LECTURES AND EVENTS

Monday, August 28, 2017
Current Work: Anne Lacaton and Jean Phillippe Vassal
Moderated by Rosalie Genevro


Lacaton & Vassal is an international practice based in Paris that works on public buildings, housing, and urban planning. Their projects "are based on a principle of generosity and economy, serving the life, the uses and the appropriation, with the aim of changing the standard." The firm received international recognition for its alternative approach to social housing, as articulated in PLUS, a 2004 study and manifesto developed in collaboration with architect Frédéric Druot. Its opening statement "never demolish, never remove or replace, always add, transform, and reuse!" came in response to an architectural competition to replace a 1960s high-rise apartment building on Paris' outskirts. The study has become emblematic of a surging interest in refurbishing postwar high-rise and superblock housing. Lacaton & Vassal's projects are based on the idea "that transformation would permit one to respond to needs in a more economic, more effective and more qualitative way."

Rosalie Genevro is the Executive Director of The Architectural League of New York.

Current Cooper Union and Parsons SCE students, faculty, and staff may register for the event for free on Eventbrite, using their schools "promo code," available from their respective Deans' offices.

Image: Anne Lacaton and Jean Phillippe Vassal in association with Frédéric Druot and Christophe Hutin, Before and after transformation of modernist blocks, Cité du Grand Parc, Bordeaux, France. Image courtesy of Phillippe Ruault.

Master of Architecture II Advanced Design Studio 2016-17 Graduate Thesis Exhibition:  A Leap Into the Void


The Master of Architecture II Advanced Design Studio is culminating the 2016-2017 academic year with an exhibition of its graduate thesis work.

Thesis positions the architectural studio as a space for the exploration, experimentation and production of new forms of knowledge and design innovation. In a semester-long endeavor of architectural research, students both negotiate and interrogate a broad range of issues with complex and often contradictory impulses, particular to the advancement of disciplinary knowledge.

Inevitably, it is a leap into the void, an exploration of the uncharted territories where architectural research dwells. A leap into the unknown entails an instance of suspension on the rational to embrace the irrational. This temporary suspension of reason is necessary to challenge the grounds of our architectural clichés.

This "leap" has yielded 13 projects across 5 continents, negotiating erotic desires, social struggles, environmental decadences, paranoid secrecies, material instabilities and political folly. The work is deeply personal and provocative, as many students take their theses "home," to research local conditions in familiar sites all over the world, perpetually confronting questions of tradition, difference and architectural particularity with global concerns.

On view through Friday, September 29, 2017
Gallery Hours: Tuesday - Sunday, 12 - 7 PM 

This exhibition is free and open to the public.

Architecture Books / Yet to be Written / 1982-2017-2052
 

Storefront for Art and Architecture will launch the New York Architecture Book Fair with a day-long event that assembles seminal voices to present and discuss the making of architecture and books in The Great Hall. The event brings together major figures in the discipline and profession to reflect upon the last thirty five years of architecture and book production, and to evaluate the missing volumes of a history in the writing.

Confirmed participants include Diana Agrest, Stan Allen, Amale Andraos, Harry Cobb, Peggy Deamer, Elizabeth Diller, Steven Holl, Sanford Kwinter, Thom Mayne, Daniel Libeskind, Joan Ockman, Spyridon Papapetros, Brett Steele, Nader Tehrani, Bernard Tschumi, Anthony Vidler, Rafael Viñoly, Mark Wigley, and James Wines.

Each speaker will present an architecture book published in the last thirty five years that they consider to be fundamental to the understanding of contemporary architecture culture, as well as a "book yet to be written."

As part of the event, Storefront will present BOOKS-NOW, a selection of signed architecture books published over the last year. Books will be on sale at a special discounted rate.

This conference is presented in partnership with The Irwin S. Chanin School of Architecture of The Cooper Union.

Storefront events are free and open to the public, with limited access on a first come, first served basis. Members of Storefront and individuals affiliated with The Cooper Union can RSVP to reserve a spot. To become a member of Storefront, see here.

Read more about this event and the New York Architecture Book Fair here.

The Architectural League 2017 Student Program
 
Saturday, September 23, 10:30 AM to 6:30 PM
 
The League's annual program for architecture students offers an inside look at the architectural profession. The program highlights the varied and creative career paths open to graduates of architecture schools.  The day includes a panel discussion featuring a diverse group of dynamic young architects, afternoon studio tours at some of the city's most interesting firms, and an end of the day reception at Robert A.M. Stern Architects.

Studio visits to: Diller Scofidio + Renfro, SHoP Architects, Snøhetta, Leong Leong, SCAPE Landscape Architecture, KPF, Perkins+Will, Rockwell Group, Thomas Phifer and Partners, and Studio Gang.

Panelists include: Josh de Sousa (Hou de Sousa), Jean Brownhill, AR '00 (Sweeten), and Adamo Garritano (SHoP)

The day begins at
Cornell AAP
26 Broadway, 20th Floor
New York, NY 10004

$35 registration fee includes a 12-month student membership, entitling you to attend nearly all Architectural League programs for free. Register  here . If you are already a student member, please email [email protected].

Film Screening | Point 0: Architects in the Making
 

A film by Christina Condak

In collaboration with Toxic Dreams (Yosi Wanunu and Michael Stromann)

POINT 0 is an oral history film done with a twist: architects reflect on their initiations into the culture of architecture education in a kind of ritual performance. Asked to recall vivid memories and relevant experiences from their education, they perform a few physical actions and tell their stories. Although filmed in front of a neutral background, specificities quickly emerge: a wide range of responses are juxtaposed, revealing essential preoccupations within three generations of architects. This is not just text as information: you see the person and you hear their story.

This film is a special collaboration between an architect and a theater team, which led to its unique quality. It is accessible to anyone interested in making and thinking.

Christina Condak holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Hobart & William Smith Colleges, and a Bachelor of Architecture from The Irwin S. Chanin School of Architecture of the Cooper Union, with an award from the New York Society of Architects upon graduation in 1994. Born in Manhattan, she lives and teaches architectural design at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna since 1997. She was a visiting design professor at Cornell University in 2002-03 and at the Ecole Nationale Supérieure d'Architecture de Paris-Malaquais in 2016-17. Condak shares a small architecture practice,Nurarchitektur (i.e. simply architecture), with Peter Leeb in Vienna since 1997. For her, Nurarchitekturmeans that one can address any problem through the artistic discipline of architecture, which is an attitude of making and searching.

Toxic Dreams is a Vienna based experimental performance company known for creating numerous original dramatic works. Founded in 1997 by Kornelia Kilga (producer) and Yosi Wanunu (director) the group is an ensemble based company, with artists from various disciplines who make work for theatre, dance, performance, and video and digital media. Michael Strohmann, a musician and sound engineer, is also a member of the company.

To view the trailer for POINT 0 click here.

This event is free and open to the public.

WAYS TO GIVE BACK
The Diane Lewis Memorial Architecture Travel Fellowship:  In Search of Civic Space

Close friends and colleagues of Diane Lewis AR '76 have established an endowed travel fellowship in her memory. The Diane Lewis AR'76 Memorial Architecture Travel Fellowship: In Search of Civic Space will be awarded to Cooper Union architecture students for summer travel between their fourth and fifth years. Students will be expected to focus on a major reoccurring architectural theme of great importance to Professor Lewis - defining and designing 'Civic Space.' 

Prof. Lewis once said, "The most exciting work of the architect is to understand the city as a work of art. It's the idea of advocating great civic space as the work of artists, architects and engineers together, which I believe is the original motive of this school." We encourage you to support her vision and continue her legacy with a memorial gift. 

To donate by check, please:
   * Make it payable to The Cooper Union
   * Note on the memo line "Diane Lewis Memorial Fund" 
   * Mail it to the attention of Jennifer Durst, Office of Alumni Affairs and Development, 
      The Cooper Union, 30 Cooper Square 8th floor, New York, NY 10003

To donate securely online by credit card, please visit  here  and note in the box for "Other gifts" that you wish to direct your contribution to the "Diane Lewis Memorial Fund."

If you have any questions, please email  [email protected]  or call (212) 353-4104.

To view Dean Nader Tehrani's letter to the community honoring Diane, visit  here .

Image courtesy of Anita Seiff. 
OPEN CALLS & OPPORTUNITIES
NEW   

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS | 2018 Droga Residency Program is an initiative of the Australian Institute of Architects Foundation, and reflects our vision of architecture as fundamental to Australian culture. The overarching goal of the residency program is to promote, support and communicate the value of architecture as design which benefits the Australian community, culture, economy and environment, now and in the future. Residents will be hosted in Sydney for a period of 1-12 weeks. Deadline: September 18, 2017. Learn More...

CALL FOR PAPERS | 106th ACSA Annual Meeting: The Ethical Imperative will take place in March, 2018 in Denver, Colorado. ACSA invites paper submissions under 18 thematic session topics revolving around the architectural discipline, ethics, pedagogy and politics as well as an additional open category. Authors may submit only one paper per session topic. Paper Submission Deadline: September 20,2017. Learn More...  

DESIGN-BUILD CHALLENGE | Reinventing the African Mud House Nka Foundation is issuing a challenge to designers, architects, engineers and innovators to use their creativity to come up with modern mud types for rural Africa. The challenge is to design and build a sample component of a vocational school of arts and design that generates electricity by use of renewable energy technologies such as wind, solar photovoltaic, geothermal heat, water, biomass or another type. Email your portfolio and CV to [email protected]. Deadline: December 12, 2017. Learn More...  

CALL FOR ENTRIES | Ornamental Metal Institute of New York: Design the Next-Generation Facade challenges participants to submit their vision for a facade system that can play a major role in enhancing employee health and well-being at a tech incubator on the Williamsburg waterfront. Deadline: February 1, 2018. Learn More...
ONGOING

DESIGN COMPETITION | Figment: The City of Dreams 2018 Pavillion Design Competition Figment has teamed with the Emerging New York Architects Committee (ENYA) of the American Institute of Architects NY Chapter (AIANY) and the Structural Engineers Association of New York (SEAoNY) to host a competition to design and construct an architectural pavilion on Governors Island, the City of Dreams Pavillion. The City of Dreams Pavillion will be a gathering place for people to meet, learn about the arts programs on the island, enjoy a performance or lecture, and experience the interaction of art and the historic context of Governors Island. Registration Deadline: September 15, 2017. Learn More...

CALL FOR ABSTRACTS | Affective Architectures: More-than-representational Approaches to Heritage Abstract This call for papers seeks to assemble a conversation among critical scholars interested in more-than representational (affective) ways of engaging with places of memory and memorialization. Please submit expressions of interest outlining your proposed paper in no more than 350 words, as well as your CV, by email to co-editors Jacque Micieli-Voutsinas ([email protected]) and Angela M. Person ([email protected]). Abstract Deadline: September 17, 2017. Paper Deadline: July 2018. 

DESIGN COMPETITION | The 2018 Better Philadelphia Challenge In celebration of the 100th anniversary of Philadelphia's Benjamin Franklin Parkway, we're seeking your creative concepts for what a new 'Parkway' could be in a dense and developed 21st century city, connecting neighborhoods with nearby natural and cultural resources. Deadline: September 28, 2017. Learn More... 

CALL FOR PRESENTERS | OAA Annual Conference: Continuing Education The Ontario Association of Architects invites individuals or organizations to invite presenters to submit proposals for ConEd sessions to be considered for the 2018 OAA Conference: Bold by Design. Deadline: September 29, 2017. Learn More... 

DESIGN CONTEST | Waterproof: Palazzo Ca' Tron The aim of the contest is to create a link between the world of design and production, and stimulate innovative solutions that start from the knowledge and from the eventual customization of materials used for the project. This is a redevelopment project that must consider the multiple functions that are attributed to the Palazzo Ca' Tron. Deadline: October 20, 2017. Learn More... 

DESIGN COMPETITION | arch out loud: Nuclear Landmarker for a Waste Isolation Site asks competitors to design a marker or marker system to deter inadvertent human intrusion into the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant. The purpose of the marker is to communicate with future generations that transuranic waste is buried within a repository at the facility. Deadline: October 21, 2017. Learn More...

IDEAS COMPETITION | UNFUSE: The Black Taj is prompted by the possibility that a second mausoleum across the Taj Mahal was supposed to exist, how would build it?  Deadline: October 29, 2017.  Learn More...

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS | Transient Spaces is a publication project originated at CCNY Spitzer School of Architecture by faculty members whose research and studio practices engage with the themes of transiency, activism and dwelling in contexts of impermanence and crisis, where the demand for belonging and community building challenges the agency of design and our roles as architects and educators. The publication will include work of artists, scholars, students, architects, engineers and actors from humanitarian support mechanisms. Abstracts deadline: September 15, 2017. Contribution deadline: October 30, 2017. Learn More...

IDEAS COMPETITION | SHELTER 48: Emergency Life-Support Design For this challenge, Eleven Magazine focuses on natural disasters by looking at the concept and definition of shelter in their immediate aftermath and posing the question: how can architecture and design help protect, shelter and save lives when they strike? Deadline: November 11, 2017. Learn More...

CALL FOR ABSTRACTS | Amps Critical Practice in an Age of Complexity aims to stimulate critical debate about the standard practices dominating the built environment seeking perspectives from architects, urban designers, planners, artists, human geographers, sociologists, media specialists and more. Deadline: December 5, 2017. Learn More...

FACULTY AND STAFF NEWS  
Nader Tehrani, Arch dean & fac | Article | "Tanderrum Bridge by John Wardle Architects and NADAAA," ARCHITECTURAL RECORD, August 1, 2017

Anthony Vidler, Arch fac | Participant | Architecture Books/Yet to be Written/1982-2017-2052, sponsored by the Storefront for Art & Architecture, September 23, 2017, The Cooper Union Great Hall, NYC

Diana Agrest, Arch fac | Participant | Architecture Books/Yet to be Written/1982-2017-2052, sponsored by the Storefront for Art & Architecture, September 23, 2017, The Cooper Union Great Hall, NYC

Bone/Levine (Kevin Bone, Arch fac, principal) | Article | "A look at the revised design for an expanded Anthology Film Archives," EV GRIEVE, August 8, 2017 | Article | "The Anthology Film Archives moves forward with library and café expansion," THE ARCHITECTS' NEWSPAPER, August 25, 2017

Joan Ockman, AR '80/Arch fac | Participant | Architecture Books/Yet to be Written/1982-2017-2052, sponsored by the Storefront for Art & Architecture, September 23, 2017, The Cooper Union Great Hall, NYC

Benjamin Aranda, Arch fac | Article | "Columbus, Ind., Renews Its Big Design Legacy," The New York Times, August 18, 2017 | Article | AN to host mini-marathon talk series at first Exhibit Columbus," THE ARCHITECTS' NEWSPAPER, August 23, 2017

ALUMNI NEWS
Diller Scofidio + Renfro (Elizabeth Diller, AR '79, Ricardo Scofidio, AR '55/Arch fac) | Article | "International architecture competition for the Citroën Cultural Centre: shortlist of seven teams released," CITROEN CULTURAL CENTRE, 22 July 2017 | Article | "Have you Seen This?," THE NEW YORK TIMES, August 13, 2017 | Article | "New designs capture the architecture of Lincoln Center," THE ARCHITECTS' NEWSPAPER, August 17, 2017

Agustin (Tim) Maldonado, AR '66 | Article | "City Tech Architecture Professor Receives Peter Cooper Public Service Award & Inducted into Cooper Union Hall of Fame," New York City College of Technology, July 24, 2017

RKTB Architects (Carmi Bee, AR '67) | Award | Brick in Architecture 2017 Gold Award from the Brick Industry Association for the Addition to PS 70Q | Award | Design Award of Merit from SARA NY (Society of American Registered Architects | New York Council) in Recognition of Professional Design Excellence for 433 Broadway | Award | Architizer A + Awards 2017 Finalist Office Mid-Rise Category for 433 Broadway

Daniel Libeskind, AR '70 | Article | "The Unexpected First Jobs of Seven Famous Architects," ARCHDAILY, July 31, 2017 | Studio Visit | First Friday: Studio Libeskind, sponsored by the Architectural League, September 8, 2017, NYC | Award | 2017 AIA New York State Design Awards, International | Article | "Instagram Eavesdrop," THE ARCHITECTS' NEWSPAPER, August 17, 2017
| Participant | Architecture Books/Yet to be Written/1982-2017-2052, sponsored by the Storefront for Art & Architecture, September 23, 2017, The Cooper Union Great Hall, NYC | Article | "Daniel Libeskind's latest residence is clad in self-cleaning, air-purifying tiles," THE ARCHITECTS' NEWSPAPER, August 25, 2017

Peggy Deamer, AR '77 | Participant | Architecture Books/Yet to be Written/1982-2017-2052, sponsored by the Storefront for Art & Architecture, September 23, 2017, The Cooper Union Great Hall, NYC

Elizabeth Diller, AR '79 | Participant | Architecture Books/Yet to be Written/1982-2017-2052, sponsored by the Storefront for Art & Architecture, September 23, 2017, The Cooper Union Great Hall, NYC

Stanley Allen, AR '81 | Participant | Architecture Books/Yet to be Written/1982-2017-2052, sponsored by the Storefront for Art & Architecture, September 23, 2017, The Cooper Union Great Hall, NYC

Shigeru Ban, AR '84 | Article | "This Japanese artist designs homes for refugees," WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM, August 3, 2017 | Article | "Take a video tour of Shigeru Ban's Cast Iron House in Tribeca," CURBED.COM, August 4, 2017

I-Beam Design (Azin Valy, AR '90, Suzan Wines, AR '90) | Shortlisted | The 2017 American Architecture Prize, Shortlisted in Interior Design / Residential Interior Design

Gina Pollara, AR '91 | Moderator | Upper East Side City Council District 4 Candidates' Forum, August 30, 2017, NYC

Nancie Min, AR '94 | Article | "10 Questions With... Clodagh," INTERIOR DESIGN, August 7, 2017

Jean Brownhill, AR '00 | Panelist | The New York Architectural League 2017 Student Program, September 23, 2017, NYC 

Oren Sagiv, AR '01 | Exhibition Designer and Curator | Social Construction: Modern Architecture in British Mandate Palestine, Yale Architecture Gallery, August 31-November 18, 2017, New Haven, CT

Alex Mustonen, AR '05 | Article | "Columbus, Ind., Renews Its Big Design Legacy," The New York Times, August 18, 2017

Andrew Ferentinos, AR '07 | Article | "Buyer to Rescue, Restore Modernist House II in Hardwick," SEVEN DAYS, August 8, 2017

                                                                                         

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