PUBLIC SPACE

COLLECTIVE EXHIBITION

LISBON

Streets, squares, parks, beaches, forest paths, the public space can take many different forms, but mostly refers to the same basic criteria: it’s a place that is open, free and accessible to its inhabitants, allowing their free movement and expression. A place which provides people opportunities to come together and engage with the community.

But over the last few years, significant changes in society have been challenging this concept. The introduction of cars, shopping malls, surveillance cameras among other things have led to a growing privatization of the space. The border between public and private is not always clear and private companies are progressively taking responsibilities that used to belong to the public domain.

In the face of such changes, the place left to the user-citizen seems to be more and more that of the simple consumer of goods and services in a logic of standardized consumption or private property. How can citizens find their way in that changing reality and what remains of the space in itself?

Through this exhibition, you will discover how photographers managed to express various aspects of the public space in their unique ways.

This exhibition is organized in partnership with Habita, a local grassroots organization based in Lisbon and fighting for the Right to Housing and to the City.

Where?