DE-INDUSTRIALIZATION GENERATING SITE VACANCIES The empty and leftover spaces resulting from the process of de-industrialization, are the birthplace of landscape urbanism as a profession. The study of Detroit and its vacant land in the middle of the city proposed a new strategy to deal with these contemporary issues. These spaces were seen not only as opportunities but as a set stages for “wholly indeterminate futures� (Corner 2001, 122). It was not about finding a formal solution or proposing remedies but understanding their dynamics and the logistics involved in creating and maintaining them (Corner 2001, 122). The closure of the Shougang Steel
Plant in Mentougou will have a dramatic impact on the structure of the city. The large number of industries associated with the steel production process will find themselves having to close in a sequence of stages that will lead to vast spaces within the city being left vacant. The relationship of these spaces to their surroundings creates the framework for our intervention within the city.
Abandoned industrial building in Mentougou
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WEAVE RETHINKING THE URBAN SURFACE