April 1st, 2009 mario
Presentation of Geologics at RAS
Things have been a bit slow here in terms of posting, but it’s only because so much is happening in the analog world! We expect the blog to pick up some steam soon enough, though. In the meantime, please drop by our cousin blog at RAS. They have all sorts of good stuff, including promotions and events coverage.
For example, you can find some snapshots of last night’s presentation of Vicente Guallart’s brand new book, Geologics (published by Actar) where he “examines the technological, social and cultural changes in our information society for new urban building.” Which is to say practically everything.
Guallart recently declared that we are in the midst of a full-fledged spatial shift; that after sharpening the divide between urban and rural environments throughout the twentieth century, it is now time to “live differently, at another speed, and after expelling nature from cities we are now introducing networks into nature.” He also mentioned that architects have to stop worrying about building buildings and start worrying about building entire, complex habitats.
The full Q&A with the author is available on-line at El Periódico (sorry, only en català or en español. But don’t worry, you can find plenty of good reads on the subject of Guallart and the “re-naturalization” of cities elsewhere. And you can always buy the book, of course!)
Vicente Guallart at RAS
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March 24th, 2009 mario
Aside from the economic turmoil that is hitting everyone, print is facing its own set of challenges—particularly in terms of the digital onslaught. Both publishing and architecture are caught in a steep sort of crisis mode, a key moment of redefinition. Within this context, again we’ve been invited to share a bit of our experience and discuss with others. This time we’re heading to Paris, invited by Cédric Libert—the main man behind the Espèces d’Architect initiative, a “cultural operation” commisioned by Wallonie-Bruxelles that intends to explore “the vitality and renewal of the current architectural scene”—who has set up a series of conferences and roundtables on the subject of architecture and publishing. With a hint of jocosity, the debates have been titled “Béton & Garamond“. The talks will be held at the École Spécial d’Architecture this Thursday and Friday. You can download the program here.
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March 5th, 2009 mario
We’ve received a gracious invitation from the Núcelo de Arquitectura (NAUL) of the Lusíada University in Lisbon to join them in a series of debates on the subject of publishing and architecture. The discussion will take place on Thurday, March 12, at 6 p.m., focusing on print media. Luís Santiago Baptista of arq|a magazine will also be there. Save the date.
Download the conference flyer here
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February 2nd, 2009 albert
In a lecture that took place at the CCCB in Barcelona last week, Bernard Stiegler of the Institut de Recherche et d’Innovation advocated for the distributed responsibilities of a networked society made up of “contributors” (the wiki model) as today’s paradigm for the production of knowledge.
Part of our ongoing reflection on the future of Verb–and of publishing in general–is inevitably linked to this cultural shift that has been developing together with communication technologies. Collaborative models of knowledge production redefine what books are, and also how they are accessed and used.
In this context, the foundation this week of the Priceton Envelope Group (PEG)–the structure that Alejandro Zaera-Polo has set up for his new research serminar and studio at Princeton–provides a new model for future editorial work at Actar. The PEG is conceived as a research group that collectively produces knowledge in the field of envelope design, and that will collectively edit with Actar a Manual of the Envelope compiling this research. (An interesting discussion took place in Archinect’s forum as news on the preparation of this course spread.)
The base for this research is Alejandro Zaera-Polo’s current investigation presented in different formats under the common title of “The Politics of the Envelope”. See his lecture at the Berlage Institute and his texts published in Volume no. 17 and Log no. 13/14.
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January 26th, 2009 albert
As Mario pointed out below (Jan 22 post) going back to the basics of the profession (the provision of shelter in a context of social responsibility) is highly desirable in a post-bubble condition, as long as this is concomitant with the production of visionary projects that will advance the adaptation of new construction (wherever possible) to the needs of a dynamic society. (Stay tuned also for our upcoming book on housing.)
In a short text-cum-fact sheet on housing in the Iberian Peninsula that I contributed last summer to the catalogue of the Collectif / Collective exhibition at arc en reve I wondered how a stagnated and oversupplied market would ever be receptive to new developments in (housing_iberia.pdf). As the peripheries of most Spanish cities today demonstrate, the bubble hasn’t offered much room for experimentation, and our lives and those of future generations will unfortunately be conditioned by this short-sighted investment.
(Hopeful news arrive again from Copenhagen, where BIG’s Big House project is going up. Hope will further be communicated in the Yes is More exhibition at the Danish Architecture Centre next month, and the book that will be published consecutively by Actar.)
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January 26th, 2009 anna
Vicente Guallart will give a lecture at the AA on February 13 at 6 pm. Under the title Geologics. Geography. Information. Architecture, Guallart will give an overview of his practice over the last ten years. His understanding of architectural production as a “manipulation of the geographic parameters of a place” that “develops the potentials that the information society offers for constructing a more natural world” are elaborated in the Actar monograph that will be launched at a reception to be held following the lecture at the North Jury Room of the AA.
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