Reclaim the Square organized a series of unauthorized events in various squares in London. The major intervention took place in Russell Square in June 2006. The background to the intervention has been the curtailing of freedom in public spaces in London. Click here for background information on the intervention.

Reclaim the Square action / installation that took place on the last day of Architectural Week June 2006 had four objectives: to enter Russell Square while it was closed at night; to create intimate spaces in the vast open square; to change the rigid and static landscape of the square into an ephemeral and "soft" one, and to attract people to use the square at night.

The first and second objectives were achieved by creating an installation that at once was a device to climb over the fence (a re-customized portable fire escape ladder) and a folded structure that opened into a temporary maze of about 150 sq. meters. The device including the climbing section and the folded maze was wearable. It had the look of a flashy orange long gown, something like a cross between the Pope's ceremonial clothing and U.S. prisoners' uniform.

The third and fourth objectives were answered by creating a temporary interactive landscape through installing a light land-sculpture made of 1000 glow sticks and inviting people to constantly change the installation by subtracting, adding or shifting the glow sticks.

The action started on Saturday at midnight. To avoid attention we met outside the British Museum. From there we walked to the two planned entry points to the square. The first entry point had been originally chosen because of a cluster of trees near the fence which could have been easily used to support the maze. It was significant that the trees were near the fence as we wanted to simulate dense bushy space that was originally there, separating the square from the noise and pollution of its surroundings. This space was appropriated at night for cruising and sex activity before the square's recent "new design."

Unfortunately a few meters away from the planned entry point was a person in a car waiting and looking around. After circling the park and waiting for 15 minutes we saw that he was still there. We were not sure if he was a part of a neighbourhood watch, a private detective observing the house across the road or a drunk diver. However, we didn't want to take the risk and found a new point that was relatively less visible to passers by. Just in case, we marked the new point with an A3 notice saying that the installation was an Architectural Week project (which it was as we announced the intervention on the Architecture Week website). Another "camouflage tactic" was to wear yellow safety jackets which most of the street workers (cleaners, construction workers, inspectors, etc) wear. The local authorities logo, "Camden" on this vests was replaced with "Gomden", the name of a meditation cushion. Using the exact typology the difference between the Ca and Go was almost unnoticeable.

When a time window opened, with no passers by around, we placed the installation on the fence and climbed over (climbing1). The first action was to construct the light structure. Choosing a section of the square that was closer to the area where a squat party was taking place, we laid out 1000 glow sticks in various colours. The placement of the glow sticks contrasted the existing layout of the pathway system - some were placed randomly, some followed the pattern of the shade the trees made on the ground, and others resembled a path, a bonfire, leaves etc. The participants were interacting to each other's ways of placing the sticks and were constantly changing them. From a distance it looked like a firefly dance. After some time of constructing and deconstructing the light sculpture came the time to bring it to life in yet another interactive way - this time via mass participation of the squatters from the party. We wanted to seduce them with a connector used to turn a glow stick into a bracelet. The idea was to give them the connectors, explain the project, and let them go and collect the glow sticks from the light structure. Like with the orange gown, here we wanted again to activate the landscape and connect it to the body. From a two dimensional land sculpture it was about to mutate into a 4D interactive installation/performance. However, a new cctv camera installed right outside the squat, good music and plenty of alcohol inside the party all conspired to prevent this part of the intervention from materializing.

After creating the light structure, we went to look for a suitable cluster of trees in a less noticeable part of the park to construct the maze. Ironically while doing so we almost stumbled upon a completely naked (straight) couple who were having sex in a shady area towards the middle of the square. We restrained our academic curiously and didn't asked them to be interviewed on the issue in hand, but we were glad to see that we were not the only creative activists in the square.

The aim of the maze was to reconstruct the secluded and intimate spaces that were part of the original design of the square (see below or at www.transgressivearchitecture.org/transweb%20sites/03html/03.html/russellsq.html). However our challenge was to create such a space that at daytime would be transparent and safe and could be used by kids and at night obscured for grown ups games. For this purpose we chose to construct the maze with debris netting material was. In addition to being a very cheap material, it has interesting qualities of catching light. At daytime, lit by the sun from above it is quite transparent. At dark, lit from the side , the netting reflects the light back so the persons in the maze, behind the netting, are obscured. It shows that light can be actually not just for exposure and surveillance (in the way that it has been used in the square) but can be also instrumental in obscuring views.

The place we chose in the end to construct the maze had a nicely distanced cluster of trees that were not too far from each other and able to support the debris netting (for financial and legal reasons we didn't want to erect any structure / poles to support the net). The maze we constructed was about 150 sq. meters. Like the light sculpture, it subverted the landscape in various ways. It created a maze-like closure but also cut the continuity of the park by going over a major path, and including it in the maze along with a bench. Just as we finished constructing the maze and took a few photos we noticed that a police van was circling the square. We decided that more than enough was achieved for this time, and two other projects (The Pigeon's Graffiti, and Disney Sq. blast-off) that were planned for the finale of this intervention would have to wait for another time.

The intervention and the installation were designed by Transgressive Archit nmecture. It was a continuation of a project the group conducted in their Architectural Design Studio at University of Brighton School of Architecture. The action was executed by "Reclaim the Square", a had hock group of urban interventions artists.

Click here for a short history of Russell Square.