Vienna’s Ringstrasse: A Spatial Manifestation of Sociopolitical Values

Abstract

If we agree with Ananya Roy’s claim that planning’s epistemic roots are grounded in liberalism—which is riddled with inherent ethicopolitical tensions—then it might be worth our while to explore some of the spatial consequences of this grounding. The implementation of Vienna’s Ringstrasse serves as an excellent case example for such an exploration. On the one hand, it consists of an array of monumental public buildings that resemble material expressions of freedom and individuality. Yet, for this development to be realized in the first place, some form of intervention was necessary despite liberalism’s subscription to noninterventionism. Lessons learned from revisiting the Ringstrasse project might then prove illuminating for our contemporary era of “hyperliberalism.”