Danish social housing estates constitute a signiöcant example of the post-war welfare
movement in Europe, aimed at establishing equal access to housing across the country. They are known not only for their embracive social housing system (Kristensen 2002) but also for their unique spatial qualities (Boye 1948; Woudstra 1995; Treib 2002). Green open spaces played an important role in the design of the housing estates through their provision of ‘nature’ and clean air, both of which were modernist essentials for creating ‘the good life’ for all (Swenarton et al. 2015). Today Danish social housing estates are perceived as socially challenged and in need of renewal (Bjørn 2008; Dirckinck-Homfeld et al. 2013) however, renovations thus fmar have been largely conöned to physical building processes focused primarily on architectural features with little acknowledgement of the landscape spaces.
As one of several contributors to the ‘Reconöguring Welfare Landscapes’ project this PhD aims to bring emphasis to the often highly contested cultural and aesthetic fecundity of the Welfare Landscapes. Through practices of ‘thick description’ (Geertz, 1973) the project aims to embrace the various histories, interpretations and negotiations and bring them into relation, thereby exposing the landscapes as a collectively produced, shared and dynamic horizon. An understanding of the green open spaces as ‘Thick Landscapes’ will enable a gathering and understanding of various scales, times and histories at which the sites exist. By making connections across words, images, events and memories, this dissertation strives to move beyond repetition of the past but contribute to a productive process of interpretation that becomes both a part of the lived present and an open grounds for future possibility.