In this fourth feature, we met with co-chairs ofdesign for Health architectArif Hasan, former Visiting Professor NED University Karachi and member of UNs Advisory Group on Forced Evictions, and architectChristian Benimana, Senior Principal and Co-Executive Director atMASS Design Group
In this third feature, we met with co-chairs of Design for Resilient CommunitiesAnna Rubbo, Senior Researcher, Center for Sustainable Urban Development (CSUD), The Climate School, Columbia University, and Juan Du, Professor and Dean of the John H. Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape and Design, University of Toronto.
The UIA World Congress of Architects 2023 is an invitation for architects from all around the world to meet in Copenhagen to explore and communicate how architecture influences all 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The Science Track of the UIA World Congress has been tasked with the development of the agenda, Sustainable Futures – Leave No One Behind. For more than two years, its international Scientific Committee has been analyzing the various ways in which architecture responds to the SDGs. The work has resulted in the formulation of six themes: climate adaptation, rethinking resources, resilient communities, health, inclusivity, and partnerships for change. ArchDaily is collaborating with UIA to share articles pertaining to the six themes to prepare for the opening of the Congress on July 2, 2023.
Baia di Ieranto. Image Courtesy of Fosbury Architecture
The project for the Italian Pavilion at the 18th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia will be curated by Fosbury Architecture, a collective composed of Giacomo Ardesio, Alessandro Bonizzoni, Nicola Campri, Veronica Caprino, and Claudia Mainardi. Fosbury Architecture’s vision for the exhibition is based on a research practice that sees design as the result of collective and collaborative work. From January to April, leading up to the opening of the Biennale, nine site-specific interventions titled “Spaziale presenta” are set out to activate different locations across Italy.
Pompidou Center Competition Model, 1971. Image Courtesy of Safdie Architects
From October 2022 through January 2, 2023, The Boston Architectural College (BAC) and Safdie Architects will display the most groundbreaking unbuilt projects by Moshe Safdie. With Intention to Build showcases the architect's creative process throughout the 55 years of his career, including models, drawings, and various texts and photographs. The exhibition provides context and tells the story behind these radical unrealized designs that have influenced projects such as Habitat 67 in Montreal, Canada, and Marina Bay Sands in Singapore.
Una ciudad de habitaciones: La casa compartida como laboratorio urbano. Image Cortesía de Paula Olea Fonti
"A city of rooms" is a research work by architect Paula Olea Fonti that focuses on the study of shared housing, which is one of the most common ways for young students and professionals to live in the city. A popular and ordinary house, if you will. One that many architects would distinguish for its low architectural value.
While research seems intrinsic to the design process, architectural research is a professional path in itself, whose purpose is to highlight scientific evidence and explore alternatives outside of pre-established norms or empirical considerations. Its purpose is to create a framework of knowledge that can inform the design to reach objectively better outcomes. The following discusses the role and state of research in architecture, some prominent areas of inquiry, and the architects or institutions that dedicate their work to these subjects.
The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has announced the winners of the 2021 President's Medal and Awards for Research, highlighting the best research concerning architecture and the built environment. The President's Medal was awarded to John Lin and Sony Devabhaktuni from the University of Hong Kong for their research project As Found Houses, which explores vernacular practices in rural China. Two more awards were granted to the development of an ethics guide for architectural practitioners and a study of thin-tile vaulting in Cuba.
Entrearcos, arquitecturas de conexión - Colección. Image Cortesía de Daniela Silva Landeros
The gaze is a tool that the architect uses constantly but does not fully value. It is an instrument that, in addition to allowing us to know and recognize our reality and the phenomena that arise from it, can work as a method of analysis. "Entrearcos (Between-arches): architecture of connection" is a research project developed by the architect Daniela Silva Landeros that studies, in the specific case of the Ciutat Vella neighbourhood of the city of Barcelona, the issue of arches in our cities. And Silva Landeros does so from alternative points of view that call into question the way we are used to looking.
Porta Sempione triumphal arch in Sempione Park in Milan. Image via Shutterstock/ By NYC Russ
Systematica has just released a case study on access to green areas and the public realm in the city of Milan. Focusing on the availability of these gathering spaces for residents, the research, particularly relevant in this time of the pandemic, also highlights open and not crowded public spaces, convenient for a safe social life.
Havana University Staircase by Purdy & Henderson circa 1927 from Beatriz del Cueto's Brunner research.
The Center for Architecture is now accepting applications for the 2020 Arnold W. Brunner Grant. This grant is awarded to mid-career architects for advanced study in any area of architectural investigation that will contribute to the knowledge, teaching, or practice of the art and science of architecture. The proposed investigation is to result in a publicly available written work, design project, research paper, or other form of presentation to be offered at the Center for Architecture. Previous topics of research have ranged from the impact of American architects on Cuba’s historic built environment to the importance of public restrooms in creating greater social equity. Projects are judged based on their engagement with contemporary local and global architectural issues and the usefulness of the research’s product.
