Call for Contributions: International Conference on Architectural Criticism

Washington University in St. Louis is a supporting institution for the upcoming International Conference on Architectural Criticism. Titled “On the Duty and Power of Architectural Criticism,” the online conference will place October 9-10 and October 16-17, 2021, and is hosted by the School of Architecture, The University of Texas at Austin.

Robert McCarter, the Ruth and Norman Moore Professor of Architecture, is a member of the conference’s scientific committee.

The conference has announced its call for contributions; details can be found below. Abstracts are due April 30, 2021.

Should architectural criticism be enlightening? Should it help in the creation of a better built environment? Is there a factual basis to it? Does it have a duty to present evidence in the evaluation of a building? Or should it take on what architects say about their designs?

In the context of a flat internet, should architectural criticism be able to define best practices? Does it wield the power over who is in and who is out?

Architectural criticism, like all human endeavors, is at a crucial juncture. While serious architecture struggles for recognition, much so-called architectural criticism is merely a poorly paid, decorative legitimation for hyperbolic practice. Incisive architectural criticism is rare, while the definition of criticism itself has become opaque.

This conference seeks papers that define the purposes and methods of architectural criticism. What should the ethical basis be of architectural criticism? Can it be objective in the context of paid content? Should it outline ideal practices? Or what should it do?

Abstracts (max. 250 words) should address either the duty or the power of architectural criticism, in both cases offering the outline of one analysis of an existing building. Abstracts are due by April 30, 2021, and should be submitted to icac2021contributions@gmail.com

Subject to acceptance, abstracts will be completed by their authors for presentation with four keynote lectures during the online conference.

For full details, including key dates, download the call for contributions.

The online format of the two-day conference will allow active debate between the audience and lecturers. Presentations will be concentrated to allow for ample discussion time. Besides the four keynotes, there will be a maximum of 16 short papers. The entire conference will be recorded and placed on Youtube. The conference language will be English. Registration for free audience places (max. 300) will open July 2 via icac2021contributions@gmail.com

Keynote Lecturers: Kenneth Frampton, New York City, USA; Philippa Tumubweinee, Cape Town, South Africa; Ruth Verde Zein, São Paulo, Brazil; and Zheng Shiling, Shanghai, China.

Scientific Committee: Elias Constantopoulos, University of Patras; Manuel Cuadra, Director of CICA, Frankfurt am Main/Lima; Fernando Diez, Summa+, U. de Palermo, Buenos Aires; Hélène Jannière, Université Rennes 2; Li Xiangning, Tongji University, Shanghai; Robert McCarter, Washington University in St. Louis; Valerio Paolo Mosco, IUAV; Louise Noelle Gras, UNAM, Mexico CdMx; Şengül Öymen Gür, Beykent Üniversitesi, Istanbul; Xing Ruan, Shanghai Jiao Tong University; Paolo Scrivano, Politecnico di Milano; Ana Tostões, Instituto Técnico Lisbon; and Ruth Verde Zein, U. Presbiteriana Mackenzie, São Paulo

Supporting Institutions: CICA International Committee of Architectural Critics; Beykent Üniversitesi, Istanbul; Hellenic Institute of Architecture, Athens; Instituto Superior Técnico, Lisboa; Istituto Universitario Architettura Venezia; Shanghai Jiao Tong University; Tongji University, Shanghai; Universidade Presbiteriana Mackenzie, São Paulo; IIEs, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México; University of Patras; The University of Texas at Austin; and Washington University in St. Louis.