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The aim of this paper is to investigate the possibilities opened up by radical interventions in public space: is it possible to foster reflection and create a critical methodology for analysing the topic of Commons in the urban context? Presenting the project “Stente: Residual Zones” as an example, the aim is to explore these questions using Umeå as a case study. Through the creation of an art/architectural object, the project seeks to use artistic and architectural practices as tools to engage city residents in an active dialogue about Common spaces. Starting with a theoretical framework for situating the critical potential of art and architectural objects in public spaces, in this paper the project is seen as an example of a temporary critical moving device, gathering and amplifying the voices of the inhabitants through the city: it aims to represent an open-ended invitation to reinterpret the boundaries between nature and the city, posing itself as a radical (from the latin radicalis) form of dissensus (Rancière 2010). The experiment was conducted at the Umeå School of Architecture between March and May 2024 as part of the “Designing the Contemporary City” research group at Umeå University.

The themes developed in the volume explore the complex relationship between the "physical and material transformation", induced by the architectural project, and the "immaterial" dimension that inevitably derives from it. The versatility of the architect is fundamental, called to play a multifaceted role in a process that involves multifaceted and multifaceted realities.This frames a field of study in which architecture takes on a driving role in the definition of scale, method and intervention strategies. The Architecture of the city, called to address these issues, regains a central value, expanding its role as a necessary synthesis between different perspectives.The cases addressed in the volume refer to the experience of the URBACT program, which involves Naples and other European cities. This is a work in progress that focuses on the reflection on the recurring terms and themes of Regeneration, Reuse and Reactivation, considering them as possible strategies for the contemporary city and the urban project.

I temi sviluppati nel volume  esplorano il complesso rapporto tra la “trasformazione fisica e materiale”, indotta dal progetto, e la dimensione “immateriale” che, inevitabilmente,ne deriva. Fondamentale risulta la versatilità dell’architetto, chiamato a svolgere un ruolo poliedrico in un processo che coinvolge realtà multiformi e sfaccettate.Si inquadra così un campo di studio nel quale l’architettura assume un ruolo propulsore nella definizione di scala, metodo e strategie di intervento. L’Architettura della città, chiamata ad affrontare questi temi, riconquista un valore centrale, ampliando il suo ruolo come sintesi necessaria tra diverse prospettive.I casi affrontati all’interno del volume si riferiscono all’esperienza del programma URBACT, che coinvolge Napoli e altre città europee.Si tratta di un lavoro in fieri che pone al centro la riflessione sui termini e temi ricorrenti della Rigenerazione, del Riuso e della Riattivazione, considerandoli come possibili strategie per la città contemporanea e il progetto urbano.

Kiruna is a Swedish mining town that is currently on the move; the new town is being constructed, while the centre of its initial settlement is being demolished. Its mesh of streets is an expression of the town’s unique culture, way of life and Arctic climate. The town’s relocation presents an intriguing question: Is it possible to retain the relationships developed between the town’s inhabitants and streets over the course of a century while moving the town? This chapter reflects on the relocation of Kiruna by exploring the spatial and temporal conditions of the existing town and considering the plans for its new form. It offers some reflections for the designers behind the new Kiruna.

The topic of the reactivation of abandoned buildings and sites in the city is central in the current debate, in an age where the way of thinking the architecture of the city is radically changing, following the gradual and increasing urban landscape modification due to the climate change. The 2nd chance thematic network, in the framework of the URBACT III programme, has been bringing back to the attention of the cities the topic of the reactivation of large complexes of abandoned buildings within the contemporary city. Over a period of 30 months, more than four hundred people worked with the protagonists, local authorities and associations involved in the eleven partner cities, on the issue of reactivating large urban containers and discussing possible design strategies. The subject of the partner cities’ 2nd Chance local action plans have been the abandoned areas, buildings or groups of buildings with common features, although apparently distant in size and nature. 

The notion of reuse, reactivation and regeneration have been at the basis of the last 40 years of research in the field of architectural design, starting from the late 80´s when, due to the deindustrialization, new occasion for the architects emerged through international competitions opening a new scenario for the practice and the debate in architecture, opening new possibilities in education as well. In the education of an architect in Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, the notion of costruirenel costruito / building within the existing city [1], learning from the context, reading the traces ofthe urban texture, un-layering historical, social, political, and morphological elements, have been at the foundation, as well as the notion of palimpsest . On a more global perspective the notionof habitat and ecology at the center of the debate of the CIAM in Otterlo (VAN EYECK, 1959) became a manifesto willing to introduce a change of perspective in the future of the discipline, that unfortunately didn´t achieve the expected results. This contribution retroactively refl ects on Studio 3, a research based architectural design studio as part of the Architectural Programme at Umeå Schoolof Architecture between the years 2020 and 2023: Un-layering Umeå, Atlas of future explorations and Futurescapes. The studio operates in the North of Sweden, a context in which the urban development is associated to growth and densification, rather than reuse, opening space for reflection. The following three points include a reflection on how methodology, contents and pedagogical (analogueand digital) tools have been structured to achieve the results. Uncovering identities / Discovering scenarios. The notion of reuse of existing buildings (permanence) is used as a content base and theoverall approach and tools guide the students, through a holistic and comprehensive study of the complexity - based on material, structure, memory, and identity - to radically formulate alternative scenarios for the future. This complexity is hard to define and grasp as it is based on uncertainty and on the need of making decision as part of their design process. This aspect is seen as an opportunity for learning and progressing, rather than as an obstacle. The result is a collective Atlas where different scenarios are produced based on a common use of tools and methods, but based on personal perspectives, interests, and open interpretation and collective discussions. Reading of the city and spatial exploration through performative actions. The course proposes to the students to investigate the notion of program as a series of actions and therefore the students work across the scales throughout the year using the body as a way of measuring and refl ect on the infinite possibilities of setting a program. This reading of the city brings a personal perspective that students can frame in a local context and globally in the contemporary architectural scene. This has an impact in the way students perceive the role of the architect in the north of Sweden and beyond.  Future and uncertainty. The studio aims at developing prototype interventions and develop a refl ection, stepping forward fromthe existing knowledge. It proposes innovative typologies thinking outside the scheme, challenging the dogmatic aspect of architecture as the “discipline of designing buildings”. This is possible using literature, references, and lectures as a foundation. The collaboration with the international network UOU has been an important space to share, reflect and attest the methods in different context as well as develop architectural pedagogy tools. The studio guide students in developing an autonomous andsolid background based on critical thinking that -we hope- can have an impact on the design of our future cities and scenarios.

[1] Vittorio Gregotti, “L’architettura del realismo critico”, Laterza. Bari (2004): pp.67-68, 27 access date: January2023. 

Education in architecture has recently faced a new condition experiencing the need of translating this experience through the opportunity given by the COVID-19 pandemic. This moment has been crucial for us - academics and researchers involved in teaching - to reflect and rethink the transmission of knowledge and exchange in contemporary times. We have tested the possibility of creating an international studio involving 42 European schools of architecture and their students. That is the aim of the UNIVERSITY of Universities, a research project on pedagogy in architecture. Designed by architects, it develops the basic idea of exchanging between our schools of architecture.