Visual spaces of change. Entre lo real y lo imaginado. El papel de la fotografía y de la manipulación de la imagen en el debate crítico sobre arquitectura y el espacio publico

Abstract

This paper explores the relationships between virtual dimensions of photography and concrete physical realities in contemporary discourses on Architecture, City and Territory. Based on the work of Filip Dujardin, Isabel Brison, Philipp Schaerer, Beate Gütschow, Dionisio Gonzalez, Emilio Pemjean and Thomas Ruff, we analyse different approaches to the digital manipulation of images for the creation of utopian and dystopian visions of urban landscapes. By analysing specific examples of the use of photography as an instrument to explore architectural ideas and forms, the construction of imaginary spaces and constructions is examined as constitutive parts of visual research methods developed by these authors, which may be applied for embedding critical debates on the urban environment in the public sphere. A number of relations between the artistic strategies developed by these authors are examined, focusing on the various methods used for the construction of visual narratives in tandem with the creation of fictional structures and imaginary spaces. The theoretical relevance and potential of the photographic works is highlighted pinpointing key aspects and features that make these authors important references for an understanding of photography as a documentary and fictional critical instrument for understanding, exploring and communicating contemporary urban changes with a special focus on architecture and the public space.