Pop-Up Justice? Reflecting on Relationships in the Temporary City

Abstract

Temporary urban interventions are increasingly visible in contemporary cities. They take diverse forms – from community gardens to pop-up cinemas, from outdoor art installations to mobile libraries – and have been given many labels – from “guerrilla” to “everyday”, “tactical” to “DIY”. A burgeoning and largely celebratory literature has highlighted ways in which these transient practices propose alternative lifestyles, reoccupy urban space with new uses, and reinvent daily life from the bottom up in the pursuit of more just and sustainable cities. This chapter moves beyond the simple celebration (or, in some cases, dismissal) that has characterised much of that literature. With communicative or collaborative approaches now dominating both planning theory and practice, the potential for temporary urban interventions to move from “guerrilla” to mainstream is increasingly apparent – and present. Within this climate there is a need to critically consider the contributions that temporary urban interventions make to processes of spatial production. Focusing on various iterations of temporary urban intervention, this chapter centres on identifying the questions necessary for such consideration. Drawing on relational theory, we explore the relationships involved in temporary urban interventions and, from these, the way in which various practices might connect to questions of justice and sustainability in the city.