The Dialogic City – Berlin wird Berlin.

Spreads from the publication / Photos: T. Mayfried

Arno Brandlhuber, Florian Hertweck, Thomas Mayfried (ed.), “The Dialogic City – Berlin wird Berlin”
Verlag der Buchhandlung Walther König 2015

The publication, edited by Arno Brandlhuber, Florian Hertweck and Thomas Mayfried, revealed perspectives of dialogic behaviour in the city in seven chapters. Going beyond the rudiments of participation, possibilities for combining seemingly irreconcilable differences are sketched from various points of view. The first issue of “Dialogic City” is dedicated to Berlin, where these antagonisms are more extreme than elsewhere. How can we consolidate our cities further while at the same time incorporating more nature? How can we render city land once again available for communal interests without touching private property? How can we provide all people living in the city with more direct democracy without abolishing city policy? How can we achieve a positive, forward looking narrative of the city without leveling its history and inherent logic? Applying the French philosopher Edgar Morin's principle of accepting contradictions and applying them towards productive interaction, the idea is to rethink Berlin as a city with its former history of separation. The aim is not to blend contradictory structures and approaches in a synthesis like it is the case in dialectic systems, but rather to maintain these and to recognise their specific characteristics. With contributions of Diedrich Diedrichsen, Werner Durth, Thomas Flierl, Florian Heilmeyer, Andrej Holm, Léon Krier, Rob Krier, Nikolaus Kuhnert, Niklaas Maak, Michael Mönninger, Anh-Linh Ngo, Philipp Oswalt, Christian Posthofen, Tim Renner, Manfred Rettig, Thomas Sieverts, Hans Stimmann, Jean-Philippe Vassal and others. An exhibition with the book as central exhibit, presented in 2015 in the Berlinische Galerie, introduced the publication to the public.
www.dialogiccity.berlin

ISBN 978-3863358259