Great plans

With: Michael Emmenegger, Andreas Spiegl, Gesa Witthöft Moderation: Andrea Hubin, Kunsthalle Wien; Michael Zinganel, Architectural theorist, Curator

In its rhetoric at least, the City of Vienna has recently put increased emphasis on “dialogue” and civic participation. At the same time, for some years people have been complaining that urban planning is no longer taking place in Vienna. So one can well ask who is supposed to be involved in what, and for what purpose! Are these offers of participation in fact strategies of placation and a mere staging of consensus and compromise - the currently hegemonic definition of democracy? Doesn't this mask the fact, that urbanity and society are fundamentally defined by antagonisms? What place is assigned to conflicts in planning processes: are they to be pacified at any cost, or could it be that - especially when it comes to space design - the point is to offer dispute a platform?