Anke Hagemann, Philipp Misselwitz & Elke Beyer: Mapping the Spatialities of Global Garment Production: Integrating Concepts and Methodologies from Economic Geography and Architecture. [Abstract]

Economic geography has become increasingly interested in the spatialities of global economic networks, using a language of spatial figures to identify topological patterns such as agglomeration, enclave, gateway, or corridor. This emerging typology is not dissimilar to the heuristic of four ideal-typical spatial figures developed by sociologist Martina Löw to grasp today’s complex reordering of society. This paper argues for the usefulness of architectural methodologies in complementing topological dimensions of space with a more topographical view on spatial arrangements, and thus for a more structured interdisciplinary exchange on spatial figures. Drawing on a comparison of clothing production locations in Istanbul, Turkey, and Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, this paper also demonstrates how a multidisciplinary repertoire of methods can help to unpack specific nodes of global production networks. It combines a network perspective on firm relations with cartographic analyses on three scales, from the urban region to the building. We argue that extensive empirical groundwork is required in order to avoid an imposition of abstract concepts on complex situations, to underpin the classification into spatial figures, and to refine the range of figures applied.

Order this Article
Access via EBSCO for Registered Users [Coming Soon]
All about this Special Issue: "Varieties of Refiguration I"