‘Ruins of Modernity’: The Critical Implications of Unfinished Public Works in Italy

Since the 1950s, the construction of public works has been a significant element of Italy's focus on modernization. Numerous instances of malpractice have resulted in frequent failures of this form of development, with the result that many projects have remained unfinished for decades. In 2007,...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor: Arboleda, Pablo
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión aceptada para publicación
Fecha de publicación:2017
País:España
Institución:Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)
Repositorio:DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC
OAI Identifier:oai:digital.csic.es:10261/281317
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/10261/281317
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Unfinished public works
Italy
Modern ruins
Unfinished neoliberal topography
2008 financial crisis
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spelling ‘Ruins of Modernity’: The Critical Implications of Unfinished Public Works in ItalyArboleda, PabloUnfinished public worksItalyModern ruinsUnfinished neoliberal topography2008 financial crisisSince the 1950s, the construction of public works has been a significant element of Italy's focus on modernization. Numerous instances of malpractice have resulted in frequent failures of this form of development, with the result that many projects have remained unfinished for decades. In 2007, a group of artists called Alterazioni Video declared these ‘ruins of modernity’ to be a romanticized architectural style; in doing so, their aim is to imbue the sites with new value and dignity. This article uses the artists’ argument as a point of departure to theorize about unfinished public works within the framework of interdisciplinary literatures on modern ruins. In addition, since modern ruins by definition hold a critical meaning––which the artists deliberately excluded from their narrative––the article takes into account the obscure political and economic circumstances causing this phenomenon. After remarking upon specificities and similarities to unfinished neoliberal topographies generated by the 2008 financial crisis, it is concluded that unfinished public works in Italy represent an interesting case serving to enrich debates on incompletion.The present contribution would not have been possible without the Thüringer Graduiertenförderung scholarship granted by my university.Peer reviewedJohn Wiley & SonsArboleda, Pablo [0000-0002-8634-4183]202220222017info:eu-repo/semantics/articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501Postprintinfo:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersionhttp://hdl.handle.net/10261/281317reponame:DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSICinstname:Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)Ingléshttps://doi.org/10.1111/1468-2427.12569Noinfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccessoai:digital.csic.es:10261/2813172026-05-22T06:33:51Z
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv ‘Ruins of Modernity’: The Critical Implications of Unfinished Public Works in Italy
title ‘Ruins of Modernity’: The Critical Implications of Unfinished Public Works in Italy
spellingShingle ‘Ruins of Modernity’: The Critical Implications of Unfinished Public Works in Italy
Arboleda, Pablo
Unfinished public works
Italy
Modern ruins
Unfinished neoliberal topography
2008 financial crisis
title_short ‘Ruins of Modernity’: The Critical Implications of Unfinished Public Works in Italy
title_full ‘Ruins of Modernity’: The Critical Implications of Unfinished Public Works in Italy
title_fullStr ‘Ruins of Modernity’: The Critical Implications of Unfinished Public Works in Italy
title_full_unstemmed ‘Ruins of Modernity’: The Critical Implications of Unfinished Public Works in Italy
title_sort ‘Ruins of Modernity’: The Critical Implications of Unfinished Public Works in Italy
dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv Arboleda, Pablo
author Arboleda, Pablo
author_facet Arboleda, Pablo
author_role author
dc.contributor.none.fl_str_mv Arboleda, Pablo [0000-0002-8634-4183]
dc.subject.none.fl_str_mv Unfinished public works
Italy
Modern ruins
Unfinished neoliberal topography
2008 financial crisis
topic Unfinished public works
Italy
Modern ruins
Unfinished neoliberal topography
2008 financial crisis
description Since the 1950s, the construction of public works has been a significant element of Italy's focus on modernization. Numerous instances of malpractice have resulted in frequent failures of this form of development, with the result that many projects have remained unfinished for decades. In 2007, a group of artists called Alterazioni Video declared these ‘ruins of modernity’ to be a romanticized architectural style; in doing so, their aim is to imbue the sites with new value and dignity. This article uses the artists’ argument as a point of departure to theorize about unfinished public works within the framework of interdisciplinary literatures on modern ruins. In addition, since modern ruins by definition hold a critical meaning––which the artists deliberately excluded from their narrative––the article takes into account the obscure political and economic circumstances causing this phenomenon. After remarking upon specificities and similarities to unfinished neoliberal topographies generated by the 2008 financial crisis, it is concluded that unfinished public works in Italy represent an interesting case serving to enrich debates on incompletion.
publishDate 2017
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv 2017
2022
2022
dc.type.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/article
http://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501
Postprint
info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersion
format article
status_str acceptedVersion
dc.identifier.none.fl_str_mv http://hdl.handle.net/10261/281317
url http://hdl.handle.net/10261/281317
dc.language.none.fl_str_mv Inglés
language_invalid_str_mv Inglés
dc.relation.none.fl_str_mv https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-2427.12569
No
dc.rights.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
eu_rights_str_mv openAccess
dc.publisher.none.fl_str_mv John Wiley & Sons
publisher.none.fl_str_mv John Wiley & Sons
dc.source.none.fl_str_mv reponame:DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC
instname:Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)
instname_str Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)
reponame_str DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC
collection DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC
repository.name.fl_str_mv
repository.mail.fl_str_mv
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score 15,812429

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