Visiting: Ivry-sur-Seine

urban fragment observatory [ufo ufo] is a spatial research collective based in Berlin, documenting fragments of the city that show a way out of the monotony of our built environment. Our work focuses on the lived reality of spaces. Using different media such as film, field recordings, mapping, participatory research methods and performance, we aim to highlight the qualities of existing social architectures across Europe. At the intersection of urban practices, architecture and activism our approach is transdisciplinary & situated. We often cooperate with local initiatives and inhabitants, as “experts” from which we learn and whom we include in our creative process.
With backgrounds in art and architecture we are oftentimes critical towards classical architectural approaches and want to participate in the creation of new urban narratives from which cities can further be planned and built. We believe that in order to deal with the upcoming challenges of an uncertain social and climatic future, urban planning should not rely on current dynamics of demolition and growth, following profit oriented development but rather take a step back and look towards existing examples of qualitative housing, in which strong social interactions already take place. Taking care, repairing & maintaining the spaces in which we live together are actions that behold a high potential for social cohesion and should be part of our everyday life.
In 2023 our project “Visiting Abriss” (“Visiting Demolition”) focused on the consequences of building demolitions in Berlin, a practice embedded in gentrification and displacement processes and whose negative ecological impact cannot longer be ignored. We addressed this topic through a performative street demonstration which ended with the projection of a short-film on the facade of a building about to be demolished itself. Our working language is German, but we also speak English, French & Spanish. We also teach in various (un)academical contexts.