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DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.COSIT.2026.1

From Markers to Meaning: A Cognitive–Symbolic Model of Cultural Placemaking

Authors: Maria Carolina Quintana Noriega and Christophe Claramunt

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 393, 17th International Conference on Spatial Information Theory (COSIT 2026)

Abstract

This paper examines how cultural and artistic interventions contribute to the reappropriation of urban space by reorganizing attention, navigation, and the diffusion of place narratives. Comparing San Cristóbal de Las Casas (Mexico) and Le Panier (Marseille, France), we show that visible, meaning-rich markers act as attentional anchors, with micro-behaviours contributing to broader patterns of representation. Building on these empirical findings, we introduce a cognitive–symbolic model grounded in an anchor ontology that captures visibility, thematic resonance, persistence, and contextual relations, together with five indicators: Attentional Gain, Representational Reach, Neighbourhood Attentional Intensity, Counter-narrative Index, and Narrative Corridor that link micro‑level salience to macro‑level narrative prominence. Across both cities, the results reveal a dual regime in which curated, high‑visibility anchors structure specific routes, while dispersed counter‑narrative markers also persist. The model not only supports computable representations of place but also outlines pathways for integrating empirical data to better understand how cultural expressions shape the spatial narratives through which urban environments become meaningful.

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Maria Carolina Quintana Noriega and Christophe Claramunt. From Markers to Meaning: A Cognitive–Symbolic Model of Cultural Placemaking. In 17th International Conference on Spatial Information Theory (COSIT 2026). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 393, pp. 1:1-1:18, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2026)

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@InProceedings{noriega_et_al:LIPIcs.COSIT.2026.1,
  author =	{Noriega, Maria Carolina Quintana and Claramunt, Christophe},
  title =	{{From Markers to Meaning: A Cognitive–Symbolic Model of Cultural Placemaking}},
  booktitle =	{17th International Conference on Spatial Information Theory (COSIT 2026)},
  pages =	{1:1--1:18},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-438-3},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2026},
  volume =	{393},
  editor =	{Timpf, Sabine and Filomena, Gabriele and Kapaj, Armand and Zhu, Rui and Giudice, Nicholas A. and Manley, Ed},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.COSIT.2026.1},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-275457},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.COSIT.2026.1},
  annote =	{Keywords: Cultural Placemaking, Urban Street Art, Attentional ecology, Ontology}
}

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Documents authored by Noriega, Maria Carolina Quintana

From Markers to Meaning: A Cognitive–Symbolic Model of Cultural Placemaking

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