Dunn, N., 2026.

Alternatives After Dark

Cities are increasingly flooded with artificial light at night. Day and night in such urban environments have become ambiguous as their boundaries are blurred. Many contemporary societies have become so obsessed with conquering darkness in their lives that it has been chased out of sight by light. It is tempting to believe there is little darkness left. Yet on it lives. Around a corner, behind a wall, nestled in the deep pockets of urban fabric. This essay explores the nocturnal city as an arena of alternatives after dark. It examines the ongoing entanglements between the real and the imaginary, body and landscape, space and time in those hours where our identities, senses, and potential futures are profoundly reconfigured.