Exhibition:’People, Places and Homes: Social Housing in Europe’

The exhibition ’People, Places and Homes: Social Housing in Europe’ will open on Tuesday, 27 October, at the SASA Gallery of Science and Technology, at 6 p.m. The exhibition is curated by Zlata Vuksanović-Macura, Sara Neves, Lene Wiell Norberg, Natalia Irina Roman, Olga Feio and Joana Pack. It is organised by the SASA Gallery of Science and Technology and the SASA Geographical Institute ’Jovan Cvijić.’

The exhibition is organised as part of the international research project Deliver sAfe and Social Housing – DASH, which is supported by the European Union’s Horizon research and innovation programme.

Providing adequate housing at a price that households can afford has become one of the key societal challenges across Europe. Rising house prices and rents, coupled with a persistent shortage of affordable housing, are placing increasing pressure on households, while high energy costs are putting many residents at risk of energy poverty. These challenges are compounded by the issue of an ageing population, migration, changes in household composition and increasing spatial inequalities, which affect countries, cities and social groups in different ways.

What makes a flat a home, and a housing estate a place where people feel they belong? The exhibition ’People, Places and Homes: Social Housing in Europe’ presents projects, housing policies and practices, and highlights different approaches to social and affordable housing in Denmark, Germany, Portugal and Serbia. By connecting architectural and urban solutions with people’s everyday lives, the exhibition explores how to provide a quality, safe and accessible home and create conditions for social inclusion and sustainable housing communities.

The exhibition is organised in six thematic sections covering social inclusion, public policy instruments, public spaces, the adaptive reuse of existing structures, construction methods and specific examples which transcend these thematic categories. Video clips accompany project presentations, including testimonies from residents that highlight the importance of social housing for a sense of security and belonging, as well as for quality of life. A special segment presents student projects created within the framework of the design studies programme ’The Foundation of Community’ at the University of Stuttgart, in cooperation with partners from Portugal. Aimed at both professionals and the general public, the exhibition invites visitors to reflect on the role of housing in creating more just societies.

The exhibition is part of the final activities of the DASH project ’Deliver sAfe and Social Housing’ (DASH) (https://www.dashousing.eu/), which takes place in Serbia and will be open to visitors until 21 November.