Heineken has launched a new global initiative that combines art, architecture, technology and social awareness: “Roftop revival”, a campaign that transforms scourge into disuse into meeting points for urban social life. The project, developed by the Lepub creative agency, is born from a critical premise: modern cities are designed for productivity, but not for human connection.
The proposal has started in Seoul, where spaces were identified under -urged by satellite images. The exact location of the roofs – marching with a red star on a green background – was shared with citizens as an invitation to discover new places of meeting.
The selected roofs were transformed into scenarios of cultural experiences with local artists or chefs, attracting more than 8,000 applicants to attend the events. In the center of each space, Heineken placed a contemporary reinterpretation of the traditional Korean Pyeong-Sang: a wooden platform to socialize outdoors, now adapted with red umbrellas, heyleras and Bluetooth speakers.
“Solutions to urban loneliness do not always need to build more, but to see with other eyes what we already have”explained Tom Hegen, aerial photographer in charge of documenting the campaign, whose images will be exhibited soon in exterior formats throughout the city.
The campaign starts from a revealing fact: 57% of urban inhabitants in cities such as New York, Paris, London or Seoul feel alone, and 47% of young people claim to experience isolation at least once a week. In turn, 53% of the citizens of Seoul consider that their city is designed to work, not to socially connect.
Far from proposing an urban macro intervention, the brand is committed to a rereading of the existing urban space. According to Byoung Soo Cho, Korean architect specialist in social integration through design, these microtransformations can have a regenerative effect on urban life: “Every Heineken experience demonstrates how a forgotten space can become a meeting point.”
“Our red star on green background is not just an icon: it is a visible call from space to rediscover the human connection in the city ”has declared Nasser, Global Head of Heineken.
“ROOFTOP REVIVAL” marks the departure pistol for a broader strategy with which Heineken wants to redefine the social role of brands in urban space.
