“Action; production of an event in the strange territory: casual unfolding of a particular proposal which is superimposed on the already existing; repeated void on the void of the city; silent artificial landscape touching the historical time of the city yet neither cancelling it nor imitating it. Flow, force, incorporation, independence of the forms, expression of the lines that cross it. Beyond the art that unveils new freedoms.”

– Ignasi de Sola Morales, “Terrain Vague”

freedom

find your crack
in this broken world

and express
your desire,
your hope,
your struggle

say what that is
to you

say

and never stop saying

because that is
freedom

Freedom, by author

spaces of freedom

Standing on the threshold of the past and the future, spaces of freedom are existing in the liminal position of the present moment. They are a gap in the urban fabric, in time, in one’s mind. They are an integral part of the city as they live within it, “feeding on its refuse and offering their presence as a new nature, a forgotten future” ¹.

They reflect the city and its changes, as the city also lives within them through the manifestation of its entropy. Through spaces of freedom, one perceives the awareness of the city – “the transient character of matter, time and space” ².

Spaces of freedom are fluid, changeable, ungraspable but also constant and present. The loss of function and definition resulting in spatial disorder and unpredictability opens the discovery of new experiential and spatial qualities. Through this work, I aim to uncover those features.

In psychogeography, two ambiances are distinguished: hard – which is about the actual, static, physical construction; and soft – which is about light, sound, time, and association of the ideas. Hard is rendered by soft ³.

This interplay of hard-soft and their interdependence is used as a methodology to capture the relationship between the city and the emotions. Physical and immaterial, tangible and ungraspable, logical and irrational – the so-called reality is always rendered by personal experiences, the world is perceived by emotions.

This work presents a collection of personal drawings, photographs, and thoughts. They are a self-reflective medium for understanding reality. It consists of two parts: 1) conditions and 2) possibilities. “Conditions” aim to present the atmospheres of spaces of freedom, while “possibilities” suggest guiding principles or “tools” for enhancing their true value – one of free, open, and universal character.
 

Conditions

ambiguous

spaces without function and purpose
with no defined conditions

spaces without control and expectations
with no rules of behavior

i want to be there
as there i can breathe

Ambiguous, Tallinn, Estonia, 2018, by author

fleeting

did it disappear
if it is not here

does it not exist
if it has no function

don’t you feel (?)
if you know but do not see

Fleeting, Tallinn, Estonia, 2018, by author

neglected

if you see:

abandoned
broken
without use
without purpose

left to be forgotten
and shaped by the time,

come
and check again:

it still moves
it’s still alive.

Neglected, Tallinn, Estonia, 2018, by author

in between

there is no top or bottom
there is no inside or outside

this is not the space of duality
but the space of unity

being on the top is one of many steps
and being at the bottom is a step closer

inside doesn’t mean security
and outside isn’t only fear

everything is a part of same
continuum or emptiness

where opposites
do not exist

In between, Belgrade, Serbia, 2016, by author

Possibilities

appropriation

i do not need to have
in order to be

and i do not need to own
so that it is mine

i always see the other perspective
and that is why i am and always will be – rich

Appropriation, Kladovo, Serbia, 2017, by author

experience

is it the air
that’s heavy

could be sun
that sleeps

maybe the waves
that are breaking

or just our footsteps
as we leave

Experience, Tallinn, Estonia, 2018, by author

community

living together
i wonder sometimes

where is the line
between me, you and us

the city is ours
the city is us

so how do you stop
between me, you and us

to share and to give
and to build trust

as that is the way
for resilient times

Community, Belgrade, Serbia, 2017, by author

event

event creates the space
so space becomes a stage

stage where anyone can walk
and be part of the play

space of playing and being
of living and being alive

ephemeral and indefinite
abstract and close

space for everyone
as events are made by anyone

Event, Rabat, Morocco, 2019, by author

Notes
1. Careri, F. (2012). Walkscapes: Walking as an Aesthetic Practice. Barcelona: Editorial Gustavo Gili, p.12.
2. Ibid, p. 25.
3. Wolf, Charles R. (2016). Seeing the Better City: How to Explore, Observe, and Improve Urban Space. Washington, DC: Island Press, p. 12.

Bojana Rankovic has obtained her bachelor diploma at the Faculty of Architecture, at the University of Belgrade, after which she continued her masters studies in Belgium, at KU Leuven University. She graduated on the topic “Placeless Places” through which she developed the interest for a more holistic understanding of architecture and space itself. After graduating (2019), she had the opportunity to work on architecture projects touching on the ideas of public space and its use in the Netherlands and Morocco. Through the practice, she is focusing on the city, people and (un)use of space. In the search for a framework which combines exploration of space and social engagement through art, Bojana decided to continue her education enrolling in the PhD program “Scene Design” at University of Novi Sad with an ambition to define the “Spaces of Freedom”.

Volume 5, no. 2 Jun-Dec 2022