LECTURES AND EVENTS

Tuesday, May 2, 2017

In Memoriam: Professor Diane Lewis
A Letter from Dean Nader Tehrani

It is with profound grief and a heavy heart that I share this communication with my students, colleagues, and alumni of The Cooper Union. Today, we lost one of the most beloved and influential voices of our community, architect and Professor Diane H. Lewis.

Diane Lewis came to The Cooper Union as a student in the Art School in 1968, transferring to Architecture in 1970, and completing her studies in 1976. Immediately upon graduation, she was awarded the Rome Prize in Architecture, making her one of the youngest members to be honored by the American Academy in Rome. Upon her return to the United States, Lewis joined the offices of Richard Meier and Partners and later, I. M. Pei and Partners where she received her early training - this, while also launching her teaching career. Initially a professor at the University of Virginia, Lewis went on to teach as a visitor in many respected programs including Yale University, the Technical University of Berlin, the Harvard Graduate School of Design, and the University of Toronto, where she held the Frank Gehry Visiting Chair in 2006. But it was here at The Irwin S. Chanin School of Architecture that she planted her foundations as a radical and committed educator; Lewis was the first woman architect to be appointed to the full-time faculty, and later tenured in 1993. In an age when few dedicate themselves to teaching as a craft, her focus on creating a transformative space of learning will be a central part of her lasting legacy. Indeed, as much as Lewis was a product of Cooper Union, today we can look back at more than thirty years of her contributions and come to realize that we are, in fact, defined by the culture of her teaching. Continue reading...

Drawing Lines: The Black American Experience


 The Honorable John Lewis , U.S. Representative of the 5th Congressional District of Georgia and a long-standing leader of civil and human rights, will discuss the need for civic engagement. Often called "one of the most courageous persons the Civil Rights Movement ever produced," Congressman Lewis has dedicated his life to protecting human rights, securing civil liberties, and building what he calls "The Beloved Community" in America. Representative Lewis has served as U.S. Representative since he was elected to Congress in November 1986. Seating is on a first-come-first-served basis. 

The U.S. Representative and Civil Rights leader appears as part of a series of three, free events that include "Making (H)Afrocentric" featuring Juliana Smith (May 12) and "Black Pulp!" featuring William Villalongo A'99, and Mark Thomas Gibson A'02 (May 13)

Jan Palach Memorial: Through June 11

Through an exhibition and an installation, The Irwin S. Chanin School of Architecture proudly celebrates the work of 1950 Cooper Union graduate, architect and Dean Emeritus, John Q. Hejduk.

The exhibition  Hélène Binet - John Hejduk Works will present seven of Hejduk's built works as photographed by Hélène Binet, a renowned London-based photographer who was Hejduk's photographer of record. Binet's photographs of both permanent and temporary structures will be presented, including the Berlin Tower, Wall House 2, The Collapse of Time, Security and Object/Subject. The exhibition will also include a chronology of the numerous realizations of Hejduk's design for the Jan Palach Memorial, which was permanently installed in Prague in 2016. Comprised of two structures - House of the Suicide and House of the Mother of the Suicide - this work honors the Czech activist and dissident Jan Palach, whose self-immolation in protest of the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968 served as a galvanizing force against the communist government then in power.

As a companion to the interior installation, the School of Architecture will install  the  Jan Palach Memorial on the plaza outside The Cooper Union's Foundation Building. These structures, first constructed at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta in 1990, represent an architectural manifestation of a powerful socio-political act, the ultimate personal sacrifice at a critical moment in the ongoing global struggle for individual freedom against autocracy and centralized control.

This exhibition is free and open to the public. 

Image:  Jan Palach Memorial. Atlanta, 1990. Photo by  Hélène Binet.

Save the Date: Annual End of the Year Show Opening May 22

The End of Year Show is one of those traditions at Cooper Union that is not merely a record of the year's production, but rather a work in of itself. Each year, the faculty and student body self-organize to bring the various stages of their pedagogy to the wider public. The drawings are pinned up, while the models are set on fabricated pedestals such that they become an extension of the very speculations that mark the intellectual work of the semester.

WAYS TO GIVE BACK
John Q. Hejduk
John Q. Hejduk Scholarship Fund 

The John Q. Hejduk Scholarship provides financial assistance to School of Architecture students that is in addition to the 50% merit scholarship awarded to all admitted students. Contributions to scholarship funds provide a means by which The Cooper Union can move toward the goal of full scholarships for all. The School of Architecture invites you to join with us in celebrating the memory and legacy of John Hejduk by making a contribution to the Scholarship fund that bears his name.

Please donate here specifying that your gift goes to the "John Q. Hejduk Memorial Scholarship Fund." 

OPEN CALLS & OPPORTUNITIES
NEW   

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS | Ardith #3: MONEY: The Economies of Architecture The discussion of architecture, with all the visibility of its objects, tends to downplay the invisible flows of money that sustains its production. This issue intends to probe the space between the operations of architecture and economies. Deadline: July 21, 2017. Learn More...

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS | The Journal of Technology, Architecture and Design (TAD): Open represents inclusion exploration and open-mindedness. For this issue, TAD seeks original research from scholars, practitioners, architects, scientists, and engineers who engage with technology, architecture, and design. Manuscripts are to demonstrate a connection, translation, or integration between technology and design. Deadline: August 1, 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...
DEADLINE APPROACHING  

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS | Eleven Magazine: Rome 2017 Competition, 21st Century River Rennaissance is an international ideas and design challenge that seeks to address Rome's current issues by asking the international creative community to consolidate the Tiber river into a new model of Roman life for this millennium. Deadline: May 11, 2017. Learn More...

OPEN CALL | 2017 BSA and AIANY Housing Design Awards judges submissions based on design excellence. Any housing type anywhere in the world may be submitted if the architect/firm currently resides in New England or New York City. Deadline: May 12, 2017.  Learn More...
ONGOING

IDEAS COMPETITION | arch out loud: Human Trafficking Tenancingo Square Mediascape  Encompassing both labor and sex, human trafficking denies basic freedoms and degrades life to mere commodification. arch out loud challenges designers to reimagine the town square of Tenancingo, Mexico in response to the prevalent issues of sex trafficking existing in the area. Register by: April 18, 2017. Deadline: May 15, 2017.   Learn More...

CALL FOR PROPOSALS | KADK: Drawing Millions of Plans Conference invites scholars and practitioners to submit proposals for papers and/or to submit actual drawings. The conference will consist of academic and work-based sessions, with the latter including presentations of submitted drawings. We ask for an abstract of maximum 500 words. Please submit proposals by email to  millionsofplans@kadk.dk. Deadline: May 15, 2017. Learn More...

APPLICATIONS OPEN | The Walter A. Hunt, Jr. Scholarship promotes and encourages the study of architecture by New York City public high school students through a two-year scholarship to supplement tuition and related costs during their freshman and sophomore years at a NAAB-accredited school of architecture in the U.S. Deadline: May 15, 2017. Learn More...

CALL FOR COMPETITORS | The Driverless Future Challenge invites competitors to actively create solutions and products that harness the power of autonomous transportation in New York City. Competitors are free to select any facet of driverless technology, from zoomed-out city-scale solutions, to small interventions within the urban fabric. Deadline: May 19, 2017. Learn More...

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS | Elevate Your Pitch 2017 is sponsored by Schindler and administered by the American Institute of Architecture Students (AIAS). This elevator pitch competition presents students with a great opportunity to pitch their business ideas to a panel of judges for a chance to win recognition and earn one of three cash prizes. Submissions should be innovative in nature and should try to solve a unique problem. Deadline: May 26, 2017.  Learn More... 

CALL FOR APPLICATIONS | The Vilcek Prizes for Creative Promise award three prizes of $50,000 each to young architects and building professionals who demonstrate extraordinary talent, dedication, and potential to advance the field of architecture. The prizes are meant to facilitate future discovery and impact for promising architects and building arts professionals at a critical stage in their careers. Deadline: May 31, 2017.  Learn More...

CALL FOR DESIGN IDEAS | The LA+ IMAGINATION Open international Design Ideas Competition asks you to design a new island. You can locate it anywhere in the world, program it any way you want, and give it any form and purpose you can imagine. Deadline: June 2, 2017.  Learn More...

ARTIST RESIDENCIES AND AWARDS | Headland Center for the Arts offers three fully sponsored residencies for local, national, and international artists working across disciplines at various stages in their careers. Deadline: June 2, 2017. Learn More... 

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS | Van Alen Institute: Gateways to Chinatown is a design competition in collaboration with The New York City Department of Transportation, and Chinatown Partnership seeking innovative proposals to plan, design, and construct an iconic contemporary neighborhood marker at the nexus of Manhattan's Chinatown and the southern entrance to Little Italy's historic Mott Street. Deadline: June 19, 2017. Learn More...

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS | Eleven Magazine: Planetarium, The Experience of Space asks if architecture itself could become - once again - the tool for experiencing and understanding space. We invite you to imagine a new typology of Planetarium. Deadline: August 11, 2017. Learn More... 

FELLOWSHIP OPPORTUNITY | Storefront for Art and Architecture seeks an individual for a one-year fully funded fellowship position to research and develop a global project related to architecture, design, and technology. The Program and Strategy Fellow will primarily support Architecture Conflicts, a high priority project of Storefront.    Learn More...

FACULTY NEWS  
Nader Tehrani, Arch dean and fac (NADAAA, principal) | A Conversation | Welcome to Your World: A Conversation, sponsored by The Architectural League, Rizzoli Bookstore, May 9, 2017, NYC | Article | "7 Design Concepts Tackle the Refugee Crisis," INTERIOR DESIGN, April 10, 2017 | Article | "NADAAA designs a shimmering tower for downtown Cleveland," THE ARCHITECTS' NEWSPAPER, April 27, 2017

Diane Lewis, Arch fac/AR '76 | Article | "New York architect and professor Diane Lewis passes away," The Architect's Newspaper, May 2, 2017

Powell Draper, Arch fac | Speaker | Strategy by Design Studio Perspectives, Center for Architecture, May 1, 2017, NYC

ALUMNI NEWS
Elizabeth Diller, AR '79 | Speaker | Complexity & Collaboration: A 21st century Medical & Graduate  Building, Roy and Diana Vagelos Education Center, sponsored by Center for  Architecture, May 4, 1027, NYC | Moderator | Oculus Book Talk: Magnetic City: A Walking Companion to New York, Center for Architecture, May 8, 2017  | Article | "2017 AIA Conference: Architects Talk Socially Conscious Design," ARCHITECTURAL RECORD, April 27, 2017

Shigeru Ban, AR '84 | Article | "Inauguración de la "Cité Musicale" por Shigeru Ban + Jean de Gastines," METALOCUS, April 27, 2017

Gina Pollara, AR '91 | Closing Remarks | ReThinkNYC Plan 2050: Penn Station & A Post-Moses New York, The Great Hall of The Cooper Union, May 9, 2017, NYC

                                                                                         

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