Public-Private Space

Abstract

The radical distinction between public and private space today is arguably problematic. Both the processes of privatization of the production of space and the plurality of modes of public encounter and social engagement tend to blur the once allegedly strict boundaries between those spaces and categories. There are also different approaches to these categories within urban studies and beyond, which emphasize sociopolitical, technical, or design issues as the main focus while conceiving of the aforementioned distinction. This diversity questions the binary opposition between public and private space and poses methodological and theoretical challenges to scholars who specialize in this field.