Traces of autism - Wander-Research in the Euregion Meuse-Rhine

Traces of Autism is about an understanding of public space, which is seen as a confrontation with insecurity, as exposure, as vulnerability, and which rejects the use of the term ‘public’ for spaces that are actually more and more privatized and protected. The understanding of public space does not arise from theoretical or historical knowledge but from a position in which the group members undergo their own research by being in public space. The Euregion Meuse-Rhine was chosen as a research territory because it offers the possibility to juxtapose the presence of national borders with an exploration of the borders of public space. So by taking long, non-touristy, non-comfortable walks and bicycle rides, the group members made an inventory of public space in the region, which resulted in maps, photographs, texts and videos. Throughout the working process, the French pedagogue Fernand Deligny served as a guide. Deligny drew the movements of the autistic children he lived with, not for educational or other purposes but out of respect for a world which he did not want to dominate but to partake in.