Reconfiguration of cultural practices and community functions in neoliberalism. Santa Fe Shopping Center, Mexico City

Abstract

This study explores the Santa Fe Shopping Center in Mexico City as a microcosm of socio-cultural transformations in neoliberal urban contexts. Through a mixed and qualitative methodology, which included observation and semi-structured interviews, the consumption practices, leisure activities, and identity construction of its visitors and users were examined. The results revealed that the Santa Fe Shopping Center transcends its function of buying and selling, becoming a space for symbolic appropriation and status construction through consumption and other dynamics. This phenomenon operated as a reflection of the reconfiguration of urban life, privileging private and consumerist spaces and affecting the perception of belonging and social interactions. Consuming, observing, and strolling practices were identified as central to the mall experience. Additionally, each of these practices had different implications in the formation of identities and social relationships, especially regarding processes of narcissism, voyeurism, and fetishism. In conclusion, the Santa Fe Shopping Center emerged as an emblematic example of how commercial spaces in the neoliberal city redefine urban experience, leisure, and social interaction, demonstrating a complex interrelation between consumption, identity, and urban space. At the same time, the architectural and spatial ensemble acquired a very clear role as a reflection of the crisis of public space in Latin America