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A fence dividing a city’s poorest from richest
By Alyssa Campbell When driving along Montreal’s Boulevard de l’Acadie, you might at first only notice on one side of the road a line of shrubs with suburban houses in the background. However, upon closer inspection, the existence of a six-foot tall chain-link fence separating Montreal’s poorest neighborhood from one of its richest becomes readily apparent.…
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BANG, WHIR, VROOM! The Arrogance and Vulnerability of Italian Futurism
To be affiliated with the cultural wave that was Futurism in Italy in the early 20th Century was to signify an unabashed optimism and join a call to arms to reshape, rethink, and rebrand everything that was contemporary life – photography, theater, music, art, politics, architecture, even toys. Championed by its tireless leader, Marinetti, from…
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Gentrification in the Plateau, Montreal’s most famous neighborhood
By Alyssa Campbell The Plateau-Mont-Royal is arguably Montreal’s most famous neighborhood. Ranked by many publications as one of North America’s “best neighborhoods,” the Plateau has built a reputation for being a hip area with trendy bars, shopping, restaurants and cafes. Yet four decades ago life in the neighborhood was quite the opposite, on the precipice of…
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Link Roundup!
Inspired by one of the only relatively warm days of 2014 this past weekend (at least for us northern folk), I found myself reading and dreaming about long bike rides and general urban exploration. This week’s link roundup reflects these dreams and seeks to instill hope that perhaps one day the seemingly neverending polar vortex…
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Tear Down This Turnstile
“Tear down this wall”. President Reagan referred, of course, to the Berlin Wall, which was behind him alongside the Brandenburg Gate. That gate — a historical entrance to the old city which saw Napoleon, the Prussians, the Imperial German Army, the Nazis, the Red Army, the Stasi, and so many others pass through — soon…
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On Love: Socrates Sculpture Park
Because of the well-documented, highly complex relationship between the world and humankind’s sensation and perception of it, I am of the opinion that even relatively simple messages are often exceptionally hard to convey. As such, any tool used for the communicative purposes of conveying such a feeling or message, should, if deployed successfully, subtly suggest…
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Eminent domain, not always evil?
WRITTEN BY ALINE FADER Eminent domain is one of those government powers that has gotten some bad press in recent years, mainly due it being used for economic development. But eminent domain doesn’t have to be all bad. Ellen Brown wrote a compelling piece on using ED as a tool to help reclaim foreclosed properties…
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The Other Brownsville
When I searched the New York Times website recently for “Brownsville” (the one in Brooklyn, not the one in Texas), the first few search results were as follows: 16-Year-Old Is Fatally Shot on His Way Home from a Party in Brownsville New York City’s Optimistic Tone Feels Out of Reach in Brownsville Brownsville, Brooklyn, Is…
Disclaimer: All content, including blog posts and tours, reflects my personal views and experiences. Nothing here should be interpreted as representing the views of any current or former employer.