(Un)Curating the City: Participatory design and urban heritage

Abstract

This article explores the relations between participatory design (PD) and critical heritage studies (CHS) in the context of urban planning and development. In searching for a PD approach which can critically address the role of heritage in urban development, it problematizes the focus on economic viability in urban renewal practices and the lack of care for socio-political values and challenges. The article searches for a PD framework that could support alternative regimes of care, via the notion of design space as the terrain for selection, articulation and curation of values. This framework will be outlined by reflecting on a case study related to a historic industrial area in Leuven, Belgium.