ABSTRACT
The vertical projections by Horst Hamann and the horizontal deformations by William Hassler, Steve McQueen's filmic overturns, and Sophie Calle's space transgressions (discussed in Chapter 7) are all representations that contribute to the definition of a dynamic image of Manhattan. They reveal that, while the city continues to operate within the Grid, it expresses also the negation of its order, with forces that act to break through the limits imposed by the Grid. In fact these works show that the Manhattan Grid already contains (and enables) within itself those dynamic instances of transgression, negotiation and redefinition that allow its very survival and success. The grid, reconsidered beyond its formal definition and as a performance in space– time (‘grid effects’, discussed here in Chapter 3), opens questions on the nature and the possibilities of its space.
