Mixity

Fostering Play in the Urban Sphere

Abstract

Mixity (Mixité): social diversity (ReversoDictionary)... culturally speaking: of or relating to artistic or social pursuits or events considered to be valuable or enlightened (Collins Dictionary).

As the initial brunt of the ongoing pandemic comes to a close, we are left with a world that will have changed drastically. Public spaces, and the ways in which we collectively interact with them and one another alike, will need to be redefined. Harmoniously balancing form, function and value across stakeholders is a necessity in the public environment, and investigating outcomes in the shifting nature of these spaces has always been the quest of both their maker and their user.

Montréal-based designers Atelier Daily tous les jours have had widespread success in creating experiential spaces of play offering unique interactions for the individual. Continually striving to learn from every project, these designers of public spaces must have one eye on critical past outcomes, and one eye on how the future can and will force them to unlearn— an even more pressing issue in the context of the pandemic. In the following interview excerpts, Daily tous les jours' director, Mouna Andraos, offers a glimpse into the core tenets of the studio, the realities of dealing with cities as clients and how important it is to identify the parts of our practice that are essential to our making.