Flowing with the City

Our research workshop will explore how low-tech mapping techniques can reveal the complexity of flows that constitute the city and make these flows accessible to citizens. In this context, we do not aim to focus on the (visual) representation of quantifiable data (e.g. traffic, rain, geo-location) but on the often invisible and highly subjective representation of existing flows in the city. Based on one exemplary technique, we will discuss and test how simple technologies can be used in the pre-design phase to gain tacit knowledge of the flows of a city. It is our assumption that once brought to the surface, by means of our workshop methodology, the knowledge about the flows of humans, objects/matter, energy, or information will enable participants to make informed decisions about how these flows are used and how they can be re-channelled, altered or reinforced to design a city that flows in a way in which they, the citizens, want it to flow.