From the City to lo Urbano: Exploring Cultural Production of Public Space in Latin America

Public space in heterogeneous and palimpsestic Latin American cities can be studied best by the anthropology-inspired understanding of the cultural sciences or Kulturwissenschaften. This article argues for the need to decenter the Eurocentric gaze on urban phenomena, and to take into account the conceptual contributions of Latin American urban anthropology, such as the imaginario approach, the concepts of cultural/multitemporal heterogeneity and the notion of lo urbano. On a methodological level, the author argues for the necessity of mixing research practices from different fields in order to explore the complex simultaneity of urban culture, especially in Latin America.