STUDIO 1 PRAXXIS
LORENZO LA MAGNA ZIMMERMANN
TABLE OF CONTENTS 3 5 7 9
GLOSSARY RESEARCH QUESTION THREE POSTERS: TOWARDS A POTENTIAL PROJECT FEMINIST APPROACH
CHAPTER ONE 13 15 21 23
brief history of Italy’s national formation timeline of LGBTQ+ Policies in Italy the ‘Zan Lagislation’: TWO ENEMIES what is ITALY still missing? SAME-SEX MARRIAGE
CHAPTER TWO 35 37 39 41 43
63 65
25 27 29 31
what is ITALY still missing? ANTI-HOMOPHOBIA LEGISLATION what is ITALY still missing? SAME-SEX ADOPTION what is ITALY still missing? SENSE OF ACCEPTANCE journey towards equality: WOMEN’S RIGHT TO VOTE IN EUROPE
GENOVA & CENTRO STORICO
GENOVA from ITALY to GENOVA GENOVA CENTRO STORICO GENOVA CENTRO STORICO: GENOVA CENTRO STORICO:
CHAPTER THREE 61
ITALY & LGBTQ+ RIGHTS
45 47 51 AN EMPTY CITY
53
GENOVA CENTRO STORICO: ITS LOCAL ADMINISTARTION CIV: WHAT HAS BEEN DONE TO ‘SAVE’ THE GENOVA? why leaving GENOVA? NEGATIVE NATURAL CHANGE why leaving GENOVA? MARITIME ECONOMY & IMMIGRANTS’ FLOWS
A DECAYING AREA
THE PROCESS OF GAYTRIFICATION
GAY as the LGBTQ+ community GENTRIFICATION as a ‘regeneration’ process URBAN REGENERATION: TWO DIFFERENT APPROACHES
73
the 4 STAGES of GAYTRIFICATION timeline of the development of urban gaybourhoods
75
GAYTRIFICATION CASE STUDIES
67
1
CHAPTER FOUR
93
83
not an impossibile future QUEER EXODUS PLAN
85
‘EXCLUDE TO INCLUDE’ CASE STUDIES
97
87
PART 1: economic incentive
99
89
GAYTRIFICATION CASE STUDIES
101
91
PINK MONEY:
103
81
CHAPTER FIVE 109 111 113
IN BETWEEN A MYTH AND A STRUGGLE
127 129
CASE STUDIES
CHAPTER SEVEN 145 147 149
115 119 121
THE BIG DRAW: GENOVA AS A GAYBORHOOD CENTRO STORICO: QUEER SPACE WITHIN AN HISTORIC ENVIRONMENT CENTRO STORICO: TOWARDS A POTENTIAL SPATIAL PROGRAMME
QUEER SPACE
QUEER SPACE: QUEER SPACE:
125
95
QUEER BUSINESS: HOW IS IT DIFFERENT? QUEER BUSINESS: THE PYRAMIDS OF QUEER NEEDS PART 2: housing incentive PART 3: living incentive the future of other Italian cities QUEER EXODUS PLAN: SUMMARY
GENOVA GAYBOURHOOD
LGBTQ+ venues in GENOVA GENOVA GAYBOURHOOD QUEER EXODUS PLAN: GENOVA AS A GAYBORHOOD
CHAPTER SIX
2
QUEER EXODUS PLAN
IN BETWEEN AN APPROPRIATION AND A DISTORTION
131
ITS MANY MEANINGS
141
MOVING FORWARD
NEXT STEPS PRAXXIS ROAD MAP BIBLIOGRAPHY
QUEER SPACE: QUEER SPACE:
FROM ITS MEANINGS TO 8 SPATIAL PRINCIPLES BACK TO GENOVA CENTRO STORICO
GLOSSARY CISGENDER
LGBTQ+
adjective an individual whose gender identity and behaviour matches the sex they were assign at birth.
initialism lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender, ‘+’ as an open category.
GAYBOURHOOD
QUEER
noun an area which presents a cluster of LGBTQ+ institutions, both commerciall and service-orientated, as well as it houses a substantial residential queer population. “this clustering structures not only a community but an identity” (Miller, 2005)
GAYTRIFICATION
noun the material and conceptual changes of a specific neighborhood due to the commercial, residential and symbolic presence of the LGBTQ+ community.
GENDER
noun the physical and or social condition of being either male or female. noun a radically free performance of an identity.
noun synonym of gay, especially referring to a homosexual man. adjective whatever is at odds with the normal, the legitimate, and the dominant. noun individual whose sexual identity and embodiment is considered non-normative, as a wide reaching term to encompass all differences.
SHAME noun the trauma, caused by the exposure to overwhelming shame at an ages when you are not equipped to cope with, is a core element of homosexuality. It is something about growing up gay that forced us to learn how to hide ugly realities behind a finely crafted façade. (Downs, 2012)
HETERONORMATIVITY
noun the belief of considering heterosexuality as the only normal and natural expression of sexuality. 3
TRANSLATION OF ITALIAN WORDS
4
CEI - Concilio Episcopale Italiano
male
Italian Bishop Council
il CENTRO STORICO
male
the historic city center
la CHIESA
female
the Church
la CITTÀ
female
the city
la CITTÀ METROPOLITANA
female
the metropolitan county
GENOVA
female
Genoa
la LEGGE
female
the law/legislation
il MUNICIPIO
male
the municipality
l’OMOFOBIA
female
homophobia
la REGIONE
female
the region
la REPUBBLICA
female
the republic
RESEARCH QUESTION
how could the Italian institutionalised homophobia subvert the future of the decaying Genoa City Center?
ic lit po in a
al
co nte
xt
5
in a per son al c
ex
on t
t
RESEARCH QUESTION 6
can only the Gays save Genova City Center from its unceasing urban and economic decline?
you should see just a simple frame, but it is so much more. it is an appropriation and a subtle misuse. look closely to recognise what is hidden in plain sight.
THREE POSTERS:
TOWARDS A POTENTIAL PROJECT
in order to start reflecting on our potential projects we, as a PRAXXIS atelier, have been asked to produce three powerful posters. the feminist CALL TO ACTION! starting point was the often-heard feminist slogan, ‘the personal is political’. this particular stance suggests a connection between an individual experience and the wider social or political structures. THE PERSONAL looking back at my childwood in Italy and how my family taught me ‘how to be straight’. for my own safety, I had to learn how to pass as straight to be accepted in a stereotypically homophobic environment. THE POLITICAL analysing my personal experince to understand a wider political issue. in Italy the LGBTQ+ community still lacks any form of legislation against homophobia or even a broader sense of acceptance. THE POTENTIAL leading me to a series of questions about the design of a queer space, especially if after all it could be seen as more than an appropriation or misuse of an existing environment. these posters are a progression towards a potential project. they are related to each other in a sequential order but they have a deeper meaning if considered as a tryptic, where they all relate and feed onto each other.
THE PERSONAL a past experience
7
THE POLITICAL a broader issue
8
THE POTENTIAL a series of questions
FEMINIST APPROACH
WHAT IS FEMINISM TO ME? it is a different way of analysing and interrogationg the world around us, questioning its principles and the society that has produced them. it is a way to look back and reflect, as well as a powerful tool to design the future, a better future more open and welcome to all.
LOOKING BACK FROM A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE my family
it is the ability to let others be who they are without judgement, acknoledging and accepting diversity. this will lead to a feeling of acceptance which will benefit all, regardless of sex, gender or sexual expression.
ITALY our catholic country
me then
my childhood in Genova
now I am able to look back and acknoledge how Italy is supposed to be an atheist country but the Church of Rome is still really influential. my family’s behaviour is just a reflection of a wider issue which is deeply intertwined with every part of the Italian society. there is no legislation of any kind in place to protect its LGBTQ+ citizens, which reflects how intrinsically institutionalised homophobia is in Italy.
me now
my family
ITALY our catholic country atheist
my current situation away from Genova
9
EXCLUDE TO INCLUDE this specific feminist approach is fundative for my thesis project. this tactic, by excluding a majority, consequentially expose their priviledge. therefore, it is used to help minorities reach the ‘majority’ standards, aiming for a more equitable society as a whole. for example in my thesis project, the LGBTQ+ community will be exclusively included by creating ‘ad-hoc’ policies, which will potentially leading to a broader national-wise understanding of their issues and needs.
this approach makes you question your priviledge in order to see others from a different perspective. for example, even within the LGBTQ+ community many priviledges and forms of exclusion exist. this is why is a way to guarantee further inclusion rather than exclusion. it is a way of focusing only on a few in order to broader consider all.
10
LGBTQ+ COMMUNITY ONLY?
STUDIO 1 PRAXXIS
chapter one
ITALY & LGBTQ+ RIGHTS chapter one LORENZO LA MAGNA ZIMMERMANN
brief history of Italy’s national formation
Lombardo-Veneto
Lombardo-Veneto
Ducato di Parma Ducato di Modena Ducato di Lucca Granducato di Toscana
Regno d’Italia Stato della Chiesa Stato della Chiesa
Regno delle due Sicilie
on e
Regno di Sardegna
m 8 kingdoms fro to
i ll a ut s t b y ntr u co
3
1815 following the ‘Vienna Congress’ held in 1815, the geographical territory, which will eventually be occupied by Italy, presented 8 independent Kingdoms. two main powers were ruling the north, the Savoia Royal family in the ‘Regno di Sardegna’, which will eventually unify the whole pensisula, and the ‘LombardoVeneto Kingdom’ strongly influenced by the Austrian Empire. the Church’s domains were vast and they occupied the majority of the center.
KINGDOM OF ITALY 1861 on the 17th of March 1861, Vittorio Emanuele II di Savoia, last King of Sardegna, was crowed first King of Italy. on this date, few territories were still missing in order to fully unify the Italian peninsula. in 1866 the ‘LombardoVeneto Kigdom’ become part of the Kigdom of Italy, and in 1870, due to the formal militar invasion of Rome, even the ‘Church Kingdom’ was annexed.
Italy is an overall young country where strong regional identies are rooted into a past of separate kingdoms. the Church of Rome had extended its religious powers to a political and territorial control untill 1870.
13
Trentino & Alto Adige
Istria
Regno d’Italia
monarc
hy
a young repu
1920 following the First World War conflict, few territories were annexed to the ‘Kingdom of Italy’ for being part of the winning alliance. with the 1919 ‘Paris Peace Conferance’, ‘Trentino’ and ‘Alto Adige’ became part of Italy, as considered one of the “Big Four” by winning the war. Italy received a bit of the land promised in ‘The Treaty of London’ but not northern Dalmatia nor Fiume. Later on, in 1920, the Istrian peninsula which was annexed with ‘The Treaty of Rapallo’.
14
bl ic
ITALIAN REPUBLIC 1946 following the Second World War conflict, Italy became a republic after a referendum held on 2 June 1946. this was also the first time that Italian women were entitled to vote. Umberto II, the last King of Italy, was forced to abdicate and was exiled. under the ‘Treaty of Peace’ of 1947, Italy also lost all of its colonial possessions, formally ending the ‘Italian Empire’. the Italian Republican Constitution was approved on 1 January 1948.
30 June 1889
Codice Rocco Italian Penal Code
homosexual relations were not mentioned within the Penal Code since they were considered not to “happen enough in Italy”.
Codice Zanardelli
Universal Declaration of Human Rights art. 2 «Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.»
1 January 1948
ITALY
19 October 1930
10 December 1948
EUROPE
timeline of LGBTQ+ Policies in Italy
Costituazione della Repubblica Italiana Italian Constitution
art. 3 «All citizens have equal social dignity and are equal before the law, without distinction of sex, race, language, religion, political opinion, personal and social conditions.»
considering homosexuality as a ‘personal condition’, homophobia should be banned from the Italian Constitution.
Italian Penal Code
homosexual relations became legal if not involving violance or public scandal.
15
art. 26 «All persons are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to the equal protection of the law. In this respect, the law shall prohibit any discrimination and guarantee to all persons equal and effective protection against discrimination on any ground such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.»
Legge n.164
norme sull’attribuzione del sesso Italian law on sex change it guarantees the right to change one’s legal gender after having modified one’s phisical sexual characteristics.
17 May 1990
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
23 June 1993
16 December 1966
art. 14 «The enjoyment of the rights and freedoms set forth in this Convention shall be secured without discrimination on any ground such as sex, race, colour, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, association with a national minority, property, birth or other status.»
14 April 1982
4 December 1950
European Convention on Human Rights
World Health Organisation WHO had removed homosexuality from the International Classification of Diseases.
Legge Mancino n. 205 National law on discrimination art. 1 it ensures protection against discrimination, hate or violance due to race, ethnicity or religion.
third country in the world after Swenden (1970) and Germany (1980). after a long debate, sexual orientation was purpously left outside this piece of legislation which protects against discrimination and violance.
16
11 December 2000
«...sexual orientation may be considered an “other status”....
PART 3 | EQUALITY | art. 21 Non-discrimination «Any discrimination based on any ground such as sex, race, colour, ethnic or social origin, genetic features, language, religion or belief, political or any other opinion, membership of a national minority, property, birth, disability, age or sexual orientation shall be prohibited.»
Atto Camera n. 3296
Legge Regionale Toscana n. 63
Disciplina del patto civile di solidarieta` e delle unioni di fatto.
Policies againt discrimination due to sexual orientation or gender identity.
Tuscany Regional Law n. 63
REJECTED
9 July 2003
Civil Union Law Decreto Legislativo n. 216
15 November 2004
the Committee confines itself to noting, however, that in its view the reference to “sex” in articles 2, paragraph 1, and 26 is to be taken as including sexual orientation.»
21 October 2002
31 March 1994
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union
Equal treatment in employment Equal treatment in employment and occupation regardless of their religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation.
excluding police, fire fighting, first aid and penitentiary services.
first ever legislation explicitly against homophobia in Italy.
6 June 2008 later extended to any employment or occupation. 17
2 October 2009
ESSENTIAL RIGHTS - Protection against state and private violence - Freedom of expression, assembly and association - Freedom to engage in (private, consensual, adult) same-sex sexual activity
Legge Concia Concia Law Extending art. 61 of the Italian Penal Code including discrimination against sexual orienatiton. REJECTED
In the case of Schalk and Kopf v. Austria the European court of human rights regects marriage but same-sex couple living in a stable de facto partnership, falls within the notion of “family life”.
15 March 2013
first attempt to summarize the main demands of the international LGBT movement in the broadest possible terms, so as to make the document useful at a global level and in all parts of the world.
the Human Rights Council asks for a United Nations Resolutions on Sexual orientation and gender identity.
24 June 2010
Declaration of Montréal
17 June 2009
29 July 2006
International Conference on LGBT Human Rights
extention ‘Mancini Law’ (1993) on crimes due to sexual identity of the victim.
20 years after the Mancino Law.
19 September 2013 but homobia should not be considered when «opinions taken within organizations that carry out activities of a political, trade union, cultural, health, education or religion or worship nature...» APPROVED by ‘Camera dei Deputati’
NEVER DISCUSSED by ‘Senato’
18
the Italian Parliament has a ‘bicameral system’: two bodies with the same powers and functions, which makes the legislative system extremely long and complex. these two bodies are both elected every 5 years. Camera dei Deputati: Chamber of Deputies this body is elected by direct and universal suffrage by voters who are eighteen or older. Senato: Senate this body is elected by direct and universal suffrage by voters who are twenty-five or older.
In the case of Oliari e al. v. Italy
2 May 2018
the European Court of Human Rights comndamed Itlay for not having recognised and protected civil unions between same-sex relations.
the Court of Cassation ruled that sterilisation and sex reassignment surgery are not required in order to obtain a legal gender change.
Sentenza n. 170 della Corte Costituzionale Policy n.170 of the Constitutional Court married couples whose member undergoes the procedure of sex change will remain legally married.
20 May 2016
11 June 2014
21 May 2015
21 July 2015
LEGISLATIOVE POWER IN ITALY
Legge Cirinnà n. 76 Civil Union Law Same-sex civil unions approved and regulated by the Italian Parliament.
Proposta di Legge Zan Zan trial Law by modifying art. 604-bis and art. 604-tris of the Penal Code, it would garantee protection against violance and discrimination due to sexual orientation and gender identity.
national legislation against homo-transphobia
APPROVED first same-sex civil union
24 June 2016 19
What history shows us on Italy’s response to LGBTQ+ policies and legislations?
legislation p rote have a y l ctin Ita l l gi i w ts
throughout history, Italy seems to always be behind Europe regarding LGBTQ+ issues.
cit ize
ns fro m
ph mo ho
ia? ob
21 October 2020
all the legislations and policies approved by the Italian Governamnet have always been passed following a direct intervention of the European Union Bodies protecting Human Rights.
Pope Francis indicates support for same-sex civil union.
26 June 2019
3 August 2020 the ‘Zan trial Law’ on homo-transphobia was discussed within the ‘Camera dei Deputati’ for the first time.
the Court of Cassation ruled that adoption is permitted even for a single parent, including an LGBTQ+ parent as well.
4 November 2020
still not allowing same-sex adoption
first national homo-transphobia legislation. APPROVED by ‘Camera dei Deputati’
? ? 20
early 2021 it will eventually be discussed within ‘Senato’
? ?
the ‘Zan Lagislation’:
TWO ENEMIES
the Church of Rome
the Italian legislation against homo-transphobia
Homophobia, the Cei (Italian Bishop Council) against the Zan Law: “risk of restricting freedom”
Homophobia, Christians pray against the Zan Law: protests outside the church
Italian Catholic Church Homophobia, no need for a new legislation the priest: “you can’t deny anyone from praying”
Zan Law, the bishop of Lucca hosts and helds a homophobic convention
21
the Conservative Parties
Salvini (the former prime minister) flips the ‘hate against others’: he demands a law against heterophobia
Rome 2018 ‘two men do not make a mother’ billboard
from the Parlimentarian discussion on the Zan Law: “la legge è fatta per discriminare, per creare una super categoria, che è quella dei gay, che è quella del mondo Lgbt!”
“this legislation is made to discriminate, to create a ‘super category’. which is the gay one, which is the LGBT world.”
?
“l’intento è quello di agevolare l’ingresso nelle scuole per poter incidere direttamente sulla mentalità dei bambini diffondendo nelle classi quella disastrosa colonizzazione ideologica del gender”
“the aim is to increase the entrance into the schools to directly influense kid’s mentality to spread the demaging gender theory”
22
?
HETEROPHOBIA term coinded by white straight men when sensing their masculine privilege being threatened.
?
?
what is ITALY still missing?
SAME-SEX MARRIAGE
20 May 2016
Ita ly 6 wen 01 t back to 2
with ‘Legge Cirinnà’ civil unions have been approved
2 February 2017
the Italian Supreme Court allowed a same-sex marriage between two women, which was previously performed in France, to be officially recognised. is Italy aligning with ‘western’ Europe? and
th
en
15 May 2018
the Court of Cassation ruled that same-sex marriages performed abroad cannot be recognized in Italy. Instead, they must be registered as civil unions. is Italy going backwards?
YES, unfortunately but recently its public opinion has been encouraging
2019
2020
YES
50.9 %
59.5 %
NO
49.1 %
40.5 %
Italian public opinion
opinion on same-sex marriage
vment
impro aging
r
analysis conduced by ‘Eurispes’ ‘Temi Etcnici: cosa ne pensano gli Italiani’ (July 2020)
encou
23
2017 analysis conduced by ‘Ilga Europe’ 2020 Annual Review on ‘Family’
2009
2009
2012 2020
same-sex marriage
2001
2015
other types of union
2003
2015
2014*
2016
constitutional ban but other types of union
2017
unregistered cohabitation no recognition 2013
constitutional ban on same-sex marriage
2019
2017 2016
2009 2005
2012 2020
2009
2001
2015 2003
2015
2014* 2017
2017
2013
2019
2016
2005
2017
24
what is ITALY still missing?
ANTI-HOMOPHOBIA LEGISLATION
ITALY & ANTI-HOMOPOBIA LEGISLATION Russia
Latvia
Poland
Belarus Ukraine
Czech Republic
Italy is still the only ‘Western European’ country lacking of any legislation which would protect its LGBTQ+ citizens against hate and speech crimes related to homo-transphobia. along side many ‘Eastern European’ countries, sterotypically dominated by a closure regarding on LGBTQ+ issues, Italy seems to be ‘politically’ closer to them rather than to others ‘Western’ examples.
Moldavia
Bulgaria analysis conduced by ‘Ilga Europe’: Annual Report 2020
Turkey
regarding:
HATE CRIME LAW HATE SPEECH LAW POLICY TACKLING HATERED
sexual orientation gender identity intersex
how can we end crime and violence if homophobia is still considered an opinion?
25
IT, UK and EU public opinion compared on LGBTQ+ issues
100%
76% same rights for LGBTQ+ people
90% UK
EU
95%
IT
90%
68%
85% UK
EU
IT
80%
59%
75%
70%
69% same sex-marriage should be alloweded throughout europe
85% UK
EU
MALTA
85%
72%
nothing wrong about same -sex relationship
respect of human rights full equality
RESPECT OF HUMAN RIGHTS, FULL EQUALITY
IT
65%
58% 60%
even italian public opinion on LGBTQ+ matters is far below the european everage
55%
data from the ‘European Commision Report on Discrimination’ (July 2019) 50%
BELGIUM - LUXEMBURG DENMARK - NORWAY SPAIN PORTUGAL - FINLAND - UNITED KINGDOM SWEDEN MONTENEGRO - NETHERLANDS
FRANCE ICELAND IRELAND GERMANY AUSTRIA GREECE
45%
ITALY IS FAR BELOW THE EU EVERAGE
40%
this scale reflects on the legal and policy human rights situation of LGBTQ+ People in Europe. showing how similar Italy is to Eastern Europen countries on LGBTQ+ matters.
considering the rest of Europe, Italy is still far behind in recognising a full respect of human rights to the LGBTQ+ community. in fact, this specific minority has been recognised only 23% of thier total human rights. analysis conduced by ‘Ilga Europe’: Annual Report 2020
SLOVENIA
35%
ESTONIA BOSIA & HERZEGOVINA SWITZERLAND KOSOVO - ANDORRA
30%
SERBIA - HUNGARY ALBANIA - CYPRUS GEORGIA - SLOVAKIA
25%
CZECH REPUBLIC NORTH MACEDONIA
20%
ITALY- LITHUANIA ITALY UKRAINE BULGARIA MOLDOVA - ROMANIA LIECHTENSTEIN LATVIA POLAND
23%
15%
10%
SAN MARINO - BELARUS MONACO RUSSIA ARMENIA
5%
0%
26
CROATIA
TURKEY 4 AZERBAIJAN 2
violation of human rights discrimination
GROSS VIOLATIONS OF HUMAN RIGHTS, DISCRIMINATION
what is ITALY still missing?
SAME-SEX ADOPTION
20 July 2014
the Court of Rome, using the lack of legislation regarding same-sex adoption on Italian Legislation, using the ‘stepchild adoption law’ (1983), allowed a woman to adopt her partner’s child.
22 July 2016
the Court of Cassation, after the ‘Legge Cirinnà’ (20 May 2016), recognised the adoption by the same-sex couple, which happaned in Rome two years before.
26 June 2019
the Court of Cassation ruled that adoption is permitted even for a single parent, including an LGBTQ+ parent as well.
‘stepchild adoption’ is still not mentioned in any formal legislation but it can be permitted since regulated by the Court of Cassation.
NO, unfortunately
is Italy keeping up with Europe?
but recently its public opinion has been encouraging
2019
2020
YES
31.1 %
42.0 %
NO
68.9 %
58.0 %
Italian public opinion
opinion on same-sex adoption
UK 73.0 % ment
v impro slight
analysis conduced by ‘Eurispes’ ‘Temi Etcnici: cosa ne pensano gli Italiani’ (July 2020)
27
2017 2009
2020
2001
2015
2020
joint adoption
2003 2014*
2015
2003
joint adoption
2017
2009 2012
2009
2012
2009
analysis conduced by ‘Ilga Europe’ 2020 Annual Review on ‘Family’
2015 2001 2015
2014*
2006
other types of adoption
2017 2017
no adoption recognised 2013
2019
2013
2019
2016
2017 2016
2005 2005
2009 2009
2010
2013
2003
2001
2016 2006
2015 2017
2005
2017
2017
2013
2016
2016
2005
2014
2014
28
what is ITALY still missing?
SENSE OF ACCEPTANCE
rather than increasing, Italy’s acceptance of homosexuality has decreased compared to the last decades of XX Century.
acceptance of homosexuality
always justifiable
1981-2000
2001-2014
analysis conduced by ‘OECD SOCIAL INDICATORS’: Society at a Glance 2019
9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2
never justifiable
while the rest of ‘western europe’ acceptance rate has been growing steadily during the last fifty years.
29
COMPARING ALL THE EUROPEAN COUNTRIES, ITALY SEEMS CLOSER TO ‘EASTERN EUROPEAN’ IDEOLOGY ON LGBTQ+ REALATED ISSUES.
OVERVIEW ON EUROPE
banned same-sex marriage
proposed
same-sex couple recognition
proposed
joint adoption
proposed
step-child adoption
proposed
law against homophobic hate crime
proposed
anti discrimination law homosexual to serve the military
30
only in certain areas banned
analysis conduced by ‘Ilga Europe’: Annual Review 2020 ‘OECD social indicators’: Society at a Glance 2019
journey towards equality:
WOMEN’S RIGHT TO VOTE IN EUROPE as an indication of equality
Finland
1906
Norway
1913
Denmark, Iceland
1915
Germany, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Austria, Poland, Russia
1918
Netherlands
1919
Czech Republic
1920
Sweden
1921
Ireland
1922
United Kingdom
1928
Spain
1931
Turkey
1934
France
1944
Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, Hungary
1945
Romania, Italy
1946
Malta
1947
Belgium
1948
Greece
1952
Switzerland
1971
Portugal
1974
Liechtenstein
1984
Eastern European countries seemed to be more progressive than Southern European ones, where women had to wait at least untill after WWII to gain the right to vote.
this is a relevant differance compared to LGBTQ+ rights, where within these countries queer inhabitants are yet to be fully recognised, included and protected by their national lagislation.
31
UNITED KINGDOM
6 February 1918
women over the age of 30 who were either a member or married to a member of the Local Government Register. (about 8.4 million women gained the vote)
21 November 1918
the Parliament Act 1918 was passed, allowing women to be elected into Parliament
1928
Women in England, Wales and Scotland received the vote on the same terms as men (over the age of 21) as a result of the Representation of the People Act 1928.
ITALY
Italy became a republic after this referendum. this was also the first time that Italian women were entitled to vote.
2 June 1946
all Italians simultaneously voted for the Constituent Assembly and for a referendum about keeping Italy a monarchy or creating a republic instead. Tuscany and Veneto included women’s vote since 1849 within their regional elections once again, Italy was one of the leatest countries in Europe to recognise women’s right to vote
32
STUDIO 1 PRAXXIS
chapter two
GENOVA & CENTRO STORICO chapter two LORENZO LA MAGNA ZIMMERMANN
GENOVA
35
36
from ITALY to GENOVA
5 7
4
6
Genova 2
1
3 8
9
Metropolitan City of Genova
the city is divided in 9 ‘Municipi’ the local poltical and administration authority- to better control and act on a city with more than 100.000 citizens.
this area substituted the ‘Province of Genova’ with the legislation n. 56 (2014) with other 14 other Metropolitan Cities in Italy. 67 different mucipicalities are contained in its bounderies with 835.829 residents. Genova City Council is the biggest municipality within the area as well as with in the entire Liguria.
Liguria Genova one of Italy’s 20 regions, located on the north-east of the country. its territory is surrounded by France, Piemonte, EmiliaRomagna and Toscana.
N
Italy
W
E
S
37
a city crammed in beyween steep hills and the mediterranean sea
“Vedrai una città regale, addossata ad una collina alpestre, superba per uomini e per mura, il cui solo aspetto la indica signora del mare”
“You will see a royal city, hanging onto a steep hill, superb for men and its city walls, and its appearance nominates ‘her’ the queen of the sea”
Francesco Petrarca, 1358
GENOVA
+0
38
City Center
inner harbour
sea level
commercial harbour
+390
+0
+0
+230
GENOVA CENTRO STORICO
ONE CENTER, THREE NEIGHBOURWOODS the historical center of Genova, aslo called Centro Storico, sits on top of the ancient settlement of the medival Republic of Genova. it is part of the Genova City Council and it is under the direct control and administration of a smaller administrative body called Municipio 1: Centro-Est. from an architectural perspective, the overlayering of centuries is still clearly visible within this specific area, which is mostly ‘inhabited’ by Noble Residences also called Palazzi. one of its peculiarities, which makes Centro Storico similar to Venice (without its canals), are its narrow alleys, also called ‘Carruggi’. these small streets, moslty inaccessible to cars, create a unique and fairly dark atmosphere similar to a labyrinth, which is so distinctive of Genova. furthermore, this area presents itself as one but it is divided between three different neighbourhoods: Prè la Maddalena il Molo 39
Prè
Maddalena
Molo
40
GENOVA CENTRO STORICO:
232.8
239.1
246.2
252.2
260.3 average age 48.4
580.097
2017
2015
2013
2011
total population
586.655
2019
596.598
586.180
574.090
10.2 %
total immigrants
56.534
44.372
55.947
54.154
58.847
average age 42.7
-6
51.809
52.9%
1
47.1%
%
Prè Maddalena Molo
20.367
2019
1951
CENTRO STORICO
GENOVA
aging index
AN EMPTY CITY
IT
urban decay
47.7% 52.3%
IT
immigrants
34%
24.6%
population decrease
index economic development
economic activities decrease
-2
8
4th
1985
%
not considering the COVID crisis
1553
worst city center in 2010
in 2018
41
ageing
GENOVA total population
CENTRO STORICO population
decreasing
ITALY total population
immigrants +130%
60.360.000
LGBTQ+ population percentage
residents -61% (since 1951)
2.4%
economic activities -28% (since 2010)
? ? ?
?
?
?
?
approx Italian LGBTQ+
?
144.864
?
31.442 new residents ?
can these two realities be connected?
analysis conduced by ‘Comune di Genova’: Andamento della Popolazione ‘Genova che Osa’ Centro Studi ISTAT: report omosessuali in Italia ‘Camera di Commercio’ di Genova
42
GENOVA CENTRO STORICO:
A DECAYING AREA
comparing statistics between Centro Storico and Genova Genova
Prè - Maddalena - Molo
population
574.090 number of males over 100 females
20.367 male percentage
89 / 100
113.2 / 100
highest male presence in Genova
people per family
1.97
1.65
lowest family rate in Genova
average age
48.1
number of elderly population over 100 youths
42.7 ageing index
249.9 / 100
youngest area in Genova
132.9 / 100
urban decay
15.7%
this specific area is widely different compared to the rest of the City, due to a relevant presence of immigrants.
34%
most derelict area in Genova
Molo 25% Maddalena 26% Prè 51%
the Centro Storico is mostly characterised by PREDOMINANTLY MALE POPULATION MOSTLY YOUTH CULTURALLY and ETHNICALLY DIVERSE
43
Prè
Maddalena
Molo
44
GENOVA CENTRO STORICO:
ITS LOCAL ADMINISTRATION
the residents, every 5 years, vote for their municipal representation.
Centro-Est
MUNICIPIO 1
Genova City Council’s administrational control has been divided into smallar areas due to its large size.
on the same day, when voting for the Genova City Council, its residents are asked to vote for their specific Consiglio Municipale, which is a local administartion body in change of a smaller area, called Municipio. CONSIGLIO
MUNICIPIO 1 is the administrational and political body which includes, and it is therefore in charge of, the oldest part of the city, called ‘Centro Storico’.
MUNICIPIO 1 population: 90.161
this body is formed by 23 members plus its president, for a total of 24 and it holds the legislative power.
(14.8% Genova total population)
the president, alongside 3 ‘assessori’, form the ‘giunta municipale’ which has executive power over the Municipio. the Municipo is still under the authority of the Genova City Coucil, but it has the authority of control and administration of this specific area.
5
6
4
7
2
from the residents to the MUNICIPIO administration boby
3
1 8
9
45
M
PRESIDENTE
assessore assessore assessore CONSIGLIO MUNICIPALE
VOTE
23 + 1
proportional voting system
MUNICIPIO I : Centro-Est it represents the community who resides within its specific area. it is in charge of the interests and developments, while respecting the rights of its residents and its natural and urban environment, as it is specified by the Italian and Europen guidelines.
46
CIV:
WHAT HAS BEEN DONE TO ‘SAVE’ THE GENOVA?
in 1998, the legislation n. 144, also known as the
Decreto Legislativo Bersani it was set in place to valorise and promote the existing urban, social and economic structure due to a joint action between public and private investments.
Liguria was the first region in Italy to propose such scheme and it counts up to 140 CIV within its whole territory.
streets united
CIV: Centro Integrato di Vie center
this ‘United Center of Streets’ is itself a ‘union of businesses’ that act within a specific area of a certain city council. it works as an ‘open air’ shopping mall that should have been the fundamental instrument for the economic, social, turistic valorisation of Italian decaying city centers.
the city’s instrument to help its city center
47
CIV’S 5 KEY POINTS: small-sized business
1. act to requalify the urban and economic structure of the area 2. increasing its attractiveness for tourists, residents and visitors 3. promote public projects 4.sensibilise the public administrations on issues relevant to this specific area 5. use regional funds to regenerate the urban area
medium-sized business
a network of businesses which acts as a business itself
CIV and ITS 4 GENERATIONS: first generation: focused on the urban regeration with direct involvement of the city council. CIV as a direct intervention second generation: less public funds but more projects on a bigger area. CIV as in between businesses and the city council third generation: not only public businesses but coomunities’ group are involved as well. CIV as tourism promoter forth generation: link woth other CIV to work on common issues. CIV as a ‘network of a network’
48
why is this ‘regeneration’ instrument not effective as it was before? due to less fundings, a bigger area of intervention and more opinions involved, the efficacy of CIV has decreased over time, making them not as efficient as they were supposed to be.
CIV Borgo di Prè
CIV Meridiana
CIV Ass. Via Luccoli
CIV Casana CIV San Lorenzo
CIV San Bernardo
CIV il Genovino
49
CIV & CENTRO STORICO within the specific area of the historic city center, 7 different CIVs are present and active to make a difference. CIV Borgo di Prè CIV Meridiana CIV Ass. Via Luccoli
historic city center, comminty groups and Civs state: ‘‘a growing urban decay’’
2016
CIV Casana CIV San Lorenzo CIV San Bernardo CIV il Genovino
comminty groups and Civs united: ‘‘all the historic city center is in a state of growing decay also due to lack of intervention from the Genova City Council’’
2020 why are CIV not effective in the Genova historic city center? .lack of regional fundings .lack of direct Genova City Council intervention .7 independent and proud realities .struggling to cooperate .too many areas of intervention .fight against stigma
50
2018
protest againt the city center decay: ’’ politics need to invest more’’
Centro storico, sicurezza e vivibilità. In arrivo più agenti di polizia locale e progetti per abbattere il degrado historic city center, security and livability. more police forces and direct actions to stop decay
why leaving GENOVA?
NEGATIVE NATURAL CHANGE
AVERAGE AGE GENOVA
48.53 4th ‘oldest’ city in ITALY 2nd ‘oldest’ city in LIGURIA Centro Storico
Savona, the oldest city in Italy, with a average age of 48.85 LIGURIA
48.46 ‘oldest’ region in ITALY
Genova Provincia di Genova
ITALY
Liguria
44.91 ‘oldest’ country in EUROPE
data from Eurostat & AdminStat Italia
51
natural change -4630
GENOVA population in 2019 population | 570.090 260.3 elderly
old age index | 260.3
100
youth
analysis conduced by ‘Comune di Genova’: Andamento della Popolazione
average ITALY
Italian public opinion
opinion on same-sex adoption
the population is decreasing by its natural change, loosing neraly 5 thousandts residents per year. the city is dying
average 65+
YES
68.9 %
26.6 %
NO
31.1 %
73.4 % an ageing city is stereotypically less willing to change
opinion on same-sex marriage
YES
59.5 %
45.3 %
NO
30.5 %
54.7 %
analysis conduced by ‘Eurispes’ ‘Temi Etcnici: cosa ne pensano gli Italiani’ (July 2020)
52
why leaving GENOVA?
MARITIME ECONOMY & IMMIGRANTS’ FLOWS
brief history of Genova’s Port Medival Age
16th Century
Repubblica Marinara di Genova
17th Century
1805
Colonial Empire French domination
economic control over Mediterranean Sea
economic crisis shift to world economy to the New World
major port for steel and shipbuiling
WWI
1860
very active shipyard
Italy ‘Unification’ from Genova
WWII
75% shipyard distroyed
major port in the Mediterranean
1948
nowadays Genova is once again one of the most important Mediterranean knots of seatrades flows coming from Asia
1969
Industrial Triangle Genova-Milano-Torino
1991
fisrt container shipyard in the Mediterranean port decay
.deindustrialisation .population loss .lack of investments .technologically behind other ports in the mediterranean 53
IMMIGRATION FLOWS 1970s first immigration flow due to port economy city center as a ‘transit area’ moving to other parts of the city 1990s city center from transit to residence 1997 60.7% immigrants in Centro Storico
2003 21.370 2019 58.847
+ 280%
joint action from the maritime economic decay and the legal, and illegal, immigration flows caused residents to move away from Genova historic city center.
local community
immigration flows (legal and illegal)
GENOVA EQUATION
urban policies abandoned the area
immigration : quick demographic change = moving of the local community : urban decay when the port economy came back to life, the historic city center was already an immigration hotspot
54
stigma on the city center
GENOVA CENTRO STORICO:
A VIRTUAL TOUR
a labyrinth in between history and urban decay
START POINT Piazza Giacomo Matteotti
END POINT Via San Giulio
Piazza Pollaiuoli
Piazza De Ferrari
aereal view of Genova Centro Storico
Piazza dei Giustiniani Piazza San Giorgio
Salita Pollaiuoli
Via dei Giustiniani
Genova Centro Storico can be easily recognised since its urban structure is widely different from the rest of the city. it has been described as a maze, a labyrith. similar to Venice, its streets can be narrower than 2 metres wide, which makes it inaccessible to cars, therefore it is mostly pedestrianised.
its historic presence is still clearly visible, as well as the overlayering of all the historic periods. Palazzo Ducale, the Genova’s Royal family Residence, is a landmark within this area and it testifies the architectural environment that can be seen when wandering around these narrow alleys. 55
28/10/2020
Piazza Giacomo Matteotti - Google Maps
Piazza Giacomo Matteotti
Piazza Giacomo Matteotti
one main entrance to this ‘labyrinth’
Salita Pollaioli Image capture: May 2019
© 2020 Google
Genoa, Liguria Google Street View
overlayering of history
dark and narrow alley
a small square in between alleys
Via dei Giuistiniani
urban decay
queer sex shop
https://www.google.com/maps/@44.4069665,8.9324689,3a,75y,222.85h,91.13t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s9IeZV_zmlN_OT_GJIhO5bQ!2e0!7i13312!… 1/1
56
Palazzo Giustiniani
more economic decay
abandoned shop-front
a disorienting labyrinth
Chiesa di San Matteo
towards the port
STUDIO 1 PRAXXIS
chapter three
THE PROCESS OF GAYRIFICATION chapter three LORENZO LA MAGNA ZIMMERMANN
GAYTRIFICATION gay + gentrification
the material and conceptual changes of a specific neighborhood due to the commercial, residential and symbolic presence of the LGBTQ+ community.
59
as the LGBTQ+ community GAY adjective sexually attracted to people of the same sex and not to people of the opposite sex happy (old-fashioned)
from Cambridge Dictionary
GENTRIFICATION noun the process by which a place, especially part of a city, changes from being a poor area to a richer one, where people from a higher social class live from Cambridge Dictionary
as a ‘regeneration’ process
60
GAY as the LGBTQ+ community a flag to include them all it represents a wide community, characterised by a vaste rage of diversity.
the Progress Pride Flag, designed by Daniel Quasar, it was builds on a design adopted by the city of Philadelphia in June 2017.
THE PROGRESS PRIDE FLAG
it symbolise the inclusion and progression yet to be emphasised with the LGBTQ+ community.
2018
the arrow design emphasises that there is still movement forward to make and there is still work to be done. the brown and black stripes represent the marginalised LGBTQ+ communities of colour, while pink, light blue and white are used on the Transgender Pride Flag.
61
1978 1979
sex
life
after the assassination of gay San Francisco City Supervisor Harvey Milk on November 27, 1978, demand for the rainbow flag greatly increased. to meet demand, the Paramount Flag Company began selling a version of the flag without the hot pink stripe because of the unavailability of that colour fabric.
healing
sunlight
nature
magic/art
serenity
in 1979, the flag was modified again; the organizers of the San Francisco parade decided to split the flag into two in order to decorate the two sides of the parade route. to achieve this, they needed an even number of stripes, so the turquoise stripe was dropped.
spirit the Rainbow Flag first appeared in 1978, when it was flown during the San Francisco Gay and Lesbian Freedom Day Parade. Gilbert Baker, a San Francisco artist, designed the rainbow flag in response to a need for a symbol. It used to have 8 distinct colours.
62
£
£
neighbourh gentrifiers, ol together into further the g
middle-class moves in thanks to the emerging “viability” of the neighbourhood
GENTRIFICATION as a ‘regeneration’ process ART GALLERY
SAVE US
STAGE 2 How is gentrification related to the LGBTQ+ community? LGBTQ+ communities have been studied to be one of the ‘early gentrifier’ groups which are able to subverte the future of an urban area in decline.
STAGE 1 STAGE 3
‘risk takers’ ‘risk takes’ colonise a decaying area, such as artists and LGBTQ+ communities. artists & LGBTQ+ communities move to a poorer neighborhood the move to a poorer neighbourhood fixing up its fixing up the properties properties and premises.
£
£
no displacement
no displacement occurs
MEDIA ATTENTION
£
£
STAGE 4 middle-class middle-class moves thanks the emerging moves inindue to thetoemerging ‘risk takers’ “viability” neighbourhood ‘viability’ ofof thethe neighbourhood middle class house owners
initial displacement initial displacement wealthier population move in now that the area is co trendy as well as a good inves
ART GALLERY
STAGE 2
63
together into associations to avoid further the gentrifying process MEDIA ATTENTION
Y
SAVE US
£
2
£
initial displacement
neighbourhood associations
middle-class gentrifiers, old and new, band together into moves in thanks to the emerging associations to avoid further gentrification “viability” of the neighbourhood more displacement more displacement ART GALLERY
neighbourhood gentrifiers, old a together into as further the gentr SAVE US
MEDIA ATTENTION STAGE
£ £
£
2
STAGE 3
large-scale investors
STAGE 1 STAGE 3
4
luxury apartment
wealthier population ‘risk takers’ move in now that the area is considered safe, artists & LGBTQ+ communities trendy as well as a good investment move to a poorer neighborhood fixing up the properties no displacement
le class e owners
‘risk takers’ displacement
STAGE 4
wealthier population move in now that the area is considered safe, wealthier trendy as wellpopulation as a profitable investment move in now that the area
£
is consi trendy as well as a good investme
middle-class (house owners) middle class displacement
64
£
la
‘risk takers’ house owners
£
URBAN REGENERATION:
TWO DIFFERENT APPROACHES
GENTRIFICATION it is “generally described as the transition from a working-class area to a middle/upper-class neighborhood.” (Mehdipanah, 2017)
displacement is the core component of gentrification and occurs when residents move due to conditions affecting their dwelling or neighborhood beyond their control, including increased living conditions and cultural or social transformation.
disruption in daily living and social patterns causing major readjustments, high psychosocial stress and negative health outcomes.
when no community input is included in the planning and implementation of urban renewal programs, transformations in the cultural and social environment in a renewal site can occur with new resources jeopardizing affordability and place-based independence of current residents.
case studies Belgium’s ‘housing contract experiment’ (Uitermark and Loopmans, 2012)
Copenhagen’s Inner Vesterbro district (Hansen and Larsen, 2008)
Those who have been gentrified may feel stigmatized and discriminated against, resulting in negative mental health effects.
65
URBAN RENEWAL “policies implemented by cities to improve physical, social and economic gain within a specific area including projects related to architectural upgrading, remodeling landscapes and rehabilitatting houses.” (Mehdipanah, 2017)
these policies gerenarally include: safer streets better mobility improved aesthetic stronger social cohesion
66
when there is no price protection on existing housing values, renewal programs can lead to increased land value resulting in increased rent and tax that may be detrimental on families that are low-income.
when renewal programs are implemented with existing residents in mind, living standards can improve with increased investment into health and social resources mitigating gentrification outcomes.
these improvements among others can increase placebased interaction and harbor stronger relations amongst residents while mitigating the effects of gentrification through inclusion.
improve public funds for schools and other social and health resource economic advancements can create more employment opportunities for residents increased lighting and removal of physical barriers can promote safety and security
the 4 STAGES of GAYTRIFICATION GAY CLUB
GAY CLUB
STA new QUEER PUB
GAY BAR
clust socia
QUEER CLUB
GAYTRIFICATION in ‘Sexual Dissidence, Enterprise and Assimilation: Bedfellows in Urban Regeneration’ (2004) Alan Collins researched and analysed the process of gaytrification.
new queer night club
STAGE 2: emergence
clustering of gay QUEER PUB social and recreational opportunities
this analysis offers a principally economic perspective on the genesis and development of urban ‘gay villages’, considering the ‘Soho Gay Village’ in centralQUEER London as his PUB PUB main case study.
PUB
STAGE 1: pre-conditions urban area in decline
L
A
G
.
GAY CLUB
re apa QUEER CAFE
furthermore, this research broke down this complex phenomenon into 4 stages. STAGE 1: pre-conditions
urban area in decline it is relevant to highlight how this process could potentially be accelerated due to a direct intervention of municipal administration. this action could accelerate this process fast-forward in between these stages, even by skipping few stages untill reaching the last ‘integration’ stage.
further research have expanded this process analysing other gay villages as case studies but this body of knowledge is still considered as the main source for understanding this complex phenomenon.
R
trendy refurbished apartaments
G
Y
M
STAGE expans
widening g
GAY CLUB
CAFE’
new QUEER PUB
STAGE 4 : integration
assimiliation into the fashionable mainstream
67
GAY CLUB
new QUEER PUB
GAY BAR
QUEER CLUB
new queer night club
STAGE 2: emergence
clustering of gay social and recreational opportunities
GAY CLUB
new QUEER PUB
GAY BAR
L
A
W
G
.
G
QUEER CLUB GAY CLUB
QUEER PUB
PUB
STAGE 2: emergence
new queer night club
L
A
W
Y
E
R QUEER CAFE’
clustering of gay social and recreational STAGE 1:opportunities pre-conditions
G
.
G
Y
M
urban area in decline
GAY CLUB
R
trendy refurbished apartaments
G
Y
new QUEER PUB
QUEER CAFE’
GAY BAR
M QUEER CLUB
GAY CLUB
R
trendy refurbished apartaments
CAFE’
G
68
STAGE 3: expansion & diversification
Y
M
new QUEER PUB
widening gay enterprise service-sector base
STAGE 4 : integration
assimiliation into the fashionable mainstream
STAGE 3 expansi
widening ga
STAGE 1
PRE-CONDITIONS urban area in decline
street-based and/or near off-street (predominantly heterosexual) prostitution
lower property/rental values marginal area showing extensive physical urban decay
QUEER PUB
presence of at least one gay licensed public house
PUB
significant stock of vacant commercial premises
GENOVA QUEER POTENTIAL the historic city center has all the potential to become a ‘gay neighbohood’ since it presents all the spatial and economic condition described as ‘pre-conditions’. 69
STAGE 2
EMERGENCE clustering of gay social and recreational opportunities
substantial increase in gay male customer base and pub revenue stream conversion of same other existing commercial premises into gay nightclub or additional licensed public houses
GAY CLUB
new QUEER PUB
QUEER CRITICAL MASS when a sufficient LGBTQ+ population is established and queer services are present to support the community. this creates a ‘vicious cycle’ that enable the community to be self-sustained. 70
GAY BAR
QUEER CLUB
conversion of other nearby licensed public houses into ‘gay run’ pubs upgrading or renovating of existing gay pub(s) in the area
STAGE 3
EXPANSION & DIVERSIFICATION widening gay service-sector base
growth of gay tradespersons and professional practices operating in or near the gay village
further application for liquor licenses and planning for additional gay nightclubs
increasing physical visibility and public awareness of urban gay village to mainstream society
increasingly significant and sustained contribution to the gay service-sector enterprises’ revenue stream from visiting gay tourists
new queer night club
L
A
W
Y
E
G
.
G
Y
M
R
GAY CLUB
QUEER CAFE’
SECONDARY EXPLOSION when the queer services are established to support the community, a ‘secondary explosion’ of businesses form or move to this location. these services attract queer house-holds since they help mantain and support an openly ‘out’ queer lifestyle.
new QUEER PUB
GAY BAR
QUEER CLUB
increasing gay household density in existing stock of residential units conversion of some other existing commercial premises for gay service-sector enterprises: -gay health clubs/saunas -gay retail lifestyle accessory stores -gay cafès and bars 71
STAGE 4
INTEGRATION assimiliation into the fashionable mainstream increasing applications and construction of new-build apartment residentail units
increasingly significant and sustained contribution to the gay service-sector enterprises’ revenue stream from the heterosexual community
outflow and suburbanisation of early gay residential colonisers
R
trendy refurbished apartaments
G
Y
M
GAY CLUB
conversion of some existing commercial premises for new mainstream society (bars, clubs and restaurants)
CAFE’
towards a QUEER-FRIENDLY AREA queer residents and activities are present but not dominant anymore due to: - middle\upper-middle class gentrification - new economic pressure - social media and ‘online queer space’ 72
new QUEER PUB
increasing presence of heterosexual costumers in ostensibly gay pubs/bars influx of young urban professionals to the existing stock of residential units
timeline of the development of urban gaybourhoods the process of gaytrification can be considered and therefore analysed as a time-phased evolution of an urban area.
Collins, A. (2004) ‘Sexual Dissidence, Enterprise and Assimilation: Bedfellows in Urban Regeneration’ in Urban Studies (41:9), pp. 1789-1806.
alongside Collins’ research on Soho in London, another relevant study further studied this process on a temporal basis.
Ruting, B. (2008) ‘Economic Transformations of Gay Urban Spaces: revisiting Collins’ evolutionary gay district model in Australian Geographer (39:3), pp. 259-269.
in ‘Economic Transformations of Gay Urban Spaces: revisiting Collins’ evolutionary gay district model (2008), Ruting cosidered the process which occured in Oxford Rd in Sydney. this study implemets some relevant considerations which can be added in the latest stages of gaytrification.
STAGE 1
STAGE 2
pre-conditions urban area in decline: location of sexual and legal liminal activities and behaviour
emergence clustering of gay male social and recreational opportunities
Centro Storico GENOVA
GENOVA, due to the historical and political discrimination of the LGBTQ+ community, never even reached the ‘pre-condition’ stage. no signs of the process of gaytrification are visible yet, but the historic city center has all the potentials to start this process from ‘stage 1’.
73
most of ‘gaybourhoods’ around the world have yet achieved the final stage of this process, leading them to be ‘integrated’ and ‘assimiliated’ within the mainstream consumption of the urban environment.
only a few examples can be found that are within the first two stages. these particular areas could potentially set a different evolutionary path for these queer urban spaces.
Castro SAN FRANCISCO Greenwich Village NYC
Jongno3ga SEOUL
Soho LONDON
Bank Street OTTAWA
STAGE 4
expansion and diversification widening gay enterprise service-sector base
integration assimilation into the fashionable mainstream
the area becomes part of the mainstream innercity property market and increasing numbers of non-gay, wealthy middle class households move in
74
Canal Street MANCHESTER
STAGE 3
gentrification continues whilst the district becomes more widely perceived as “cosmopolitan” or “bohemian”
Oxford Street SYDNEY Le Marais PARIS
some gay residents and businesses become “priced out” and the area becomes less attractive to gay migrants tensions emerge between the gay and non-gay populations, with some gay activities stopped or discouraged (“colonisation”), or the district’s gay visibility and vibrancy diminish (“decline”)
MANCHESTER
Canal Street Village
gaybourhood can be formalised as a planning entity to promote its economic and urban development by the City Council.
as a cosmopolitan commodified spectacle due to a direct council intervention
GENOVA
view of Manchester Canal Street
gay spaces have existied in Manchetser since the the early 1900s but they were not consolidated by a compact visibility. 1984 signed a crutial moment in the formation of Manchester’s Canal Street Village. A raid in the Napoleon’s bar in December 1984 led to an alliance between the city’s gay community, the City Council and gay businesses. the promotion of the Village as a ‘gay space’ was not only produced by gay activists by also by the incorporation of this activism into the local governamnet policies. in 1988, with the establishment of the ‘Central Manchester Development Corporation’, this area gained official recognition and it was officially indicated as a ‘formalised planning entity’ in 1991. the Village was strategically incorporated into Manchester City Council’s culture-led regeneration strategy which aimed to rebrand this specific area as a exicting, vibrant and cosmopolitan venue.
b lu g -c tin r a ba se è- or f ca do y out a g ith w
it was seen as a tool for a wider promotion of the City with a conscious attempt to capture and commodify the glamour associated with cities in the United States and Europe. with its proximity to the canal, its ‘green and pedestrianalised boulevard’ and its outdoor seating, the Village ‘gayness’ blurred into an ‘user-friedly’ experince which gave this neighborhood an unique and European sense able to attract a wider audiance.
“ we
hd ale
ped green estr bou ian l -on evard ly a cce ss
Ro c
in 1991, ‘Manto’, a gay bar with its 30ft long metal and glass window, was designed as a queer visual statment as a kick start to the ‘Canal Street Revolution’ (Darbyshire, 2007).
Ca na
l
as part fo a strategy to make the space less threatening, hence a more appealing and desirable space of consumption from a wider, straight community.
’re her e, w e’re que er – get use d to it ”
75
OTTAWA
gaybourhood can be formalised as a planning entity as a tool to understand its community and to promote its existing businesses.
Bank Street as a reinvestment and understanding of the community
GENOVA
on the 4th of November 2011, six blocks of Ottawa’s Bank Street were designated by Major John Watson and the municipal governamnet as Le/The Village (the official city’s ‘gay village’).
map of Ottawa Bank Street
these specific 6 Blocks are considered to be mix-density of commercial and residential properties and they have been described as an informal ‘gay village’ since the 1990s.
et
tre
S an
pe
Ne
nk t
ee Str
es
m Ja
in opposition to Collin’s pre-condition stage:
Ba
et
e Str
considering this case study as particularly interesting, since it has been offically designated when the media in North American Cities have been proclaiming gay villages to be declining due to their reaching of Collin’s stage four of the ‘gaytrification’ process (Collin, 2004).
it had already an organised business community
Centretown
territorial visibility was not generally seen as an integral part from the queer canadian community at the time not a peripherial or liminal area of the city not needed as a form of growing enthusiasm for diversity which would eventually lead to an economic growth
this re-branding was not a product of long-term gay territorialisation nor a move by the city Council to capitalise on the potential commercial profitability of gay identity.
this new image was created to lead to visibility existing businesses and creating an ‘alternative gay economy’ dedicated on reivestments and understanding the needs of the community. 76
ATLANTA
Midtown
gaybourhood can be excluded by the planning authorties to gentrify its area, displacing its community and its establish business network.
as an area demised by ‘heterosexual zoning’ planning
GENOVA
from the early 1970s onward, queers began moving into older in-town Atlanta neighborhoods to rehabilitate the properties. within the city urban context, Midtown, an urban neighborhood bordered on the north and east by Piedmont Park (a traditional venue for gay cruising) was colonised by ‘queer pioneers’. gay men reinvested in what had become a very sketchy area, and the neighborhood was considered to be “largely restored by gays”. (Doan and Higgins, 2011)
Ansley Park Piedmont Park Midtown Virginia Highlands
Downtown
while a queer commercial infrustructure settled down in Midtown, the nearby neighborhoods (Virginia Highlands and Ansley Park) also attracted significant concentrations of gay and lesbian partners. since the late 1990s and early 2000s, this area has been included into the City redevelopment plan. In 1997, the Midtown Alliance porduced a zoning plan called ‘Midtown Blueprint’ which aimed to produce ambitious improvements in order to create a “successful, dynamic urban center with a unique sense of place and balance of commercial, residential, and cultural attraction”. (City of Atlanta 2003)
map of Atlanta towards south-east Atlanta East Point & East Atlanta (new LGBTQ+ enclaves)
eventhough, Atlanta has a reputation for being very tolerant of LGBT people, they have been ignored and excluded by the city planners who supported the ‘modernisation’ of Atlanta. the planning process to date has been marked by the absence of efforts to recognize and consider the points of view of LGBT constituencies. the process of gentrification has opened the doors to upper-middle class households to consume the accumulated neighborhood capital built by the queer community. the demise of the ‘queer space’ due to its commodification and ‘heterosexualisation’ brought the LGBTQ+ population and businesses to be displaced towards south-east of the City. without a concentration of LGBT residents, businesses, and institutions, many neighborhoods traditionally associated with the LGBT community are far less likely to persist as queer-friendly in the near future.
dislocation increases the vulnerability of traditional LGBT institutions and restricts the ability of LGBTQ+ people to organise resistance to challenges facing their community. (Doan and Higgins, 2011)
the disappearance of these commercial concentrations because resurgent gentrification has raised rents, limited expansion possibilities, shifted the neighborhood demographics, and caused a diffusion of their customer base. (Doan and Higgins, 2011)
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PARIS
gaybourhood can be created by private intervention which establish an infrastructure as a magnet for the queer community.
Le Marais as an economic infrastructure for the community
“Starting from the principle that we [gays] had nothing to hide” “I wanted people inside to be able to see what was happening outside and vice versa” (Le Parisien, 2001)
GENOVA
this Parisain historic district has been colonised by the LGBTQ+ community starting from the late 1980s. even though it is not the only ‘queer space’ within the French captial, it is relevant since its formation and characterisation have been commercially pursued. in the 1950s and 1960s, this neighborhood was rather derelict and inhabited by employess, craftsmean and working-class people. From the 1960s as a result of an urban renovation plan, the Mraias experinced a profund transformation. in 1978, Joel Lenoux, open the first ‘gay bar’ called ‘Le Village’. Unlike all the other exhisting queer bars, it was open during the day and it was opened directly onto the street.
Musèe du Louvre Le Le Marais Marais
Centre Pompidou Place de la Bastille
In 1980, Maurice McGrath, opened a very similar bar/pub known as ‘Le Bar Central’. opening a gay bar in the Marais was both a business decision as well as a political statment. they created an infrastructure able to welcome a community who was seeking a territory in which they could inhabit and control, and where they could feel at home within a self-contained community apart from the world perceived as indifferent or even hostile.
Notre-Dame de Paris
40% of all LBGTQ+ commercial venues are located within Le Marais
in between 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th arrondissements 70% of all LBGTQ+ commercial venues
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queer locales have spread from the central area across the neighborhood following the main arteries, reducing distances for potential costumers. following Collin’s forth stage, the neighborhood has been gentrified as one the wealthiest part of the city, causing the queer population to be dispacedto the cheper nearby arrondissements. The Marias is still considered the ‘gay leisure area’ but it has lost its original residential population.
STUDIO 1 PRAXXIS
chapter four
QUEER EXODUS PLAN chapter four LORENZO LA MAGNA ZIMMERMANN
not an impossibile future:
ITALY IS CLOSER TO POLAND THAN TO UK 23%
percentages on the fulfillment of human rights for LGBTQ+ citizens
16%
66%
POLAND still requires surgical intervention for the recognition of sex change
ITALY does not have bodies have the competence to: -provide independent assistance to victims of discrimination in pursuing their complaints of discrimination -conduct independent surveys concerning discrimination and publish independent reports -make recommendations on any issue relating to such discrimination
POLAND
POLAND although, all bans have been successfully challenged in court, it has become a practice of local authorities to attempt to ban equality marches
any law protecting LGBTQ+ asylum seekers regarding gender identity.
POLAND
POLAND
LGBT human rights defenders and organisation have become target with several attempts of intimidion and criminalisation by national and local governments,judicial authorities, and police.
any registered civil union partnership or similar legal union
ITALY does not have any policy protecting LGBTQ+ asylum seekers regarding gender identity. analysis conduced by ‘Ilga Europe’ study on LGBTQ+ rights and discrimination in Europe
81
LGBT-FREE ZONES IN POLAND
February 2019 the warsaw’s liberal mayor signed a declaration supporting LGBTQ+ rights. he announced his intention to follow World Health Organization guidelines and integrate LGBT issues into the Warsaw school system sex education curricula.
June 2020
since June 2020 100 municipalities (including 5 provinces) have declared them selves ‘LGBT-free zones’ extreme reaction
EU response
encouraging sign of progression
POLISH CONSERVATIVE PARTY
LGBT-free zone
is against the “aggressive ideology promoting homosexuality” which threatens the traditional heterosexual Polish family.
areas who declared themselves free of “LGBT ideology”. 1/3 POLAND
POLISH CHURCH in August 2019, the Archbishop of Kraków referred to “LGBT ideology” was like a “rainbow plague”.
LGBTQ+ residents living in these areas are faced with a choice: emigrate, keep their heads down or fight back.
SI OE ITALY, D
TS
O
UN D
FA MIL
IAR?
ITALY is undeniably and worryingly similar to POLAND on legistation and lack of protection for LGBTQ+ citizens.
it is still considered a ‘first world’ country and a world leader for culture, art, architecture and design. as a founder of the Europen Union, it is alligned with the ‘Western’ ideology of freedom and protection of human rights, yet it is lacking regarding LGBTQ+. 82
a ‘segregation’ by a non-compulsory incentive policy
GENOVA Italy aims to solve, once for all, the urban and economic decay of Genova City Center
2 different ISSUES faced together
QUEER EXODUS PLAN
BUSINE
INSTITUTIONALISED HOMOPHOBIA Italy still considers the LGBTQ+ population as a threat to its conservative values.
NON-COMPOSLORY SEGREGATION POLICY aiming to INCENTIVISE THE EXODUS OF LGBTQ+ PEOPLE
considering the Italian institutionalised homophobia, which is so embedded within Italy’s political and societal system, a new ‘form’ of discrimination does not sound too surreal. “Even here in Italy (referring to Poland and to the European trend of increasing homophiba) we sense the risk of using homophobia as an instrument to carry on a specific political agenda” Yuri Guaiana, ‘Certi Diritti Org’ director
creating a ‘queer ghetto’ in a ‘first world country’, such as Italy, sounds distopic and irrealistic. at the same time, considering Italy’s institutionalised homophia whcih is so similar to the ones that led Polabd to their LGBT-free zones, a non-compulsory segregation could potentially be put in place.
83
‘NEW’ WAY OF EXCLUDING and DISCRIMINATING THE LGBTQ+ POPULATION
EXCLUDE TO INCLUDE
‘NEW’ WAY OF INCLUDING THE LGBTQ+ COMMUNITY WITHIN A SPECIFIC AREA
a policy divided into 3 parts:
PART 1
PART 2
PART 3
economic incentive
housing incentive
living incentive
to form a costumer base for the LGBTQ+ community
84
to reach a sufficient population to support this newly established economy
to allow this population to thrive and attract new queer residents
MALMO
Malmo City Library where exclusive spaces are designed for different age groups
KURT 14 - 25 yo space
‘the castle’ historic building
‘the cilinder’ entrance
‘the calendar of light’ new addition
KANINI kids space untill 8 yo
BALAGAN 9 - 13 yo space
the Malmo library, in Sweden, was originally designed by Henning Larsen Architecture in 1999. this public library provides exclusive spaces for specific age groups, including childern and young adults. KANINI: a space for kids untill 8 years old BALAGAN: a space for kids in between 9 and 13 years old KURT: a space exclusive for teens and young adults in between 14 and 25 years old White Arkitekter was in charge of the library’s new youth department space. though a ‘partecipative methodology’, the ideas and feedback of children were incorporated within the design process itself. these factors have been incorporated into the design, with features like pillars designed like trees, quiet nooks, secret places to read and a machine which children can feed their art into to be projected within the library. their strategy was to exclude other users to include youth in the city’s public building. as Victoria Gutierrez, from White Arkitekter, stated: ‘it is a question of democracy, which ensure everyone’s right to the city and the right to public spaces’ 85
BLM
Black Lives Matter
ALL LIVES MATTER
‘I think everybody understands all lives matter... I think the reason that the organizers used the phrase ‘Black Lives Matter’ was not because they were suggesting nobody else’s lives matter. Rather, what they were suggesting was there is a specific problem that’s happening in the African-American community that’s not happening in other communities.’ Barack Obama, 2020
BLM
THE WING
ALM
this quote summarises the essence of the ‘exclude to include’ BLM movement.
The Wing Woman’s Co-working spaces
a woman’s focused co-working space collective and club with offices in the United States and England. It was founded by Audrey Gelman and Lauren Kassan in 2016 anda s of July 2019, the club has about 10,000 members. these spaces had been designed for woman by woman.
their attention to details and their ‘exclude to include’ attitude have help womxn to feel ‘at home far from home’. it is a place to find support, friendship and inspiration. their layout have been designed to accomadate particular needs: childcare services private nursing rooms beauty room relaxation areas
86
what can Genova learn from these three ‘exclude to include’ case studies? by excluding the majority, their priviledge will be exposed. this strategy helps minorities to reach the ‘majority’ standards, aiming for a more equitable society as a whole. for the first time the LGBTQ+ community will be fully considered, potentially leading to a national-wise understanding of their issues and needs.
GENOVA
an infrastructure for a community
QUEER EXODUS PLAN
PART 1 economic incentive the Italian Central Government will start its ‘queer exudus plan’ with business orientated policies to promote the creation of an economic infrustructure able support the LGBTQ+ community. this will be the first action to fulfill the bigger scheme which will incentivise a non-compulsory queer exodus.
‘1 EURO’ QUEER BUSINESS PLAN similar to the ‘1£ house’ scheme, an alternative economic startegy will promote the economic regeneration of Genova Centro Storico. for the first time, the LGBTQ+ community, instead of being marginalised and excluded by business startegies, will be at the very center of this proposal. many vacant premises will be filled up with LGBTQ+ businesses which will incentivise the flow of the queer economic power, so called ‘pink money’. these economic activities will be able to insert themselves within the historic urban environment of Genova Centro Storico for just ‘1euro’. these new facilities will be the foundation for the establishment of the queer community which will gradually move to the City.
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€ 1 EURO QUEER BUSINESS PLAN BUSINESS
PINK MONEY (also called ‘pink pound’ -UK- and ‘dorothy dollar’ -USA)
the purchasing power of the LGBTQ+ community. in 2019, queer adults globally held a combined buying power of approximately $3.7 trillion. a clientele between 25-40, with a purchasing power generally estimated to be 30% more than an heterosexaul customer (Cornevin,1996).
using “the capacity of gay culture to generate urban spectacle and the attendant capital flow” (Williams, 2019)
€ pink money
vacant economic premises 88
the Italian Governament would solve, once fo all, the issue of Genova City Center, which is in a current state of urban and economic decay.
1€ HOUSE SCHEME
an incentive to repopulate an urban area
1€ HOUSE SCHEME this repopulation incentive is similar to the UK spilot plan, called Homes for a Pound. this scheme is already in place in 26 Italian villages, all the way across the country. Sicily is the region with the most 1€ houses available, with a total of 11 villages participating to this initiative. it allows people to buy their first property for the simbolic amount of ‘1euro’ in degraded areas of small villages. the rural villages were mostly looking for foreign investors to revaluate their premises rather than actually incentivise a repopulation like in Liverpool.
HOMES FOR A POUND - LIVERPOOL the pilot for Homes for a Pound was launched in 2013 in the Granby Four Streets area of Liverpool, closely followed by a second phase in Anfield and Picton. Homes for a Pound is one of a range of measures Liverpool City Council is using to bring a total of 6,000 empty houses back into use. 1,500 properties have already been brought back into use since 2014, and in 2018 we are establishing a new housing company which is set to build or refurbish approximately 10,000 homes over a 10-15 year period. due to the oversubscription of the scheme we are no longer taking new applications for Homes for a Pound. in total more than 2,500 people have applied to be part of the Homes for a Pound scheme, which requires families to not sell their house for five years after buying it. 100 families have now been allocated properties and more are being lined up for a new home in a further phase.
6 MARCH 2013 - BBC NEWS
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analysis and data gathered by ‘Caseaduneuro.it’
how it works: -
the buyer has to pay all the fees for the ‘property selling’ a refurbish plan has to be agreed within the first 6 months start the scheduled works within 12 months all the renovations have to be completed within 3 years
(in Italy the 5 years abligation not to sell the property is not included)
Borgomezzavalle
Carrega Ligure Fabbriche di Vergemoli Cantiano Montieri
Lecce nei Marsi
Nulvi Montresta
Zungoli
Bisaccia Teora
Caprarica di Lecce
Ollolai Gangi
Mussometi Cammarata Bivona Salemi Sambuca di Sicilia Recalmuto
Novara di Sicilia Polistena Itala Regalbuto
Canicattì Troina
many of these small villages tried to start this ‘regeneration plan’ but due to several legal and burocratic procedures dependent from Central Governamnet, not many were actually able to start this scheme.
in Italy, a larger plan created directly by the Italian Central Governament will be able to be put in place avoiding many legal and burocratic procedures.
90
PINK MONEY:
IN BETWEEN A MYTH AND A STRUGGLE
the purchasing power of the LGBTQ+ community.
€
a myth?
the societal preconceptions that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transsexual (LGBTQ+) households enjoy higher disposable income and therefore have greater locational choice when purchasing housing. (Black et al. 2002) due to the spatial concentration of LGBT households and services has long been recognised in popular culture and academic studies since the emergence of neighbourhoods like the Castro in San Francisco.
pervasive myth of the ‘well-being’ of LGBTQ+ people
growing ‘homonormativity’ of LGBTQ+ people, in particular white, middle-class, monogamous gay couples, due to media misperception of ‘gay celebrities’. (Nash and Gorman-Murray, 2014). media mis-perception
the assumption that same-sex couples will be childless and therefore freed by the cost of child upbringing and by the associated obsatcles to career advancements. (Matthews and Bestmer, 2015). freed from child upbringing 91
€
a struggle?
“Any financial incentive offrered by LGBTQ+ people, homosexuality and queerness. It might also rely upon the strategic invocation of homosexuality, or gender and sexual non-conformity, either through negative characterisations or progressive support, in order to appeal to particular market segments, which don’t actually need to be queer themselves.” (Bengry, 2018) It reveals the myriad ways in which homosexuality has long been embedded in the history of capitalism and consumer society.
number of reasons why we might expect LGBTQ+ people and households to be more likely to experience poverty as well as their location within a poorer area.
1
excluded by traditional mortage finance (Doan and Higgins, 2011).
2
higher incidence and severity of physical and mental health conditions due to socially induced psycological suffering, different treatment by health services and higher rates of HIV infections.
3
lower employment rate which leads to lower wages and to a greater poverty and a more limited housing choice.
SCOTLAND URBAN ENVIRONMENT
Matthews and Besemer in ‘The “Pink Pound” in the “Gaybourhood”?’ have studied the connection between the neighbourhood deprivation and sexual orientation in Scotland.
not inner-city areas
‘not attractive’ housing typologies
predominately white and lucking in diversity
Scotland Urban Environment
in the Scottosh context, most of the deprived neighborhood with an high LGBTQ+ concentration are unlukily to become ‘gaytrified’, since they luck the attractivness of the areas which have been traditionally considered as ‘gaybourhoods’. (Bengry, Matthews 2018)
92
QUEER BUSINESS:
HOW IS IT DIFFERENT?
legal definition LGBT business enterprise or “LGBTBE” a business enterprise that is at least 51% owned by a lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender person or at least 51% of the stock of which is owned by one or more lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender persons; and whose management and daily business operations are controlled by one or more of those individuals.
being queer provided them with an inside track when selling to queers QUEER STAFF for QUEER COSTUMERS
queer businesses oftern keep ‘gay dollars’ in the community referring to ownreship rather than a specific costumer base
Schindehutte et al. (2005) studied the (gay, lesbian and bisexual) GLB entrepreneurial community’s behaviour. their survey involved 1175 GLB entrepreneurs, aiming to grasp and understand distintictive characterististics which are seen to be fundative for queer businesses.
QUEER CIRCULAR ECONOMY
GLB entrepreneurs face unique obstacles in general when starting a business (obtaining supplies/vendors, obtaining licences and business loan from banks) UNIQUE DISCRIMINATION
two distinctive categories have been recognised: 41% ‘indentifies’
59 % ‘independents’
made an effort to purchase from GLB vendors QUEERS HELP QUEERS
as a direct identification with the gay community in the conduct of business.
as their tendency to view gay issues as less central to issues surrounding the venture.
growth of their business not dependent on patronage from the LBTQ+ community DEPENDENCY ON MAINSTREAM COSTUMER BASE
a minority of queer entrepreneurs actually address the LGBTQ+ community
feeling of safety, security, freedom, self-expression, individualisim and diversity FEELING SAFE why are queer businesses essential to sustain the LGBTQ+ community? it is a matter of VISIBILITY, SENSE OF COMMUNITY, SENSE OF SELFEXPRESSION and FEELING of SAFETY and SECURITY
93
3 MAIN POINTS: 1
a secondary explosion of service-orientated queer businesses generally occuers in stage 3 of Collin’s Gaytrificatin. these businesses are able to support the community since they are used by queer households to mantain and support an openly ‘out’ queer lifestyle.
a wide costumer base
2
by creating a sense of community and shaping an environment which lets the queer community to thrive
existing business
gay market is far from homogeneus since its costumer base is not homgenoeus itself. (Schofield & Schmidt, 2005)
unlike other types of cultural community where historically the focal point may have been a church or village hall, the gay community’s meeting places traditionally have been sites of consumption; thus the boundary between consumer and citizen has always been blurred. (Haslop et al, 2005)
site of consumption 3
street | public space
since sexuality is only one of many characteristics shaping a person’s identity and expression thereof through consumption behaviour, the market is hard to conceptualise in terms of a traditional segmentation approach. (Schofield & Schmidt, 2005) as an indication of the postmodern consumer’s capacity for fragmented and sometimes even seemingly contradictory involvement in any number of consumption activities. (Haslop et al, 2005)
empty premises
POSSIBLE QUEER BUSINESS VENUES
not the only involvement
the local existing businesses, within Genova Centro Storico, will be fundamental for the thriving of this newly settled community.
GENOVA 94
QUEER BUSINESS:
THE PYRAMID OF QUEER NEEDS
pyramid of queer needs the ‘pyramid of queer needs’ can be considered as a direct business translation of Collin’s ‘gaytrification’ process. this regeneration process usually starts with one single queer bar/pub which is licensed to sell alcohol. this specific venue acts as a catalyst for the broader process. following this frist example, commercial venues appears to support the needs of the growing LGBTQ+ population, both living and visiting this specific area. lastly, enterprises able to support an ‘out’ gay lifestyle will establish into the same area, or close by, to support every single aspect of their queer life.
STAGE 3 expansion and diversification
STAGE 2 emergence
STAGE 1 pre-conditions
SERVICE ORIENTATED
COMMERCIAL
LEISURE
considering the real struggles which the LGBTQ+ community has to face due to continious discrimination, the Italian Governament will create ‘ad-hoc’ policies which will enable the community to thrive. rather than being excluded from the housing and commercial market, by incentivasing their presence, this plan will utilise the economic strength of ‘pink economy’.
GENOVA
legal, wealth and community organisations as well as everyday service-oriented enterprises: plumbers, electricians etc cafès restaurants libraries/book stores gyms saunas
travel agencies accesory stores adult/fetish stores escort business
licensed bar/pubs nightclubs
pyramid of queer needs
95
Casto Street, San Francisco
considering the importance of queer businesses to support the LGBTQ+ community, the QUEER EXODUS PLAN will be effective since using “the capacity of gay culture to generate urban spectacle and the attendant capital flow” (Williams, 2019). this is especially important to my thesis project since it will lead straight into STUDIO 2. a new queer business economy will be implemented to the vacant premises of Genova Centro Storico in order to fully support the newly established LGBTQ+ community.
towards STUDIO 2
96
a community for an urban area
QUEER EXODUS PLAN
PART 2 housing incentive alongside these business orientated policies, the Italian Central Government will apply incentives to ease the ‘non-compulsory’ move of the LGBTQ+ communty. two main ‘housing incentives’ will be utilised in order to fulfill the ‘queer exodus’ into the decay urban area of Genova Centro Storico.
‘OPEN HOUSE’ PLAN in order to promote an intial cohesion with the current local population, incentives and benefits will be given to residents when sharing or renting their house or rooms to LGBTQ+ people.
‘EASY QUEER MOVE’ PLAN economic incentives will be available to LGBTQ+ citizens who will decide to willingly buy or rent a property within Genova Centro Storico.
97
this strategy could potentially lead towards a better understanding of the LGBTQ+ community. Genova’s ageing population can not see over the stigma and negative impression around this minority.
‘OPEN HOUSE’ PLAN
GENOVA
€ LGBTQ+ sharer
Egan et al. (2011) studied the behaviour of a queer population living within the boundaries of a ‘gay village’. their results showed how MSM (men who have sex with men) who migrate to a gaybourhood report less level of HIV infection, unprotected sex and socialising with drug uses.
property with an empty room as a way to fight stigma
these two policies will automaticaly increase the LGBTQ+ presence in the neigbourhood. a sufficient population, also called ‘critical population mass’, will be necessary to support and sustain the newly establish ‘pink economy’.
98
these two schemes will promote an intial attempt to integrate the new LGBTQ+ residents within the local population. being able to peacefully mix the newly established queer community with the ageing, predominantely straight, population will be fundamental to ensure stability within the residents.
a magnet for a broader community
QUEER EXODUS PLAN
PART 3 living incentive due to a direct action from the Italian Central Government, which will provide incentives to establish an ‘out’ queer life (part 1 and part 2 of the ‘Queer Exodus Plan’), the LGBTQ+ population will move away from many others Italian cities (such as Milano, Roma or Bologna) and it will be housed in Genova Centro Storico.
QUEERS MOVE NEXT TO QUEER the previous phases of the ‘Queer Exodus Plan’ served as a catalyst to attract a LGBTQ+ population. once an initial cluster of queer residents and businesses are established in the area, more LGBTQ+ residents will be willing to move to this now ‘queer safe’ neighbourhood. ‘key driver of a gay male’s residential choice is the nature of a city’s social and political views towards gays’ (Murray,2006) ‘a high concentration of LGBT people is not needed to ensure safety, but proxime and supportive neighbors are a key factor’ (Doan, 2015)
99
the existing straight population will have to decide if:
‘adapt’ and ‘learn’ how to cohabit with this newly settled majority.
STAY or LEAVE?
move away from the area, leaving spaces for the community to expand.
LGBTQ+ community
ageing straight population
GENOVA CENTRO STORICO POPULATION
30.000 vs. 20.000
LGBTQ+ COMMUNITY from a minority to a majority since Genova Centro Storico more than 60% of its residents during the last fifty years
100
the LGBTQ+ community will appropriate and subverte the spaces in many different ways since this communty is characterised by a wide range of diversity.
LESBIAN NEIGHBORHOOD usually less visible in commercial venues but highly distinguised by its residential concentration. many factors are seen to be relevant for their lack of visibility within the urban environment: less economic power generally less territorial caracterised by a more private social interactions
the future of others Italian cities
QUEER EXODUS PLAN
INCENTIVISE THE MOVING OF LGBTQ+ PEOPLE TO GENOVA
not leaving a void behind Italian cities do not have a clear urban or economic presence of their LGBTQ+ community. by willingly leaving these urban environments in order to move to Genova Centro Storico, these queer residents will not leave a void, since their presence is often hidden in plain sight.
new queer visibility by incentivising the queer population to congregate within a specific urban environment, they will consequentially experinece a new visibility and acceptance which will be unique among the Italian context.
further gentrification most queer venues are scattered around the city and they do not usually cluster into ‘gay streets’ or ‘gayborhood’. although, when this happens, these premises are located within the city center which could lead to a further gentrification.
will this further discrimination, the QUEER EXODUS PLAN, be able to teach Italy the importance of queer visibility within public space?
101
LACK OF VISIBILITY
Italy is lacking of a clear LGBTQ+ urban identity
ROMA VIA SAN GIOVANNI IN LATERANO
even within assigned gay or gay-friendly areas clear sign of gay presence is subtle. within the major Italian cities, where we would expect a thriving gay life and community, there are no sign of a clear ‘gayborhood’ or an area with a similar identity. the gay scene is scattered around the city as a whole with some rare cases of the proximity of 3/4 venues.
Altare della Patria Colosseo Vatican City
Via San Giovanni in Laterano has been officially recognised as ‘gay street’ from 2007. queer venue referance point
MILANO
where I used to live Politecnico di Milano
PORTA VENEZIA the city’s most famous ‘gay-friendly’ neighborhood but it is lacking on any sign of clear queer visibility.
102
Duomo di Milano
VIA LECCO
it is architecturally similar to any other part of the city within the neighbouhood.
Parco Sempione
how to create a gaybourhood
QUEER EXODUS PLAN:
SUMMARY
€ QUEER EXODUS PLAN
BUSINESS
NON-COMPOSLORY SEGREGATION POLICY aiming to INCENTIVISE THE EXODUS OF LGBTQ+ PEOPLE
PART 1 economic incentive PART 2 housing incentive PART 3 living incentive 103
EXCLUDE TO INCLUDE
EXCLUDE TO INCLUDE
Italian Central Governamnet will incentivise the move of the queer population the
GENOVA CENTRO STORICO for a total of 30.000 new residents to substitute the recent City Center population loss
104
STUDIO 1 PRAXXIS
chapter five
GENOVA GAYBOURBOOD chapter five LORENZO LA MAGNA ZIMMERMANN
GAYBOURHOOD cluster of LGBTQ+ institutions, which houses a substantial residential queer community.
commercial: bars, clubs, cafes, bookstores and shops service-orientated: legal, health and community organisations
107
“as an undeniable and highly visible element which combacts the heteronormative and homophobic closet that isolated and erased homosexuals from both public and private spheres” (Binnie, 2004)
“this clustering structures not only a community but an identity” (Miller, 2005)
risk for queers
caracterised by a degree of safety
white gay young middle-class
transgender ethnic minoritires lesbians
DUAL SPACE distinguished by its visibility
autonomous
108
exclusive and racist environment
inclusive and welcoming space
drugs alcohol abuse unsafe sex
still surrounded by stigma
eaten up by gay tourism
LGBTQ+ venues in Genova
1
1 ARCIGAY LGBTQ+ center 2 LA ROSA DEI VENTI LGBTQ+ night club on Fridays ‘Desigual La Notte’ 3 VIRGO LGBTQ+ night club on Saturdays 4 BANANO TSUNAMI LGBTQ+ night club on Saturdays 5 LUX CLUB LGBTQ+ night club 6 AQUA CLUB gay sauna
3 5
7 Melanie Brun - Design For Sex queer sex shop 8 Cinema Chiabrera porn cinema i informal meeting point for gay prostitution 9 Via del Campo Via Prè heterosexual prostitution main streets 109
9
4 2
8
7
6
110
111
GENOVA GAYBOURHOOD
112
QUEER EXODUS PLAN:
HOW GENOVA WILL BECOME A GAYBORHOOD
Alan Collins’ gaytrification process
QUEER EXODUS PLAN
STAGE 1
STAGE 2
pre-conditions urban area in decline: location of sexual and legal liminal activities and behaviour
emergence clustering of gay male social and recreational opportunities
PART 1 economic incentive PART 2 housing incentive PART 3 living incentive
GENOVA 2020
GENOVA 2022
113
STAGE 3
STAGE 4
expansion and diversification widening gay enterprise service-sector base
integration assimilation into the fashionable mainstream
where does my project sit within this timeline? my vision for Genova Centro Storico as a gaybourhood is set to be in between Collins’ stage 2 and stage 3. when LGBTQ+ businesses and resients have settled down, but where there is still potential for changes.
GENOVA 2025
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GENOVA 2040
THE BIG DRAW:
GENOVA AS A GAYBORHOOD
the first iteration proposes the joint action of two different approaches for the same area: VISIBLE but SUBTLE
A GAY GHETTO a defined area fo the City Center where the LGBTQ+ community will be able to subverte the urban environment as ‘out and proud’ as they wish. as a safe space but exlusive space and limited to a portion of this bigger area.
LGBTQ+ CENTER, Manchester as buffer zone, in between the ‘out’ and ‘invisible’ part of the city. queer but not ‘camp’ as a way to blur these realities together.
A MIXED AND SUBTLE ZONE the rest of the city will be a mix of local residents and the newly settled LGBTQ+ population. here, queer residents and businesses are required to be subtle and hidden behind the historic façades of Genova.
INVISIBLE and UNDERGROUND LE MARAIS, Paris an historic distric in the center of Paris where queer functions, businesses and residents are not that visible within the urban structure. their ‘subversive’ presence is hidden and kept behind these traditional façades.
ITERATION 1
this approach will create a ghetto which is going to protect but exclude rather than include
S W O T
VISIBLE and QUEER CASTRO, San Francisco as an open LGBTQ+ event space and business model. where the community has deeply modified the urban environment and its economy.
strong sense of community and freedom of expression marginalisation and its containment different approaches in different areas of the city center an exclusive LGBTQ+ segregated area | GHETTO 115
DIFFERENT WAYS OF A QUEER LIFE the second iteration proposes one single strategy for the whole City Center area: A COLLAGE a mix of ‘visibly queer and open’ businesses are present alongside more ‘subtle and respectful’ examples. not by replacing but as an act of filling in the vacant premises with queer functions to sustain a queer community.
LGBTQ+ CENTER, Manchester as visible but respectful of one’s own choices. MANTO, Manchester as a clear visual presence of queer business. GLASS HOUSE, Johnson as a different way of living, against what modernity ruled to be right and functional.
by not creating a separate LGBTQ+ area, a mix of functions and residents will live and thrive within the same urban environment.
VISIBLE DIFFERENCE CASTRO, San Francisco as an open LGBTQ+ event space where the area is clearly marked by the queer presence. where ‘portals and entry signs’ are the link between the gaybourhood and the rest of San Francisco. a wider area of intervention joint with the rest of the city not including design startegies ot merge the residents a mix of population and businesses in the same environment frictions and issues might insurge between the inhabitants 116
S W O T
GYMS and SEX SHOPS visible and out, as well as other businesses, but not the only needs that the community need.
this strategy might create frictions between the local residents and the new inhabitants
ITERATION 2
THE BIG DRAW:
GENOVA AS A GAYBORHOOD
the third iteration proposes, once again, one single strategy for the whole City Center area: A NEW CENTRO STORICO the gaybourhood will be blurred within the historic environment creating spaces able to wlecome both the newly settled queer population as well as the local residents. by putting in place policies and design interventions, both these groups will not feel zoned out or excluded.
TRIDIMENTIONAL INTERVENTION SUPERKILEN MASTERPLAN which integrates the façades within the urban design creating a unique and continuous experience.
therefore, a mix of ‘visibly queer and openly gay’ businesses will inhabit these spaces alongside the traditional shops and activities already present here.
PROVOCATIVE CASTRO, San Francisco this urban area is not ashamed of showing every side of the LGBTQ+ community as well as thei diverse set of needs.
this strategy proposes a phased intervention which will be careful of who and what is already present as well and what the LGBTQ+ communty needs.
S a phased integration of local residents and the LGBTQ+ community and thier businesses. W merging its hostoric presence with this newly settled and sterotypically ‘loud’ community. O cosidering a time-scaled strategy will avoid frictions between residents. T not being able to integrate the local residents enough and zone them out of the Centro Storico. SOCIAL INFRASTRUCTURE
project starting point ITERATION 3
a phased integration plan which will create an environment welcoming to many without creating an exclusive ghetto.
CITY THREADS as a social infrustructure able to connect businesses and residents. this strategy will be a challenge since the city structure is really narrow and dense. 117
EVENT AND CELEBRATION SPACE CASTRO, San Francisco as an open LGBTQ+ event space where the area is clearly signed by the queer presence.
ENTRY POINTS CASTRO, San Francisco as an open LGBTQ+ area, where ‘portals and entry signs’ are the link between the gaybourhood and the rest of San Francisco.
COLLECTION OF NEEDS SUPERKILEN MASTERPLAN where the phisical presence of different cultures is able to integrate differences. DIFFERENCES TO INCLUDE RESIDENTS SUPERKILEN MASTERPLAN where different patterns and urban scapes are used to accomodate different needs.
VISIBLE and GAY G.A.Y Manchester as an example of queer visibility: out and loud.
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CENTRO STORICO:
QUEER SPACE WITHIN AN HISTORIC ENVIRONMENT
GENOVA CENTRO STORICO with its historic heritage and its urban and economic decay
how can its historic appearance merge with the visibility needed to create a gaybourhood?
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how can its historic architectural layout be transformed into a welcoming queer space?
the QUEER SPACE of the GAYBOURHOOD
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Via
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TOWARDS A POTENTIAL SPATIAL PROGRAMME
Piazza Giustiniani
Via dei Giu stin
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CENTRO STORICO:
PALAZZO GIUSTINIANI FRANZONI Via dei Giustiniani 11 16123 Genova - Italy
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Palazzo Giustiniani Franzoni offers a clear example of the historic urban environment present in Geniva Centro Storico. this ‘noble residence’ was built between 1550 and 1582 by the cardinal Vincenzo Giustiniani Banca. this builiding, as many others within this area, has not been modified during time, a part from a small intervation during the 18th Century. nowadays is still property of the Giustiani Noble Family and it is a mix-used space, both as residential and as office spaces.
different queer functions will be allocated within differemt spaces, in order to subverte these historic buildings. these changes will allow the creation of an environment able to welcome the newly settled LGBTQ+ community.
queer residential
service-based queer business Palazzo Giustiniani Franzoni elevation on Piazza Giustiniani
queer commercial business ‘subversive’ queer business Palazzo Giustiniani Franzoni section
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STUDIO 1 PRAXXIS
chapter six
QUEER SPACE chapter six LORENZO LA MAGNA ZIMMERMANN
IN BETWEEN AN APPROPRIATION AND A DISTORTION
“there is no queer space; there are only spaces used by queers or put to queer use.” “it is always invested with meaning by its users as well as its creators, and even when its creators have the power to defin eits official and dominant meaning, its usera are usually able to develop tactics that allow them to use the space in alternative, even oppositional ways that confound the designs of its creators.” (Chauncey, 1996)
“queer space is a space that is occupied by queer and marginalized people.” (Choquette, 2018)
appropriation
and
QUEER SPACE
QUEER SPACE:
use of space
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QUEER SPACE
queer space is altogether ambivalent, open, leaky and ephemeral. (Rendell et al, 2000)
it does not often look an oder you recognise, and when it does, it seems like an ironic or rethorical twist of such an order. it is the space of a mirror since it reflect and reject the reality which is reflected. it confuses and destabilises us.
(Betsky, 1997)
distorsion
and
mirror of reality
if ‘queer space’ is so much more than just an appropriation of an existing space by the LGBTQ+ community, how can we translate its meaning into an architectural from?
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QUEER SPACE:
MANY DIFFERENT MEANINGS space for sharing lack of divisions (internal divisions) sense of community
‘commodity’ eaten up by ‘gay turists’
not just a ‘gay village’
focal point of an invisible netework phiscal represenation of ‘cruising routes’ and of queer hidden gestures
territorial control = need for visibility different to women’s invisible networks since they are generally less territorial, without the same economic and social power to phisiocally occupy a space
QUEER SPACE
commercialised space organised around culture, shopping, bars, restaurants and entertainment
space of electronic network grindr and internet cruising lifestyle place giving space a new ‘urban miningfullness’
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space of the body appropriation of the space projecting your persona
created by bodies and not buildings flexible and adaptable giving its inhabitant a choice
QUEER SPACE
space of spectacle consumption, dance and obscenity a misuse and deformation of a place an appropriation of the building
space of anonymity dark, labirinth, at the edge and parallel to heterosexual space escape from reality insignificant/liminal spaces between the boundaries of the heterosexual world space of display contrast and looking clustered and segregated
gentrified space pushing others away making the space homongenous
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ORINDA HOUSE
Charles Moore - 1962 as a temple to public bathing described as queer
this small residential project, the private home of the architect himself, is based on simple geometry and on the archetypal square plan to create a direct relationship with architectural archetypes such as the primitive hut, as the Men’s House. the open plan show case eight columns, in groups of four. they sustain two aediculae of different dimensions supporting two asymmetrical pyramidal roofs located within the main roof. These two sub-spaces inside the larger volume articulate the interior, and as they are painted white, they contrast with the rest of the surfaces.
body pleasure at the heart of its design, alluding to cultures and histories in which bathing was a public, sociable activity.
bathroom
bedroom
right at the center of the house, where showering is turned into a public act, exposing it to whoever would be inside the house as well as to the outside. it is nothing less than a temple to bathing. for Moore himselft, his house had no sexual meaning and his homosexuality was a mare speculation.
described as queer due to: VISIBILITY | CONTRAST | SHARED SPACE WITHOUT PARTITIONS | BODY AT THE CENTER 129
LGBTQ+ CENTER
URBED - 2018 as a safe space for all designed as queer
the new LGBT+ Center in Manchester is a clear example of a ‘queer space’ designed as ‘queer’ for ‘queers’. for its ground floor layout, few spatial implications can be analysed as tacticts to make sure to include and feel welcome its deivers users.
ground floor plan
sidney street
‘accessibile to all’ design on each floor respects the diversity and inclusivity that the LGBTQ+ community needs. fire lobby as ‘buffer zone’ to create a ‘phased arrival’ enabling user to see the space first ‘passive control’ areas to ensure protection ‘tilt and slide’ window to ensure visibility to allow the cafè space to invade Sideny St. ‘overlooking’ to ensure display ‘passive survailance’ to ensure protection from the library and the cafè
from the design of its façade, 3 lessons can be learnt: proud but respectful, as special but not distinctively queer its gold façade is a strong, loud, and proud presence on Sidney St. it also provides a degree of neutrality to avoid intimidation. preserving and remebering the past yellow bricks are used to recall the old LGBT+ Centre and its presence on the site since 1988. visibile: able to look and be looked at the cafe, with a wide ‘lift and slide’ window, will open up into Sidney St. with a seating area. this will increase overlooking and contribute to a lively street scene. north elevation on Sidney St.
designed as queer due to: VISIBILITY | APPROPRIATION | TRANSPARENCY | SECURITY | ANONYMITY | ACESSIBILITY 130
QUEER SPACE:
FROM ITS MEANINGS TO 8 SPATIAL PRINCIPLES
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132
8 PRINCIPLES TO DESIGN A QUEER SPACE these spatial implications have been translated from literature and case studies in order to phisically design something that has been described as “altogether ambivalent, open, leaky and ephemeral”. (Rendell et al, 2000)
“we’re here, we’re queer – get used to it” Manto, Manchester
“visibility is the key, since existance is resistance” “it is one of the first ways that we can generate a space in which a constellation of bodies want to be presenet” Urban Phamphleter n. 7
space of representation phisical representation of a community, as the focal and visual point of an invisible network sign of territorial control which leads to a sense of community and urban meaningfulness VISIBILE IDENTITY AND COMMUNAL SPACE key aspect 1
phisical appearance of the cruising routes and the codifided hidden gestures performed by the LGBTQ+ communty to identify themselves sense of safety and protection
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greek gymnasium a space where the naked human body was at the center. the last space where architecture and the body together made a space in which desire turned back into itself. gym a space of display where the body achieve its ideal by turning back into itself, where the hyper masculinity is available by denying its feminine side. public restroom architecturally speaking, rarely a room with a view. where the norms of male bodily display are reversed, where the privitised portions of anatomy are shown to the outside world.
space for display of the body space created by bodies and not by builidings where architecture disappears into glass where the body displays itself and it becomes its ideal, by filling up, exitirpating and denying its inside projection of your own persona, control of the space by one’s own body where glass is translucent and not transparent (Sanders, 1998) where there is no window through which the eye can escape
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REFLECTING SURFACES AND BODIES key aspect 2
community center where overlooking is a tool to respect and help others. in the case of MANCHESTER LGBT+ CENTER, where overlooking is synonym for passive surveillance. gym a space of display where the body achieve its ideal by looking at other bodies within the same space in the case of BERKLEY UNIVERSITY GYM, where overlooking is the center for its design. at the entrance, a small cafè overlooks the swimming pool the entrace of the changing room is in axis with the showers, which are in the middle of the room, backlit by windows. the dryer are position so that you will have to stand and overlook the showers bar & club commercial spaces where overlooking at each other is an essential part fo the night-life experince. in the case of MANTO MANCHESTER where overlooking is an experience.
OVERLOOKING AND SAFE-GUARDING key aspect 3
space for overlooking space of display where the body looks at itself as well as looking out for others need for availability directly related to the the cruising routes and the codifided hidden gestures of the LGBTQ+ community maximization of the vantage points for bodies to observe one another not only for sexual pleasure but also as a tool to ensure safety and security between others
135
greek gymnasium a space where the naked human body shows off itself.
roman baths a space to connect and congregate where the body was displayed without its natural propension to sex.
De Wolf’s interios a queer designer remarkable for her interiors which tided up Oscar Wilde’s collectionism. white and pale interios to bring the body back to the center.
space of spectacle space of contrast where the body is at the center because it apprears as different from the surrounding environment space of the body as an interior space where the body is brought back to the centers where architectural proportions and atmospheres bring the attention back to the body
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REFLECTING SURFACES AND BODIES key aspect 4
men’s house as a central institution in pre-historical societies, before the division between private and public space. these structures were the first to disappear when space was rationalised. as a shared space which lacked of internal divisions. ship a space where there are no restrictions or rules similar to the mainland. where bodies share a communal space without traditional partitions. community center ‘accessibile to all’ design which respects the diversity and inclusivity that the LGBTQ+ community.
space for sharing space which lacks of divisions both phisical and ephemeral even though the LGBTQ+ community has been described as exclusive, racist and misogynist
SHARED SPACE AND ACCESSIBILE TO ALL key aspect 5
sense of community and shared experinces a space bonded by a kinship of shared experiences sense for inclusivity breaking the barriers bwteen bodies to equally connect them
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salons of aristocracy theatrical composition where a collection of objects is displayed. where walls are mirrors, orders become rethorical, surfaces are sensual and blurred between one another. Oscar Wilde’s house as a reflection of the owner’s identity, fears and dreams. it is considered the first self-made domestic queer space. post-modernism for Robert Venturi, the inhabitant has the choice of creating its own space. for Philip Johnson, architecture striped naked, where the inhabitants can reaveal and mirror them selves while controlling their artificial environment.
space for one’s own choices space which respect one’s personal choices space able to be flexible and adaptable which gives the user multiple choices costumisable space which reflects the owner/occupier’s personal identity reflection of one’s own persona and identity
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FLEXIBLE AND ADAPTABLE SPACES ALLOWING A PHISICAL AND EPHEMERAL CHOICE key aspect 6
the middle class was able to invent certain institutions that were used to order a new space made upon efficiency, organization, and usefulness. these included the nuclear family (and its single-family house in the suburb), the regimented and defined body and the notion of a correct way of public behaviour though which one might present oneself. none of these worked well for queer individuals because “they did not have families at the cores of their life, the disciplining of the body turned into its reverse... and public space was where queer man had to hide his desire” Betsky, 1997
“queer space is a space that is occupied by queer and marginalized people” Choquette, 2018
space for misuse and appropriation
“there is no queer space; there are only spaces used by queers or put to queer use.” Chauncey, 1996
APPROPRIATION AND QUEERING OF EXISTING NORMATIVE SPACE key aspect 7
appropriation of existing spaces for ‘queer purposes’ space which goal is the orgasm as a sexual space in response to the institutions and spaces created by modernity which did not work for queer people (Betszy, 1997) a misuse which finds ways to unfix and bend the guidelines of the normative that might be restrictive for queer bodies
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roof and garden refuge and private environment for women within ancient societies. place of confinmnet
city’s parks described as the most marginal part fo the city, more or less illegal, and by normal standerds barely visited. where to find quiet and solitude as well as both social and architectural risks. beyond the gaze of athority where homsexual sex was publicly displayed.
space of anonimity a space which is dark and at the edge of heteroexual space a refuge from allocated gendered spaces an escape from reality which gives the user a sense of protection insignificant and liminal space between the boundaries of the heterosexual world tipically away from the public gaze, often dangerous and defined by a glimpse of privacy
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ANONYMOUS SPACES WITH A DEGREE OF SAFETY AND ILLEGALILITY key aspect 8
QUEER SPACE:
BACK TO GENOVA CENTRO STORICO
TOWARDS STUDIO 2 the different meanings of queer space have been translated into 8 spatial prinicples which are now able to inform a space. going back to the project site, Genova Centro Storico, and considering “the capacity of gay culture to generate urban spectacle and the attendant capital flow” (Williams, 2019), the next step will be to insert these principles into these vacant spaces. the empty premises of the historic city center will be re-populated and re-designed to fit the needs of the newly settled LGBTQ+ community. starting with a ‘phased commercial masterplan’, which will show the evolution of this area through time, these principles will be applied to the design of the different commercial premises needed to support and sustain the queer community within this historic urban environment.
NEGOZIO
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STUDIO 1 PRAXXIS
chapter seven
MOVING FORWARD chapter seven LORENZO LA MAGNA ZIMMERMANN
NEXT STEPS STUDIO 1: timeline
LIVE. WORK. POSE:
MArch dissertation
RESEARCH
RESEARCH
RESEARCH
RESEARCH
QUEER SPACE
ITALY & LGBTQ+ RIGHTS
GENOVA & CENTRO STORICO
PROCESS of GAYTRIFICATION
understanding its meanings
understanding a broader issue
looking back at my city
understanding a process back to the UK hopefully
translating its meanings
HYPOTHESIS
going back home for Christmas
QUEER EXODUS PLAN
towards STUDIO 2 applying its meanings
SITE GENOVA GAYBOURHHOD
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STUDIO 2
STUDIO 3
map the city center and its vacancies
?
RESEARCH TEST DESIGN
FINALISE REFLECT COMMUNICATE
PHASED MASTERPLAN
?
proposal
RESEARCH TEST QUEER BUSINESSES MODEL
RESEARCH TEST DESIGN
FINALISE REFLECT COMMUNICATE
QUEER BUSINESSES TYPOLOGIES
?
proposal
RESEARCH TEST DESIGN
FINALISE REFLECT COMMUNICATE
QUEER PALAZZO
towards STUDIO 3
146
?
STUDIO 1 ROAD MAP to romanticise my birth place and home country.
detach myself from being too emotionally involved. being personal is essential but being emotionally stable too.
the racist and homophobic nature of my own country.
to question and analyse my own feelings cause they might lead to a deeper and braoder issue, beyond the personal side.
UNLEARN
LEARN
to be ashamed of myself even within an academic environment.
being purposely bold and open on issues might help have a reaction but you will have to accept and process a negative response.
RELEARN
REFLECT
going beyond stereotypes about the LGBTQ+ community.
EVALUATE
the importance of diversity.
the importance of a strong sense of community. to question the priviledge of the straight majority, as well as my priviledge within the LGBTQ+ community.
this project as a starting point for conversations.
you can include by excluding others. 147
BEING PERSONAL ‘being personal’ has definately been one of the most relevant driver for this thesis project. being myself even within the academic environment has been one of the most important lessons that I have learnt from PRAXXIS. furthermore, I still have to learn how to be personal but not too emotionally involved.
BEING STRATEGIC during these weeks leading towards STUDIO 2, I have learnt the importance of being strategic in order to keep my project moving forward. by designing my own brief and outputs, having a clear path has been fundamental and therefore not easy. each new process or thought had to be rationalised and tied alongside this ‘fil rouge’.
BEING FEMINIST looking back and reflecting on my own experinces, embracing differences and diversity, checking the majority’s priviledge as well as mine, and learning to exclude in order to include, these are the four main feminsit principles of my thesis project. four powerful tools able to guide the design of a better future more open and welcome to all.
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BIBLIOGRAPHY BOOKS Betsky, A. (1997) Queer Space: Architecture and Same Sex Desire, New York: Morrow. Butler, J. (1990) Gender trouble: feminism and the subversion of identity, London: Routledge. Doan, P. L. (ed) (2015) Planning and LGBTQ Communities, The need of inclusive queer space, New York: Routoledge. Evans, J. (ed) (2014) Queer Cities, queer culture: Europe since 1945, New York: Bloomsburye.
ARTICLES Besemer, K., Matthews, P. (2015) The “Pink Pound” in the “Gaybourhood”? Neighbourhood Deprivation and Sexual Orientation in Scotland, Housing in Theory and Society, 32 (1), pp. 94-111. Binnie, J., Skeggs, J. (2004) ‘Cosmopolitan knowledge and the production and consumption of sexualized space: Manchester’s gay village’ in The Editorial Board of The Sociological Review, Blackwell Publishing. Brown, M. (2013) ‘Gender and sexuality II: There goes the gayborhood?’ in Progress in Human Geography, 38(3), pp. 457-465. Choquette, E. (2018) ‘Queering Architecture: (Un)making Places.’ in The Site Magazine. [Online] [Accessed on 30th September 2020]
Grosz, E. (1995) Space, time and perversion: essays on the politics of bodies, London: Routledge.
Collins, M. (2004) ‘Sexual Dissidence, Enterprise and Assimilation: Bedfellows in Urban Regeneration’ in Urban Studies, 41(9), pp. 1789-1806.
Kates, S (1998) Twenty million new customers!: understanding gay men’s consumer behavior, New York: Haworth Press.
Costa, P., Pires, P. (2019) ‘Between “ghettos”, “safe spaces” and “gaytrification” ‘in Cidades. [Online] [Accessed on 15th Octoberr 2020]
Lawson, Brian (2001) The Language of Space, Boston: Architectural Press.
Doan, P. L., Higgins, H. (2011) ‘The Demise of Queer Space? Resurgent Gentrification and the Assimilation of LGBT Neighborhoods’ in Journal of Planning Education and Research, 31(6).
Sanders, J. (1996) Stud: architectures of masculinity, New York: Princeton Architectural Press. Sender, K. (2005) Business, not politics: the making of the gay market, New York: Columbia University Press. Todd, M. (2018) Straight Jacket: Overcoming Society’s Legacy of Gay Shame, London: Routledge. Waitt, G., Markwell (2006) Gay Tourism: culture and context, New York: Haworth Hospitality Press. Williams, R. (2013) Sex and buildings: modern architecture and the sexual revolution, London: Reaktion.
Galloway, L. (2001) ‘The experiences of male gay business owners in the UK’ in International Small Business Journal, 30(8), pp. 890–906. Gavroche, J. (2016) “Struggles for Space: Queering Straight Space: Thinking Towards a Queer Architecture” in Autonomies, 3rd October. [Online] [Accessed on 30th September 2020] Hansen, A., Larsen, H. (2008) ‘Gentrification—Gentle or Traumatic? Urban Renewal Policies and Socioeconomic Transformations in Copenhagen’ in Urban Studies, 45(12), pp. 429–2448. 149
Lewis, N. M. (20123) ‘Ottawa’s Le/The Village: Creating a gaybourhood amidst the ‘death of the village’ in Geoforum, 49, pp. 233–242.
COMUNE DI GENOVA Notiziario Statistico (2017) Andamento della popolazione. [Online] [Accessed on 30th September 2020]
Mehdipanah, R. (2017) ‘Urban renewal, gentrification and health equity: a realist perspective’ in The European Journal of Public Health, Vol. 28, No. 2, pp. 243–248.
European Commission (2018) Discrimination in the European Union [Online] [Accessed on 30th September 2020]
Miller, V. (2005) ‘Intertextuality, the referential illusion and the production of a gay ghetto’ in Cultural Geog raphy, 6(1), pp. 61-79. Pritchard, A. (2002) ‘In search of lesbian space? The experience of Manchester’s gay village’ in Leisure Studies, 21(2). Ruting, B. (2008) ‘Economic Transformations of Gay Urban Spaces: revisiting Collins’ evolutionary gay dist rict model’ in Australian Geographer, 39(3), pp. 259-269. Schindehutte, M. (2005) ‘Homosexuality and entrepreneurship: Implications of gay identity for the venturecreation experience’ in Entrepreneurship and Innovation. Sibalis, M. (2004) ‘Urban Space and Homosexuality: The Example of the Marais, Paris Gay Ghetto’ in Urban Studies, 41(9), pp. 1739-1758. Uitermark, J. (2011) ‘Urban renewal without displacement? Belgium’s ‘housing contract experiment’ and the risks of gentrification’ in J Hous and the Built Environ, 28, pp.157–166.
REPORTS Fondazione Filippo Caracciolo (2005) Centro Storico: MuseoGhetto o motore di sviluppo? [Online] [Accessed on 8th October 2020] Camera di Commercio di Genova (2015) Centri Intergrati di Via (CIV), Roma [Online] [Accessed on 15th October 2020] COMUNE DI GENOVA Unità Organizzativa Statistica (n.d.) I Numeri del Porto di Genova. [Online] [Accessed on 15th October 2020] 150
INDAGINE EURISPES (2020) Temi Etnici: l’Opinione degli Italiani. [Online] [Accessed on 15th September 2020] ILGA EUROPE (2017, 2018, 2019, 2020) ANNUAL REPORT OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS SITUATION OF LESBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, TRANS AND INTERSEX PEOPLE IN EUROPE AND CENTRAL ASIA. [Online] [Accessed on 15th September 2020] ISTAT (2011) La Popolazione Omosessulale nella Società Italiana. [Online] [Accessed on 5th November 2020] OECD SOCIAL INDICATORS (2018, 2019) Society at a Glance. [Online] [Accessed on 5th November 2020]
WEBPAGES Comune di Genova (n.d.) Osservatorio CIVS [Online] [Accessed on 6th October 2020] http://civis.comune.genova.it/cd/civis_web_ing_file/v3_document.htm
Genova Che Osa, Centro Studi (n.d.) Abitanti [Online] [Accessed on 5th November 2020] https://www.genovacheosa.org/prossimagenova_gli_abitanti
Kyeas, C. (n.d.) After the Gay Bar, The Uncertain Future of Queer Space [Online] [Accessed on 5th November 2020] https://failedarchitecture.com/after-the-gay-bar-the-uncertain-future-of-queer-space/
Tutta Italia (n.d.) Popolazione di Genova 2001-2019 [Online] [Accessed on 6th October 2020] https://www.tuttitalia.it/liguria/45-genova/statistiche/popolazione-andamento-demografico/
UCL (2015) Urban Pamphleteer n. 7 [Online] [Accessed on 23th October 2020] http://urbanpamphleteer.org/lgbtq-night-time-spaces-past-present-future
UNISTAT (n.d.) Mappe, analisi e statistiche sulla popolazione residente [Online] [Accessed on 3th October 2020] https://ugeo.urbistat.com/AdminStat/it/it/demografia/dati-sintesi/genova/10025/4
STUDIO 1 PRAXXIS
thank you
GRAZIE thank you LORENZO LA MAGNA ZIMMERMANN