Public Spaces, Domestic Commonality. Some Ethnographic Notes and Theoretical Considerations on Everyday Practices, Commoning, Conflicts and Domesticity in Public

Authors

  • Maria Anita Palumbo ENSAPL, School of Architecture and Landscape, Lille University, France,

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.13133/2532-6562/18933

Keywords:

Ethnography, Domesticity, Commonality

Abstract

This contribution offers an incursion of my ongoing reflections on public spaces and contemporary urban culture under the double focus of commoning and conflicts built on situations observed in different European cities (Paris, Brussel, Rome). My observations will focus not only on everyday practice of producing and taking care of the city but also on past and ongoing spatial projects claiming the importance of commoning. The aim is inherently transdisciplinary: to build a coherent connection between theory, professional
practice, and everyday actions. The goal is to uncover opportunities for new heuristic insights that can inform theoretical understanding, project-based work, and daily practices - ultimately reinforcing the political dimensions embedded in our everyday acts. By examining different scenes of interaction, I argue that the social cohesion task we give to public space is not merely ensure by looking for social peace but rather it is by making peace with conflicts. By taking into account the spatiality and social dynamics of urban process aiming at producing a more just city, I advance the idea that empowering domestic practices in public spaces define a breach in the production of the modern-liberal city where more ecological commoning could happen.

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Screen Shot. On Line Traces of my PhD fieldwork. La Goutte d_Or, Probably 2013 Source: © C. Girardi

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Published

2025-06-30

How to Cite

Palumbo, M. A. (2025). Public Spaces, Domestic Commonality. Some Ethnographic Notes and Theoretical Considerations on Everyday Practices, Commoning, Conflicts and Domesticity in Public. Tracce Urbane. Rivista Italiana Transdisciplinare Di Studi Urbani, 13(17), 64–97. https://doi.org/10.13133/2532-6562/18933