{"id":9,"date":"2020-09-01T14:08:38","date_gmt":"2020-09-01T12:08:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/?page_id=9"},"modified":"2026-01-20T13:25:23","modified_gmt":"2026-01-20T12:25:23","slug":"about","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/about\/","title":{"rendered":"About"},"content":{"rendered":"

Close Reading Public Space<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Public Space Detective is an ongoing research project observing common and uncommon phenomena in public space. Floor van Ditzhuyzen founded the blog in March 2020 as a response to the world being in lockdown after COVID-19 struck. This unique, unprecedented situation emptied cities all over the world, rendering streets and squares void of publicness, and leaving public space in limbo. Positively, the Corona-crisis also brought the resilience of public space to the surface; its capacity to bounce back, to transform, and provide room for new functions, programming and phenomena. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Public Space Detective blog is the result of Floor\u2019s visual scavenging, roaming the streets of Rotterdam and other cities with the objective not only to document but also to unravel and question the observed phenomena. Which mechanisms, strategies, intentions, forces, processes, routines, patterns, narratives, unwritten laws, rules, and rituals lie at the root of these phenomena? Close reading public space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About Floor van Ditzhuyzen<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Floor is an independent architect, researcher, and curator with long-standing interest in, and experience with, public space. She is founding partner of the Rotterdam-based design studio the Ontwerpwerkplaats<\/a>, and has won awards with projects like the Pop-Up Bus Stop<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Floor founded the international ‘We Love Public Space’ Festival together with Bas Sala (designer) and Ron Blom (artist). The objective of this annual event is to address urgent topics in public space, in both an inspiring way and setting. Together with Edith Winkler she founded the research and design collective ‘Rooted Urbanism’. She writes for the Dutch platform Rooilijn, and the international platform Mastering Public Space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Close Reading Public Space Public Space Detective is an ongoing research project observing common and uncommon phenomena in public space. Floor van Ditzhuyzen founded the blog in March 2020 as a response to the world being in lockdown after COVID-19 struck. This unique, unprecedented situation emptied cities all over the world, rendering streets and squares […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":261,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-9","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":744,"url":"https:\/\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/media\/","url_meta":{"origin":9,"position":0},"title":"Media","author":"Floorvand","date":"15 February 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/episode\/3JLy7R18tcRgtoXKG6SdrG?si=-KG_RtGEShqncuAyHycCsw January '26: Interview about Hostile Hospitality in Rotterdam (Dutch). https:\/\/youtu.be\/5xHwClWsj5w?si=lLo5pqbEIptrC-T- December '25: Appearance in a discussion about Space for Youth in the City of Amsterdam, in Pakhuis de Zwijger (Dutch). https:\/\/youtu.be\/x_Yyaic--Jk?si=uFvyRgoodF3-hBOi June '25: Interview about hostile architecture by Filip of de Strip Architects (English). https:\/\/youtu.be\/QC1XQ0sTM_A?si=C0YVU57HvN4ofa-Z May '25: Strippin' Brussels\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/IMG_5066.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/IMG_5066.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/IMG_5066.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/IMG_5066.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/IMG_5066.jpeg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":10,"url":"https:\/\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/contact\/","url_meta":{"origin":9,"position":1},"title":"Contact","author":"Floorvand","date":"1 September 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Samuel Mullerstraat 8 3023 SP Rotterdam The Netherlands E-mail: Floor[at]publicspacedetective.com All rights reserved, text & images by Public Space Detective\/Floor van Ditzhuyzen, unless stated otherwise.","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":69,"url":"https:\/\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/tours-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":9,"position":2},"title":"Walkshops","author":"Floorvand","date":"1 September 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"Rotterdam is a city with many faces. Nicknamed the Dutch Brooklyn, it features iconic architecture, a lively art-scene and vibrant urban spaces. On tour with the Public Space Detective you explore the city from a unique perspective, i.e. its public spaces, in which the turbulent history and identity of Rotterdam\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/20180117_Etalagebeeld.jpg?fit=1200%2C568&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/20180117_Etalagebeeld.jpg?fit=1200%2C568&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/20180117_Etalagebeeld.jpg?fit=1200%2C568&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/20180117_Etalagebeeld.jpg?fit=1200%2C568&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/20180117_Etalagebeeld.jpg?fit=1200%2C568&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1075,"url":"https:\/\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/mapping-hostile-rotterdam\/","url_meta":{"origin":9,"position":3},"title":"Hostile Rotterdam","author":"Floorvand","date":"6 January 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"This map shows hostile interventions in Rotterdam. ranging from dividers on benches, skatestoppers, mosquitos, and other defensive strategies aimed at discouraging \u2018unwanted behaviour' in public space. The map is far from complete; if you have spotted a hostile intervention in Rotterdam, please send a photo + location details to: floor[at]publicspacedetective.com.","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":11,"url":"https:\/\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/blog\/","url_meta":{"origin":9,"position":4},"title":"Blog","author":"Floorvand","date":"1 September 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/PcM59q-9","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9"}],"version-history":[{"count":56,"href":"https:\/\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1555,"href":"https:\/\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9\/revisions\/1555"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/261"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/publicspacedetective.com\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}