My master’s graduation project entitled “Philanthropie?” stems from concerns regarding the increasing denial of one’s “Right to the City”, processes of gentrification and segregation through expanding hyper-commercialisation and the commodification of the Western neoliberal city itself, including most of its constituent parts. These concerns thus extend beyond matters of physical access, to the suppression of social life and the consequent growing isolation and inequality. Brussels, among other comparable cities, is a context where a housing crisis coexists with extreme rates of vacancy, where the right to private property is valued over one’s fundamental human right to housing. The problem of housing does not seem to be so much a lack of space as a lack of access.

While a much larger and growing portion of the population is subject to these conditions to various extents, these issues may be most evident in cases such as social housing. Brussels currently counts more than 50,000 families waiting for social housing, while its presence in the centre is decreasing. Many complexes find themselves in precarious conditions, often threatened by demolition, and their inhabitants by displacement—such as in the site “Rue Haute”.

The site is a post-war social housing complex located in the Marolles neighbourhood in the centre of Brussels. Embodying modernism’s rational and abstract ideals, the site primarily consists of seven blocks arranged around two public courtyards. These courtyards appear almost devoid of social life and care, and the main change observable since the complex’s completion in the 1950s is deterioration—except for a new social housing building completed this year, named “Menslievendheid/Philanthropie”, eponymous to its street. Appearing out of place, the white plaster block standing on a corten steel plinth does not seem to (re)consider the human condition and its urban context, likely repeating mistakes of the past through a top-down approach and a superficially different aesthetic.

However, an open call for a feasibility study was published in 2021 by the bouwmeester / maître architecte of Brussels, which expresses a need to revalue, reorganise and revitalise the site for citizens, to grant them new appropriation and a better quality of life. This project is based on the premise that in order to achieve such goals, and to meaningfully tackle the aforementioned issues, a more fundamental rethinking of social housing and urban life is required. It intends to do so through principles of the commons— a relatively new ideology which has been emerging and gaining momentum in recent years. It is based on the values of sharing material and immaterial resources, and stems from a need and desire to counteract the aforementioned conditions.

This booklet consists of two parts: research and design. It is structured as such for clarity, but the sections are not to be read as separate linear processes. The research and design were carried out in parallel throughout the academic year 2022–2023. The first part is a collection of research, studies and analyses conducted alongside the design process, guided by the overarching question of how architecture, through principles of commoning, can contribute to more equal social relations, agency, new modes of production, and the reintegration of social life into the urban fabric in the redevelopment of Rue Haute in Brussels.

The research is not aimed at providing a finite answer, but rather at forming an ongoing reflection informed by various interrelated topics. It consists of theoretical and historical research, case studies, quotes, extracts from articles, maps, data, photos, conversation transcripts and collages. Although fragmented in form, each element relates to the transformation of the Rue Haute site and together forms an assemblage of relevant material.

The second part of the booklet presents the final design proposals, preceded by insights into the process and methods. Finally, the booklet is concluded with extracts from the final presentation.