Experimenting in public spaces to learn and teach differently.

The temporary installation of chairs in a public place and the observation of their use is a good way to understand the nature of this space, its users – who uses them? Are they moved? Are they stolen? Why ? – and then to act on its design. What if we added more? Taking into account the evolving nature of public spaces and their users, on the one hand, and experimentation as an alternative way of acting, on the other, could be an opportunity to rethink the urban project. Today, we are witnessing the gradual recognition of temporary spatial interventions in the professional environment and in the making of the city. But how can we transpose this way of acting into academic institutions?

To answer this question, this contribution is based on the participant observation carried out during a workshop within the Master in Social Design in Vienna. During one week, students from different disciplines explored the Floridsdorf district. The assignment was to observe and experience the public space directly and then propose one or more spatial interventions. 

However, the academic training of the students clashed with reality. The participants’ lack of sensitivity and their difficulty in understanding the space hindered experimentation. The workshop is modified and the participants improvise moments of reflection and conviviality in order to facilitate the exercise and to achieve a more complex vision of public space.

This contribution proposes to question the friction between experimentation and its transmission within academic institutions. It will illustrate the particular learning situations proposed to apprehend space, but also the adaptation of teaching methods to facilitate experimentation and go beyond academic automatisms.