PLAY IN THE CITY

00. ESSAY
THE STREET PARTY
THINKING THROUGH A DEPICTION OF
PLAY IN THE CITY
Within the rigour of city planning, streets are not designated as
play place. The primary function of the street is to allow efficient,
unimpeded order and circulation of people and vehicles. Any deviation
from this designation can lead to chaos. We can see this in action, for
example, when a pedestrian decides to cross a road where not indicated
to to do so; their action syncopates, an otherwise uninterrupted, flow
of vehicular traffic. 6
Lowry shows a dance or game of ring-a-go-roses in the foreground of
his image. He depicts a freedom in the dancers’ movements as they spill
off the kerb and into the road itself. Within this clip of the image, you
see that the bubble of play has stretched to involve everyone within
view. The image illustrates the agreement of all players to collectively
disregard the usually enforced designation of the street and road. We
are reminded of the temporariness of this situation through the weight
of the lines representing the pavement. These lines mark out what is
usually observed as the ‘ordinary’ order of the scene. We are reminded
that the street is in a state of temporary suspension, a meanwhile state
of use; This, in turn, is inherent and imperative for the playful nature
of the act.
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6. “The city, space and technology”, Discussion from Seminar, led by Dr. Hanna Cannon
(Edinburgh, 27.02.2018).
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