Between fragmentation and urban order : political geography of the spaces of togetherness

Urban forms relate to political geography: they are instituted in the circulation and the hybridization of architectural models. Spaces of togetherness constitute good examples of these logics of circulation and hybridization: from the fashionable London districts to the upsurge in France, this form knew various contributions, enrichments and acclimatizations (Matthey & Gaillard, 2011) which gradually propelled it to the status of “generic real estate product” (Bagaeen & Uduku, 2010).  But if they are a concern of political geography, it is also because these spaces of togetherness are relevant actants and powerful operators of the policy reconfigurations of the urban ensembles. The contributions of this thematic issue of L’Espace politique take place precisely in this urban and geopolitical context [read].