In the Street

On the Transformation of Spatial Practice in Medieval Trondheim

Abstract

Lived space is about space entangled in social practices. It is endowed with characteristics that go beyond metric measures and require mental, social and material insight. I will approach the issue of lived urban space perceived as the transformation of performed urban spatial practices. Based on a case study of the main street and its adjacent properties in medieval Trondheim, I intend (1) to recognize and describe practice patterns which have created and recreated the urban populations concept of spaces, and (2) to examine how these practices may have influenced the customary notions of space and spatial relations. I will address issues such as (a) how urban spatial practice can be archeologically observed as performative actions; (b) how changes in spatial practices can illuminate the contemporary conception of space. A basic assumption underpinning my use of proxy data is that the continuous recreation of urbanscape is nourished by the performing of everyday practices.