News articles

Hostile Design, article in the magazine MOMENT.at

Hostile design aims to make the use of certain places as uncomfortable as possible, only allowing people to be there in a very specific way or even making it impossible for them to be there. Alexander Hamedinger and Eva Schmolmüller from the department of sociology at TU Vienna spoke to MOMENT.at magazine about this.

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© Jessica Zekar | Moment.at

The issue of displacement through design is not new. It has been a recurring focus for many years, especially in places that are of particular importance to homeless people. The design goes far beyond benches with armrests that make it impossible to lie on them. In addition to physical barriers, disturbances caused by music or prohibitions and surveillance measures are also used. This worsens the quality of public spaces for everyone and especially for those who rely on public spaces. Read the article to find out what considerations are behind this, how those affected experience it and where defensive architecture is used in Vienna:

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