Castles in the Air

FULL, High Density, Iñigo Bujedo Aguirre, Survey, Territory and mobility, Urban Paradigms

Architecture, Cities, Collective housing, Collective identity, Community, Density, Design, Europe, Identity, Immigration, Modernism, Photographic Atlas of the Cities, Photography, Post-war society, Social housing, Survey, Territory&Mobility, Urban Paradigms, Violence

Modernist social housing is one of the most widespread building typologies of the 20th century. After World War II, cities across Europe were transformed through the widespread construction of middle and working-class housing, driven by utopian beliefs that people’s social experience could be determined by their built environment. This was advocated by influential architects, politicians and planners of the day, who looked to rationalist housing models and urban theories both to address immediate population needs and create a more egalitarian society. It was believed that cities, and indeed the human condition, could be improved through rational design.