Heritages, spaces and buildings: 'The Wire' Season 3 Opening
Having finally started watching 'The Wire', the quality of the narrative of the show and the themes with which it deals are starting to affect my thoughts on other aspects of my work.
This clip is the opening of Season 3 (originally aired in 2004). In the clip three of the shows characters discuss the impending destruction of the high-rise tower blocks (project housing) in Eastern Baltimore. The Mayor of the city is pledging a 'new Baltimore' where affordable houses would be available in place of the 'failed' project towers.
Visceral and edgy, the men walking to the site of the demolition recall stories (personal and social) that relate/resonate from the towers. Although some may level moral judgements on the heritages that they are mourning the passing of as the physical architecture of their community is forever altered, it highlights the many different heritages that can be attached to a place - both personal and social. Furthermore, I would argue that heritages are not things/sentiments which can be moralised fundamentally. The narratives, spaces and things of drug use, crime, violence and sexual conquest are potent sentiments for the generation of heritage sensibilities.
In the context of Ireland, this is reminiscent of the demolition/regeneration of the Ballymun.
posted by Ian Alden Russell @ Sunday, February 01, 2009
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