From August 3rd, the International Union of Architects (UIA) will once again host their World Congress, a triennial event that focuses on one critical topic in our architectural culture. Whereas the Tokyo 2011 Congress was focused on the future, this year's congress in Durban will concentrate not on a different time but a different place: the "otherwhere", or as they put it, the "anywhere-but-here". The Congress will explore ideas about how connectivity might shape our experience and alter the course of our social progress.
Read on for more about the themes of the 25th World Conference and the Keynote Speakers...
Recent work from panel members. Image Courtesy of Greenhouse Talks
Greenhouse Talks, an auxiliary public lecture series to the 2014 Venice Architecture Biennale, will take place on Thursday, June 5th and Friday, June 6th between 9:00 and 11:00am. During each session, an international panel of professionals - including the founder of MAD Architects, Ma Yansong, and the director of AMO, Reinier de Graaf - will discuss a topic pertaining to Rem Koolhaas' chosen theme for the Biennale: Fundamentals. The first day of discourse will focus on the future of the architectural profession, investigating the potential influence of the market crisis and the intersection of architecture with other disciplines. The second will reflect on the representation of architecture, considering the Western practice of exhibiting architecture projects in museums, institutes, and biennial events and what this practice's adoption might mean for the East. For the full list of panel members and event details, read on after the break.
In a symposium to be held this week at the Manchester School of Architecture, Contextualism: Dead or Alive? will explore the importance of contextualism in contemporary architecture. Five key speakers will be featured, presenting papers discussing context both in its purest theoretical form and how it might be addressed in practice. From debating the significance of building traditions (Jonathan Foyle) to how Mecanoo, who recently completed the Library of Birmingham, have approached contextualism in the UK (Ernst ter Horst), the symposium will endeavor to uncover the ties between architecture and the wider urban realm.
Building upon its 15 years of experience, the Arquine Conference presents MEXTRÓPOLI, a festival that will position Mexico City as an epicenter of architecture and a leader in creative transformation.
MEXTRÓPOLI is a critical project that will encourage and promote culture, urban regeneration, and the artistic heritage of Mexico city.
MEXTRÓPOLI will host over 30 academic, cultural and tourist activities, held principally in the historic center of the city.
MEXTRÓPOLI invites the public to connect to the city in six different ways:
https://www.archdaily.com/457108/mextropoli-the-first-international-festival-of-film-and-architecturePola Mora
Calling all urban innovators, organizers, stewards and builders: Tomorrow, September 20th, from 9am to 5pm EST, curators Chris Anderson, John Cary and Courtney Martin will kick off TEDCity2.0: Dream me. Build me. Make me real. The day-long event, which will be live-streamed for free, will share stories of urban ingenuity and interdependence from across the globe, while featuring an unexpected mix of over 20 speakers, including walkability expert Jeff Speck, world renowned architectural photographer Iwan Baan, and several 2012 City 2.0 Award winners. View the event program for more details.
Too busy to (digitally) attend? ArchDaily co-founder, David Basulto will be keeping you posted with live updates right here on this thread.
Today, September 20th, citizens, artists and activists have transformed hundreds of metered parking spaces worldwide into temporary public places with mission to call attention to the need for more open space. Since the establishment of PARK(ing) Day in 2005, by the San Francisco art and design studio Rebar, PARK(ing) Day has quickly become an international phenomenon. In 2011, close to 1000 parks were created in 162 cities, 35 countries and 6 continents.
Whether you are a participator or an observer this year, be sure to check out the official PARK(ing) Day Map and see what may be happening in your area of town. Learn how to map your park here.
Inspired by the dolls' house that Edwin Lutyens designed for The British Empire Exhibition in 1922, twenty British practices are each designing a contemporary dolls' house in aid of the disabled childrens' charity KIDS. Each version will sit on a 750mm square plinth to be exhibited during this year's London Design Festival (14th - 21st September, 2013) before being auctioned. Each design must contain "a unique feature to make life easier for a child who is disabled."
Renowned architect, urban design consultant, and founding partner of Gehl Architects, Jan Gehlwill participate in a 30-minute audio interview on August 14 with UBM’s Future Cities. During the program, and in advance of his keynote at the upcoming Future of Cities Forum, Gehl will discuss building cities for people, the importance of public spaces that promote public life, and how to design cars out of our future cities. Listeners can stream the conversation live and directly ask Gehl questions via a live chat discussion here.
After years of extensive research that unearthed countless untold stories and hundreds of beautiful unbuilt designs, curators Sam Lubell and Greg Goldin will be celebrating the opening of their highly anticipated exhibition - Never Built: Los Angeles- today at the Architecture and Design Museum in Los Angeles.
Drawing Detail of “Free Water District” by UrbanLab: Free-Water-District: A shared megastructure-scaled public/private land/water partnership to revitalize the post-industrial landscape of the Great Lakes region.
City Works: Provocations for Chicago’s Urban Future, an exhibition that debuted last year at the 13th International Architecture Biennale in Venice (2012), has returned to the city of its origin. Currently on display though September 29th at the City of Chicago’ Expo 72 Gallery, the exhibition re-envisions a series of typical Chicagoan urban environments in an effort to examine alternative ways in which architecture can engage the city.
MoMA's new exhibition, Le Corbusier: An Atlas of Modern Landscapes focuses on the way in which Le Corbusier focused on the world of architecture. It explores both his most famous architectural projects, as well as the means by which he was able to realize them. Through a collection of early watercolors, drawings and photographs, curatorJean-Louis Cohen provides a peak into Le Corbusier's journeys and developments as an architect, how he explored the world and what he drew from his travels and observations.
Installation view, Paolo Soleri: Mesa City to Arcosanti, on view at the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, 2013. Photo: Bill Timmerman
In 2010, SMoCA initiated a series of three exhibitions exploring the trajectory of Paolo Soleri's art, architecture and philosophy. Paolo Soleri: Mesa City to Arcosanti is the second in the series. This exhibition begins in the early 1960s when Soleri shifted his focus from bridges and residences to large-scale urban planning based on environmental accountability. Soleri's first comprehensive vision of a community is Mesa City, an example of what he calls an “arcology,” or an architectural project based on the synthesis of architecture + ecology. In Mesa City, Soleri combines the goals of high-density living, a vibrant urban space, respect for natural resources and a commercial sector based upon creativity. The exhibition will end with Arcosonti (arcology + Cosanti), a project built in the 1970s near Mayer, Arizona.
From April 7th through the 13th, the American Institute of Architects (AIA) will be hosting National Architecture Week in an effort to increase public awareness on the role architects play as a force for positive change in our communities and to elevate the public’s appreciation of design.
Similar to previous years’ observances, National Architecture Week will be virtual and composed of daily pinboards on the social networking site, Pinterest, and an Architecture Is Awesome contest on Instagram. The intent is to use the two social networking platforms to showcase architects’ good designs and encourage architecture fans to share their thoughts and engage with like-minded professionals during the week.
Model of Le Corbusier’s Villa Savoye from Modern Architecture: International Exhibition [MoMA Exh. #15, February 9-March 23, 1932] Photo: Modern Architecture, International Exhibition. 1932. The Museum of Modern Art, New York. Photographic Archive.
Barry Bergdoll, Philip Johnson Chief Curator of Architecture and Design at New York's Museum of Modern Art and professor of modern architectural history at Columbia University, will present the 62nd A.W. Mellon Lectures in the Fine Arts Series. The Mellons are among the most prestigious art history lecture series in the world and have been delivered annually since 1952 at the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. For this year's series, Bergdoll will present "Out of Site in Plain View: A History of Exhibiting Architecture since 1750."
On March 26th, architect Jeanne Gang of Studio Gang Architects will discuss how housing can evolve in multiple ways to address contemporary challenges in "Moving House," delivered as the Rice Design Alliance's 2013 Sally Walsh Lecture at the The Museum of Fine Arts in Houston. Dedicated to "honoring Walsh’s groundbreaking foray into modern design by bringing cutting edge designers to Houston," the lecture is sponsored in collaboration with the Rice School of Architecture, the AIA Houston Chapter, and the Architecture Center Houston Foundation.
Kengo Kuma's competition winning design for the V&A at Dundee. Courtesy V&A.
Architectural Competitions may be regarded as an opportunity or a burden. There are numerous architectural practices that gained significant attention for their submissions and winnings in highly publicized competitions, but the reality is that architectural competitions are expensive and do not guarantee reward. And yet, they are an opportunity to engage in a critical dialogue about the projects at hand, and may be approached with more creative and imaginative risk than when working directly with a client, which is probably why they are so popular and numerous. They are also an opportunity to bring the public into conversations about architecture in the public forum. These are just some of the considerations that The Architecture Foundation hopes to tackle in its new series, "And the Winner is...?".
Throughout 2013, The Architecture Foundation will be hosting a three-series of critical and polemic explorations into the culture of architecture awards, competitions and festivals. The first in the series, "Competitive Advantages" will be a discussion considering the nature of architecture competitions and their advantages and disadvantages as they pertain to the clients and the public, established architectural firms and emerging practices.
Housing Prototype Systems; Courtesy of Pedro Alonso
Pratt Institute's School of Architecture will present "COLD war COOL digital," an exhibition of 20 scaled prototypes of modernist, pre-fabricated, and globally-distributed Cold War era housing systems that were created using contemporary 3D printing technologies (opening reception 2/18 at 6:15, details below). The exhibition will investigate architectural modernism and its global influence and will connect with contemporary prototype pre-fabrication methods and digital research in housing and skyscraper design. A symposium that explores the technical, aesthetic, and political aspects of prototyping and pre-construction in architecture will be held tonight in conjunction with the exhibition.
