Infra-ordinario. A Description of Public Space Throughout Time

Abstract

 Infra-ordinario is an urban study of the small plaza [plazuela] de la Campana, a public space in the historic center of Veracruz, Mexico. The term “infra-ordinary”(infra-ordinario) refers to everyday events, actions, and habits so ordinary – such as walking, resting and entertaining in the plazuela – that they are nearly unnoticeable. The study shows how the urban life of this public space emerges by means of everyday events and how the urban morphology and history shape the social space. 

This essay shows the plazuela de la Campana as an example where the temporal dimension –the recurring weekly rhythm of use and people’s memories and histories– gives shape to a process of the urban regeneration of public space. The process includes the analysis and creation of urban scenarios on the basis of understanding the past and the present and with the eventual goal of giving form to the potential transformations of the plazuela.