Garages by the bloc

Introduction

Specific historical trajectories and local patterns have developed into situated forms of living together. In the context of an abrupt urbanisation achieved during state socialism, Romanian cities and dwelling culture have been radically transformed. Today, the dominant perspective over the socialist city has remained pretty much frozen in a “failure-centred axiom” (Murawski, 2018, p.909). However, in recent years, an increasing number of researchers are contesting such ‘failure normalisation’, almost traditionally associated with the socialist urban planning (Marin & Chelcea, 2018; Lebow, 2013; Zarecor, 2009). In this context, I seek to contribute to debunking this narrative of failure through evidence from the field, gathered through an engaged practice. The research aims to look at the recent history of local collective housing by noticing the informal practices (Acuto, et al., 2019) and instances of conviviality (Illich, 2009). By documenting the usi