’ contested past, present, and future. An examination of the material and discursive constructions of each of these boundaries shows the Janus-faced nature of their relationship to the wider ‘mega-event’. I conclude that though the purpose of such enclosures may initially seem obvious, in actuality they, as parts of a wider assemblage, can act unpredictably both to support and challenge the Olympic brand and its existence in this part of east London

Introduction
Background
Findings
Conclusion

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