Summary: Counter-territories is an international urban and art competition and project with a research orientation to encourage local architects, artists, researchers and creative practitioners to work and network with international architects and professionals, to re-read and critically understand the current planning and geographic situation of our cities and territories by focusing on its social and cultural contexts, by using (counter-mapping) methodologies to re-documenting and re-drawing cultural and socio-spatial phenomena that are usually not visible in official maps, including the suspended, excluded and silenced phenomena, the dynamics of minorities use of space, the phenomena of placelessness, unhomeliness and loss of identity, hidden layers … etc.
Description: Throughout history, we have known that crises have been an inevitable event that visits our cities every now and then to impose all sorts of existential threats: wars, pandemics, colonization, natural disasters, economic breakdowns…etc. And yet in parallel there were also many sorts of human adaptations and survival modes taken in, some were generated within the fabric of the city struggling within and against the urban life, and others were seeking divergence or refuge in other foreign territories, away from a local land, local identity, and belonging, to find an-Other land, and an-other home, in an uncertain flow of placelessness, through diverse lands.
And based on this turbulent reality, we will begin our investigation journey by first asking:
- How can we redefine the role of local architects on a larger and more effective scale? Architect as artist, architect as social analyst and critic, architect as anthropologist?.
- How and where can we redefine the counter-territory at the present time, across Libya and beyond? What is the role of geographical and urban borders informing and controlling social masses and the reactions of these social masses?
- How can we express the existence of the counter-territory collectively and individually? What are the possible technical and artistic means to formulate an expressive countermap?
The competition is performed in 3 project phases: 1st is a digital workshop (17/11/2020), 2nd is the competition period and studio work (25/11/2020) and 3rd is the output and rewards (1/1/2021). Architects, artists, researchers, and writers of any nationality and any creative or research-related major, whether students, graduates, or independents are invited to apply.
Apply to the competition by filling out the attached form at the following link and find more information on the project website.