GSAPP Conversations

In the sixth episode of the A&E System mini-series, Claire Cancilla (‘20 MSHP) & Maya Ephrem (‘20 MSUP) discuss their involvement in "The A&E System: Public Works and Private Interest in Architectural and Engineering Services, 2000–2020," a publication developed by the Temple Hoyne Buell Center for the Study of American Architecture at Columbia GSAPP from 2017 to 2020. The "A&E System" project initiated at the Buell Center asked: Who will design and manage the green infrastructure needed to combat climate change? In the United States today, whether this infrastructure is financed publicly or privately, it would most likely be designed and managed by public-private partnerships led by large architecture and engineering (A&E) firms, or what we are here calling the “A&E System.” The resulting publication, a resource for students, teachers, and professionals in the arts and sciences of the built environment, is available on the Buell Center’s “Power: Infrastructure in America” website: power.buellcenter.columbia.edu.

In the fifth episode of the A&E System mini-series, Jiazhen Lin (‘21 MArch ‘21 MSRED) and Isaac Warshauer (‘19 MArch) discuss their involvement in "The A&E System: Public Works and Private Interest in Architectural and Engineering Services, 2000–2020," a publication developed by the Temple Hoyne Buell Center for the Study of American Architecture at Columbia GSAPP from 2017 to 2020. The "A&E System" project initiated at the Buell Center asked: Who will design and manage the green infrastructure needed to combat climate change? In the United States today, whether this infrastructure is financed publicly or privately, it would most likely be designed and managed by public-private partnerships led by large architecture and engineering (A&E) firms, or what we are here calling the “A&E System.” The resulting publication, a resource for students, teachers, and professionals in the arts and sciences of the built environment, is available on the Buell Center’s “Power: Infrastructure in America” website: power.buellcenter.columbia.edu.

In the fourth episode of the A&E System mini-series, Eddy Almonte (‘19 MSUP) and Emma Leigh Macdonald (‘20 MSCCCP) discuss their involvement in “The A&E System: Public Works and Private Interest in Architectural and Engineering Services, 2000–2020,” a publication developed by the Temple Hoyne Buell Center for the Study of American Architecture at Columbia GSAPP from 2017 to 2020. Almonte is currently a Neighborhood Planner at the New York City Department of Housing and Macdonald is a New York City-based writer, editor, and researcher. The A&E System" project initiated at the Buell Center asked: Who will design and manage the green infrastructure needed to combat climate change? In the United States today, whether this infrastructure is financed publicly or privately, it would most likely be designed and managed by public-private partnerships led by large architecture and engineering (A&E) firms, or what we are here calling the “A&E System.” The resulting publication, a resource for students, teachers, and professionals in the arts and sciences of the built environment, is available on the Buell Center’s “Power: Infrastructure in America” website: www.power.buellcenter.columbia.edu

In the third episode of the A&E System mini-series, Henderson Beck (‘22 MArch ‘22 MSRED) and Anays M González (‘22 MArch) discuss their involvement in "The A&E System: Public Works and Private Interest in Architectural and Engineering Services, 2000–2020," a publication developed by the Temple Hoyne Buell Center for the Study of American Architecture at Columbia GSAPP from 2017 to 2020. "The A&E System" project initiated at the Buell Center asked: Who will design and manage the green infrastructure needed to combat climate change? In the United States today, whether this infrastructure is financed publicly or privately, it would most likely be designed and managed by public-private partnerships led by large architecture and engineering (A&E) firms, or what we are here calling the “A&E System.” The resulting publication, a resource for students, teachers, and professionals in the arts and sciences of the built environment, is available on the Buell Center’s “Power: Infrastructure in America” website.

In the second episode of the A&E System mini-series, Zoe Kauder Nalebuff (‘20 M.S.CCCP) & Maria Linares Trelles (‘19 M.S.CCCP) discuss their involvement in "The A&E System: Public Works and Private Interest in Architectural and Engineering Services, 2000–2020," a publication developed by the Temple Hoyne Buell Center for the Study of American Architecture at Columbia GSAPP from 2017 to 2020. Kauder Nalebuff works as a writer and archival researcher, and Linares Trelles teaches at Parsons School of Design and works in research and curation. "The A&E System" project initiated at the Buell Center asked: Who will design and manage the green infrastructure needed to combat climate change? In the United States today, whether this infrastructure is financed publicly or privately, it would most likely be designed and managed by public-private partnerships led by large architecture and engineering (A&E) firms, or what we are here calling the “A&E System.” The resulting publication, a resource for students, teachers, and professionals in the arts and sciences of the built environment, is available on the Buell Center’s “Power: Infrastructure in America” website.

This fall, the Buell Center hosts a mini-series on green infrastructure as part of the GSAPP Conversations podcast. In the first episode of the A&E System mini-series, Laura Veit (‘19 MArch) and Alicia French (‘19 MArch) discuss their involvement in "The A&E System: Public Works and Private Interest in Architectural and Engineering Services, 2000–2020," a publication developed by the Temple Hoyne Buell Center for the Study of American Architecture at Columbia GSAPP from 2017 to 2020. Both French and Veit are practitioners in the field of architecture. French works for the New York City-based Montroy DeMarco Architecture and is a member of the AIANY Civic Leadership Program and Veit works at the Palo Alto-based office Field Architecture. "The A&E System" project initiated at the Buell Center asked: Who will design and manage the green infrastructure needed to combat climate change? In the United States today, whether this infrastructure is financed publicly or privately, it would most likely be designed and managed by public-private partnerships led by large architecture and engineering (A&E) firms, or what we are here calling the “A&E System.” The resulting publication, a resource for students, teachers, and professionals in the arts and sciences of the built environment, is available on the Buell Center’s “Power: Infrastructure in America” website.

Ginger Krieg Dosier in Conversation with Lola Ben-Alon. In the final conversation of the Natural Materials mini-series, faculty Lola Ben-Alon and architectural researcher, Ginger Krieg Dosier, discuss the process of developing and manufacturing natural material products. Dosier is the founder and CEO of bioMASON, a natural material compound employing microorganisms and chemical processes to organically create cement-based materials for construction, with the aim of replacing traditional, more damaging cementitious materials. The Natural Materials mini-series consists of conversations with designers, builders, and product developers of clay, bamboo, fibers, and bacterial concrete. Natural Materials are defined as minimally processed, readily available, non-toxic, healthy, and engaging materials. They are critically needed to reduce carbon emissions and extractive, harmful impacts associated with conventional building materials. (This conversation was recorded remotely in December 2020.)

Chris Magwood in Conversation with Lola Ben-Alon. In the next installment of the Natural Materials mini-series, faculty Lola Ben-Alon discusses building with natural fibers with researcher and builder, Chris Magwood. Magwood is currently a director at The Endeavour Centre, where he leads several initiatives in training building professionals in working with different natural fibers -- like hemp and plant husks -- in newer, more holistic ways, helping bring buildings to ‘net zero.’ The Natural Materials mini-series consists of conversations with designers, builders, and product developers of clay, bamboo, fibers, and bacterial concrete. Natural materials are defined as minimally processed, readily available, nontoxic, healthy, and engaging materials. They are critically needed to reduce carbon emissions and extractive harmful impact associated with conventional building materials. (This conversation was recorded remotely in November 2020.)

Elora Hardy in Conversation with Lola Ben-Alon. This week as part of the Natural Materials mini-series, Lola Ben-Alon speaks with architect, artist, and designer, Elora Hardy (IBUKU), about designing and building with bamboo in Indonesia. Hardy’s work, from her time as a designer at DKNY to her time as an architectural designer in Bali today, has garnered international attention. Her complex designs utilize natural materials, namely bamboo. The structures seem to defy nature, while at the same time following the natural properties of the materials used. The Natural Materials mini-series consists of conversations with designers, builders, and product developers of clay, bamboo, fibers, and bacterial concrete. Natural materials are defined as minimally processed, readily available, nontoxic, healthy, and engaging materials. They are critically needed to reduce carbon emissions and extractive harmful impact associated with conventional building materials. (This conversation was recorded remotely in November 2020.)

Sigi Koko in Conversation with Lola Ben-Alon. This fall, Faculty Lola Ben-Alon hosts a mini-series on natural and living building materials as part of the GSAPP Conversations podcast. The Natural Materials mini-series consists of conversations with designers, builders, and product developers of clay, bamboo, fibers, and bacterial concrete. Natural materials are defined as minimally processed, readily available, nontoxic, healthy, and engaging materials. They are critically needed to reduce carbon emissions and extractive harmful impact associated with conventional building materials. In kicking off the Natural Materials mini-series, Lola Ben-Alon, Assistant Professor of Architectural Technology speaks with East-Coast-based architect Sigi Koko about building naturally with earthen materials like clay, as part of an architectural practice. Koko’s work displays amazing ways that earthen materials behave in the dramatically different climates of the United States, and how we could benefit from incorporating these earthen materials in our own work. The conversation is the first of a four-part mini-series on how experimenting with and utilizing natural materials is changing the future of architecture and design pedagogy. (This conversation was recorded remotely in November 2020.)

Joshua Jih Pan, FAIA in Conversation with Johnny Chiu. In episode #94, founder of J.C. Architecture Johnny Chiu (‘06 MSAAD) speaks with Joshua Jih Pan ('67 MARCH), founder of J.J. Pan & Partners. Based in Taipei with additional offices in Shanghai, Beijing, and Xiamen, J.J. Pan & Partners is an architectural and planning firm dedicated to providing creative solutions in the design and planning of human environments. J.C. Architecture is a multidisciplinary design firm based in New York City and Taipei whose projects range from architecture to interior, industrial, visual, and jewelry design. During the conversation, they discuss Pan’s educational background (including his time at GSAPP) and the steps he took to establish his studio as one of the largest, and most successful firms in Taiwan. Pan stresses the importance of taking advantage of every opportunity to showcase quality and relevant design, regardless of project scale. He also encourages early career architects to recognize the value of their work and charge fair fees for their services. Finally, he shares his vision for the future of architecture in Taiwan which prioritizes sustainability and is inclusive of aging populations.

This Spring, Untapped New York is collaborating with Columbia GSAPP to create a mini-series of podcasts designed to share architectural and historic highlights of Columbia University’s neighborhood and surrounding New York City communities for listeners who are unable to travel to the city in person at this time. In this second installment, Michelle Young and Justin Rivers of Untapped New York explore neighborhoods in Upper Manhattan. They head from Morningside Heights to Harlem, Hamilton Heights, Washington Heights, and Inwood. Along the way, they point out culinary and cultural highlights of each neighborhood, including NYC’s largest slice at Koronet Pizza in Morningside Heights, Harlem’s Apollo Theater, the Audubon Mural Project in Hamilton Heights, and the many parks and views of Washington Heights. We also hear from Columbia affiliated residents of Harlem and Washington Heights who tell us about why they love their neighborhoods. You can learn more about Untapped New York at www.untappedcities.com.

This Spring, Untapped New York collaborated with Columbia GSAPP to create a mini-series of podcast episodes designed to welcome incoming students to the GSAPP family. In case you missed this episode as part of GSAPP’s Virtual Open House, we wanted to re-share it with you here! Throughout the series, we explore architecturally interesting and historic New York City neighborhoods that house Columbia University’s campus and surrounding communities. This is our first of three conversations specifically produced for the School. In this episode, Michelle Young and Justin Rivers of Untapped New York discuss the neighborhood of Morningside Heights, which is home to Columbia University’s Morningside Campus and to GSAPP. Michelle Young is GSAPP faculty, alum ('12 MSUP), and founder of Untapped New York. Justin Rivers, Chief Experience Officer at Untapped New York, will share five hidden spots including Alma Mater, the Guastavino Dome at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, Riverside Church’s Labyrinth, Ulysses S. Grant’s Tomb, and the meeting of 125th and 129th Streets. You can learn more about Untapped New York at www.untappedcities.com.

Sophie Hochhäusl in Conversation with Emmanuel Olunkwa. In episode #91, CCCP student Emmanuel Olunkwa speaks with architectural historian Sophie Hochhäusl. Hochhäusl is an Assistant Professor for Architectural History and Theory at the University of Pennsylvania. Her scholarly work centers on modern architecture and urban culture in Austria, Germany, and the United States, with a focus on the history of social movements, gender studies, and environmental history. Today, Austrian architect Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky (1897-2000) has been widely recognized as one of the most significant female figures in modern design who worked in Austria, Germany, the Soviet Union, and Turkey in the 1920s and 1930s. These decades of professional work were marked by a drastic break between 1940 and 1945, when Schütte-Lihotzky was interned for her participation in the Communist resistance against the Nazi regime. Her recollections from the years of internment became the subject of the 1984 German-language book “Erinnerungen aus dem Widerstand (Memories of the Resistance).” In this episode, Sophie Hochhäusl discusses her book “Memories of the Resistance: Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky and the Architecture of Collective Dissidence, 1919-1989,” which explores the architect's book as a critical historical document that exemplifies the spatialization of organized dissent in the 1940s. It provides a glimpse into resistance as lived practice and how dissent became activated by solidarity and collective action. The episode was recorded following Sophie Hochhäusl’s Detlef Mertins Lecture on the Histories of Modernity at GSAPP on February 24, 2020.

Marc Norman in Conversation with Kate Ascher. In episode #90, faculty Kate Ascher speaks with Marc Norman, Associate Professor of Practice in Urban and Regional Planning at University of Michigan’s Taubman College, and founder of consulting firm Ideas and Actions. Teaching courses in real estate finance and economic development, Marc Norman also advises municipal, private, and non-profit clients on housing and development. Kate Ascher is the Milstein Professor of Urban Development at Columbia GSAPP, where she teaches real estate, infrastructure, and urban planning courses. During the conversation, they discuss land use and cost as it relates to housing and street real estate. Using New York City as an example, they also explore the need for a multifaceted strategy that involves development, innovative finance, and community engagement in the reimagination of public housing. Marc Norman makes the case for further experimentation on a city and state level that has the ability to scale up and lead us into the future. The episode was recorded prior to Marc Norman’s lecture at GSAPP on March 2nd, 2020.

Kim Stanley Robinson in Conversation with Benjamin Eckersley and Isaac Kim. In episode #89, Columbia GSAPP Master of Architecture student Isaac Kim and Columbia School of the Arts MFA student Benjamin Eckersley speak with author Kim Stanley Robinson. Robinson is a New York Times bestseller and winner of the Hugo, Nebula, and Locus awards. He is the author of more than twenty books, including the Mars trilogy and the critically acclaimed 2312, The Years of Rice and Salt, and New York 2140. During the conversation, Robinson embraces the proposal for a Green New Deal and connects his science fiction writing to the growing political movement. He discusses how imagined scenario building and alternative societies might empower communities to be more proactive in responding to the reality of climate change. He also shares with us his long-term interest in architecture and how the built environment provides contextual and historical details in his own fictional writing. The episode was recorded prior to Robinson’s participation at a Columbia event on February 18, 2020. The discussion was organized by the Earth Institute’s Initiative on Communication and Sustainability, the Brown Institute for Media Innovation, and the Temple Hoyne Buell Center for the Study of American Architecture, where it forms part of the ongoing project, “Power: Infrastructure in America.” For more information, including an essay by Robinson on the Green New Deal, see power.buellcenter.columbia.edu.

Carme Pinós in Conversation with Maru Benavides. In this podcast episode, architect Carme Pinós speaks with MARCH student Maru Benavides. Through their bilingual conversation, Pinós shares with us her love of simplicity and natural materials. She gives us a glimpse into her design philosophy that prioritizes human relations, closely considers context, and is spatially and programmatically generous toward the people. She also talks about how she works with the current market-driven building culture as a contemporary architect. Pinós is the founder of Barcelona-based Estudio Carme Pinós. Her sharp approach to design, anchored by a constant focus on experimentation and research, has made her work garner worldwide recognition. This recording was conducted before Carme Pinós’ lecture at the school on February 10, 2020.

Jesse Reiser and Nanako Umemoto in Conversation with Jules Kleitman. In this podcast episode, architect Jesse Reiser and Nanako Umemoto speak with M.Arch student Jules Kleitman. Reiser and Umemoto are founders and principles of Reiser + Umemoto (also known as RUR Architecture), a multidisciplinary design firm operating across various scales. Their work ranges from furniture design, to residential and commercial structures, up to the scale of landscape and infrastructure. Reiser and Umemoto reflect on a special time at Cooper Union when the architectural profession underwent a period of experimental exploration under the leadership of John Hejduk. They discuss the design process behind their O-14 Tower and how they arrived at its formal and hyper-structured expression. They also share with us how their projects in Dubai and Taipei function within local contexts around the globe. This recording was conducted before Jesse Reiser’s lecture at Columbia GSAPP on February 3, 2020.

Peggy Deamer in Conversation with Abraham Murrell. In this podcast episode, graduate Abraham Murrell ('18 M.Arch) speaks with architect and educator Peggy Deamer. GSAPP recently commissioned a group of alumni to report on the current state of internships in the architecture profession. This is our third podcast to explore this theme in more depth, following conversations with Mabel O. Wilson and Violet Whitney. Deamer discusses in depth the problematic relationship between bad fees and bad wages in the architectural profession. She advocates for unionization within the field and presents key positions of the Architecture Lobby. The full text of the Internships and the Architectural Profession report can be read on GSAPP's website.

Emanuel Christ in Conversation with Amale Andraos. In episode #85, Dean Amale Andraos speaks with architect and educator Emanuel Christ. Emanuel Christ is founding partner of Christ & Gantenbein, a leading architectural practice based in Basel, Switzerland. The firm’s work applies bold form and versatile material uses. During their conversation, Christ discusses how he integrates his architectural approach into curriculum design while teaching at ETH Zurich and compares architectural education in Europe and the US. He also speaks about the social, environmental, formal, and technological problems and solutions that are being undertaken by the next generation of architects. This interview was conducted prior to his lecture at the school on November 18, 2019.

Mario Gooden in Conversation with Zoe Kauder Nalebuff. In this podcast episode, CCCP student Zoe Kauder Nalebuff speaks with faculty Mario Gooden (‘90 MARCH) about his recent performance Working on Water in collaboration with Jonathan Gonzalez and Thuto Durkac Somo ('19 CCCP). During the conversation, Mario Gooden shares insights around the performance that archive movements and images of black subjectivity. Enacting feminist theorist Tina Campt’s concept of “practicing refusal,” the performance insists on radical witnessing and forms of architectural representation that “refuse authoritative forms of visuality which function to refuse blackness itself.” By acting and moving across various sites, the multimedia piece draws attention to the work occurring outside of the audience’s focus throughout the performance. Mario Gooden (‘90 M.Arch) is faculty and Co-Director of the Global Africa Lab at Columbia GSAPP and Principal at Huff + Gooden Architects. His practice engages the cultural landscape and the intersectionality of architecture, race, gender, sexuality, and technology.

Mabel O. Wilson in Conversation with Abraham Murrell. In this podcast episode, recent graduate Abraham Murrell speaks with Professor Mabel O. Wilson. GSAPP recently commissioned a group of alumni to report on the current state of internships in the architecture profession. This is our second podcast to explore this theme in more depth, following a conversation between Violet Whitney and James Brillon. Professor Wilson discusses her early career path and experience as a MARCH graduate. She also interprets inequity issues within the profession and identifies social, institutional, economical, and historical causes. Mabel Wilson (’91 MARCH) is the Nancy and George Rupp Professor of Architecture, Planning and Preservation at GSAPP, a Professor in African American and African Diasporic Studies, and the Associate Director of the Institute for Research in African American Studies (IRAAS) at Columbia University. At GSAPP she also co-directs the Global Africa Lab. The full text of the Internships and the Architectural Profession report can be read on GSAPP's website.

Eleena Jamil in Conversation with Lucy Navarro. In this podcast episode, MARCH student Lucy Navarro speaks with architect Eleena Jamil about her practice. Working within the context of Southeast Asia, her work has been founded on research into specific social and climatic imperatives of each project brief within a broader cultural framework. Jamil shares with us her vision around the potential of vernacular architecture and sustainable building materials, such as bamboo and timber, in Kuala Lumpur. She also talks about how her firm’s work designing smaller-scale pavilions has provided opportunities for structural and material experimentation. The conversation took place at Columbia GSAPP on October 14, 2019 prior to Eleena Jamil’s lecture.

Farzin Lofti-Jam & Caitlin Blanchfield in Conversation with Jesse Connuck. In this podcast episode, faculty Farzin Lotfi-Jam (MSAAD '12) and PhD candidate Caitlin Blanchfield (MSCCCP '14) discuss their new book Modern Management Methods: Architecture, Historical Value, and the Electromagnetic Image. They speak with Jesse Connuck, who edited the book, which was published by Columbia Books on Architecture and the City in November 2019. They describe their use of the x-ray as a medium to re-examine modern architecture through a Le Corbusier house at the Weissenhofsiedlung in Stuttgart and the United Nations Headquarters in New York City. Through the discovery and exploration of quotidian objects in the usually heroically depicted buildings, they visualize the overlooked evolving life and invisible moments in the buildings’ history. This research culminated in two exhibitions and is further theorized in their book.

Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg in Conversation with Luiza Furia. In this podcast episode, MARCH student Luiza Furia speaks with multidisciplinary artist Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg about the central notions in her research. Her artworks, writing, and curatorial projects explore the human values that shape design, science, technology, and nature. Ginsberg shares with us her concept of “better,” which is oftentimes ambiguously used in synthetic biology to describe a vision of the future. She also expresses her concerns and her attitudes on the ethics and potential of synthetic biology experiments in designing and inventing new species. With her work, she projects an optimistic future to leave an enjoyable and safe planet for the next generations. The conversation took place at Columbia GSAPP on October 7, 2019 prior to Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg’s lecture.

Charles Renfro in Conversation with José Esparza Chong Cuy. In this podcast episode, Executive Director and Chief Curator of the Storefront for Art and Architecture José Esparza Chong Cuy (‘12 CCCP) speaks with architect Charles Renfro (‘94 AAD), a partner at Diller Scofidio + Renfro and board member at Storefront. They discuss their involvement with Storefront and its unique role in the field as a multidisciplinary thought organization. Illustrated with his most important and provocative projects at DS+R and Storefront, Charles Renfro shares his continued interest in queer space and culture-making public facilities that negotiate physical connections among people. The conversation took place at DS+R’s office on September 19, 2019.

Violet Whitney in Conversation with James Brillon. In this podcast episode, recent graduate James Brillon ('18 M.Arch) speaks with faculty and alumni Violet Whitney ('17 M.Arch). The School recently commissioned a small group of GSAPP alumni to report on the current state of internships in the architecture profession. James is one of the contributors to the report, and we asked him to expand on the issues in this conversation with Violet. In addition to teaching in GSAPP's Visual Studies sequence, Violet leads computational design and research at Sidewalk Labs. They discuss Violet’s personal experience in her transition from architecture to tech, and how the business models of traditional architecture firms compare to those of a tech company. The full text of the Internships and the Architectural Profession report can be found on GSAPP's website.

Marina Tabassum in Conversation with Amale Andraos. In this podcast episode, Dean Amale Andros speaks with architect Marina Tabassum about architectural design that respects and prioritizes local communities, contexts, and civic aspects of city life. Marina Tabassum is Founder of Dhaka-based Marina Tabassum Architects (MTA), and Director of Academic Programs at the Bengal Institute for Architecture, Landscapes and Settlements. Her work has established a contemporary architectural language in Bangladesh that is locally rooted. We learn about how her design-oriented studio takes a firm stance on “the path of resistance” in building an unconventionally diverse portfolio. The interview was conducted prior to the 9th annual Kenneth Frampton Endowed Lecture held at the school on September 23, 2019.

Torkwase Dyson in Conversation with Mabel Wilson. Episode 76 features an excerpt from a conversation between Professor Mabel O. Wilson and New York-based artist Torkwase Dyson about her recently opened exhibition 1919: Black Water. On view at Columbia GSAPP’s Arthur Ross Architecture Gallery through December 14, 2019, the exhibition includes new paintings, sculptures, and drawings that respond to the 100th anniversary of the “Red Summer” of 1919, a period of heightened racial violence across the United States. Dyson creates visual and material systems that explore relationships between bodily movement and architecture, with an emphasis on the ways that black and brown bodies perceive and negotiate space. During the conversation, they discuss systems of subjugation within architectural forms, and ways in which spatial composition is used as a tool for self-liberation. A transcript of the full conversation is published in the exhibition brochure and can be found on the School’s website.

Jesse LeCavalier in Conversation with Emma Macdonald. In episode #75, Critical, Curatorial, and Conceptual Practices (MSCCCP) student Emma Macdonald speaks with architect Jesse LeCavalier about his research around the global emergence of new public infrastructures. Jesse LeCavalier is the author of The Rule of Logistics: Walmart and the Architecture of Fulfillment and associate professor of architecture at the Daniels Faculty of Architecture at the University of Toronto. He works to engage the public on new types of contemporary infrastructure and logistics by shedding light on their underlying meanings, interrelations, and purposes. This interview was conducted prior to his lecture at the school on September 16, 2019.

DK Osseo-Asare and Naeem Biviji in Conversation with Mpho Matsipa In this podcast episode, we continue the conversation around making culture in Nairobi, Lagos, Accra/Tema, and Johannesburg. Faculty Mpho Matsipa speaks with designers DK Osseo-Asare and Naeem Biviji about their making processes, which explore local craftsmanship and low-cost & small-scale architecture as alternatives to rapid industrialization and big infrastructure in Africa today. DK Osseo-Asare is co-founder and principal of architecture and integrated design studio Low Design Office (LOWDO), based in Austin, Texas and Tema, Ghana. Naeem Biviji is the co-founder of Studio Propolis, a design workshop based in Nairobi, Kenya run with partner Bethan Rayner. They were both part of the GSAPP event Building Cultures: Making in Nairobi, Lagos, Accra/Tema, and Johannesburg held at the school on September 6, 2019.

Nifemi Marcus-Bello and Thabisa Mjo in Conversation with Mpho Matispa. In this podcast episode hosted by faculty Mpho Matsipa, makers Nifemi Marcus-Bello and Thabisa Mjo bring us on their journey to integrate cultural heritage and unique craftsmanship in local communities to create economic viability in Africa. Nifemi Marcus-Bello is the founder of nmbello Studio, an Industrial Design practice located in Lagos, Nigeria, with a focus on product, furniture, and experience design for both local and international clients. Thabisa Mjo is the founder of the Johannesburg-based Mash.T Design Studio, a studio focused on telling uniquely South African stories using the medium of design. They were both part of the GSAPP event Building Cultures: Making in Nairobi, Lagos, Accra/Tema, and Johannesburg held at the school on September 6, 2019.

MARCH student Lucy Navarro speaks with Annabelle Selldorf in advance of the Annual Paul S. Byard Memorial Lecture at the school on April 15, 2019. Annabelle Selldorf is founder and principal of Selldorf Architects, a New York City-based firm that is currently working on several expansions to existing cultural institutions, including the Frick Collection in New York City and the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego. They discuss designing for existing spaces and explore the connections between art and architecture. “When I think about space and art, I think about the person who is viewing it. Ultimately, I think there isn't such a thing as a neutral space. It is your own experience, evaluation, or judgment that contributes to the analysis of what works.” – Annabelle Selldorf

Daniel Bernal, a dual degree student in the MARCH and MSRED programs, speaks with Nina Baier-Bischofberger and Florian Baier in advance of their lecture at the school on April 8, 2019. The pair founded their firm Baier Bischofberger Architects in 2005 after meeting as students at Columbia GSAPP. They discuss the studio’s work and creative process, and reflect on their experiences at GSAPP and the realities of architectural practice which they encountered post graduation. “When I graduated, I went to visit a friend who was working at NASA. They said NASA actually quite liked hiring people with architecture degrees because they could look at lots of different things at the same time and understand the bigger picture... I think architectural education allows for so many new possibilities.” - Nina Baier-Bischofberger

CCCP student Paula Vilaplana speaks with Ana Paula Ruiz Galindo and Mecky Reuss, co-founders of Mexico City-based firm Pedro y Juana, following their lecture at the school on February 11, 2019. The duo is also teaching advanced studio VI at GSAPP during the Spring 2019 semester. Their work explores the capacity of objects to change their environment through typological transgressions, the indiscriminate use of material, texture, color, placement, or form. Recently, their installation Hórama Rama won the 2019 MoMA PS1 Young Architects Program. “We like to think that objects also have agency within their environments. How you place the object, or the amount of permission you give the user to change or fix it, actually creates different actions...We're very much interested in seeing what happens within spaces more than holding on to an idea of how they should be used.” - Ana Paula Ruiz Galindo

MARCH student Tim Battelino speaks with Anthony Acciavatti following the 5th Annual Detlef Mertins Lecture on the Histories of Modernity at the school on March 25, 2019. Anthony Acciavatti is a GSAPP faculty member, historian, cartographer, architect, and author of the award-winning book, Ganges Water Machine: Designing New India’s Ancient River, the first environmental and urban history of the world’s most densely populated river basin. "I'm trying to make almost a graphic biography of these [Ganges River Basin] regions and areas by pairing image and word… I’m always trying to couple what I see with ways to describe and narrate the work that I do, both empirically but also theoretically. Ganges Water Machine in that way was very much an experiment in how to narrate such a vast territory.” - Anthony Acciavatti

MSCCCP (M.S. Critical, Curatorial & Conceptual Practices) student Amelyn Ng speaks with Adrian Lahoud, Dean of the School of Architecture at the Royal College of Art London. He is also the inaugural curator of the Sharjah Architecture Triennial, the first major platform for architecture and urbanism in the Middle East, North and East Africa, and South and Southeast Asia, which will be held in November 2019. During the conversation they discuss curation in architecture, the upcoming Triennial, and the thinking behind its theme, “Rights of Future Generations.” “The entire aim of the Triennial is to say that climate change is the colonization of a single perspective on what it means to relate to other beings, and that perspective is an extractive one. So the question is how do you decolonize that extractive perspective, how might you allow other kinds of modes of existence to reverberate and to register? I think ultimately if climate change is about anything, it's really about that.” – Adrian Lahoud

UP students Laura Postarini and Tyrene Calvesbert speak with Ananya Roy, Professor of Urban Planning, Social Welfare and Geography and inaugural Director of the Institute on Inequality and Democracy at UCLA Luskin, in advance of her lecture at the school on February 25, 2019. They discuss Ananya Roy’s current research around metropolitan segregation and racial banishment in Los Angeles, and decolonization of the urban planning discipline in the United States. “What might decolonial logics look like? In urban planning, it starts with thinking about the role of our discipline and profession in this colonial violence…I want to know what reparations urban planning is going to make for the tremendous colonial harm that we have inflicted. I want to know how our instruments of planning are deeply colonial or imperial, or rooted in the extermination of indigenous people in this country. What then do we do with those instruments? The moment of Trumpism ironically is an opportunity for us to have these conversations.” – Ananya Roy

Axelle Dechelette, a dual degree student in the MARCH and MSCCCP programs, speaks with Daniel Fernández Pascual & Alon Schwabe of Cooking Sections, a duo of spatial practitioners based in London. Cooking Sections are the designers behind Offsetted, the exhibition currently on view in the Arthur Ross Architecture Gallery at GSAPP. The exhibition features an immersive installation of matter collected from New York City trees — including bark, branches, trunks, leaves, and clippings — and assembles a constellation of narratives about the political and economic interests that have both protected and displaced the city’s trees under the pressures of urbanization. “We are trying to challenge the vision that you need to assign a monetary value to nature in order to protect it, which some decades ago, was kind of a first step towards changing the perception of the environment among decision makers. But today, we believe that we can take a step forward and start thinking of trees, not as service providers, but just as trees.” – Daniel Fernández Pascual

MARCH student Luiza Furia speaks with Lola Sheppard, founding partner of Lateral Office, in advance of her lecture at the school on February 18, 2019. They discuss Lateral Office’s work in rural and remote environments, particularly in the Canadian North, and the role of research in rethinking design in such places. “In the Canadian North... architecture has been conceived of as the envelope to keep brutal elements out. While that is an inevitable responsibility of the building, we are interested in learning from indigenous practices to say, perhaps there are other ways to interface with the environment where the building, or structure, or infrastructure can be more porous.” - Lola Sheppard

Dean Amale Andraos speaks with faculty Andrés Jaque, director of GSAPP’s MSAAD program and founder of the Office for Political Innovation, an architectural practice based in New York and Madrid. They discuss Jaque’s current projects and the need for immediate action in pushing the boundaries of architecture and design to reinvent the way our spaces work. “When we look at newspapers, everything that’s on the front page has architecture in it. If we think of geopolitical tensions, environmental issues, projects like the Green New Deal, all of them are loaded with architecture and design. Immediately, it’s a discussion about housing…territory…fences…borders. It’s a discussion about architectural elements.” - Andrés Jaque

Daniel Bernal, a dual degree student in the MArch and Real Estate Development programs, speaks with Sandra Barclay and Jean Pierre Crousse, co-founders of Barclay & Crousse Architecture, in advance of their lecture at the school on February 4, 2019. Barclay & Crousse was founded in 1994 in Paris, and has been based in Lima since 2006. The studio manages a wide range of transcontinental programs that explore the relationships between landscape, climate, and architecture. “The future of architects, at least in our country, is not the traditional way of being an architect where you have your office and you wait for clients to come. You have to be aware. Nowadays, you have to propose your knowledge of being an architect in places where nobody expects that an architect can be useful.” - Jean Pierre Crousse

Christine Giorgio, a third year M.Arch student, speaks with Julia Burdova and Olga Aleksakova of Buromoscow in advance of their lecture at the school on January 28, 2019. Buromoscow is based in Moscow, and was founded in 2004. The duo is also teaching advanced studio VI at GSAPP during the Spring 2019 semester. Buromoscow’s work reflects urban change in post-soviet Russia, and is known for changing the face of prefabricated mass housing. “[In Russia], people have a very abstract idea about home and building...When people look for a place to live, there is no image of how it can be different. They buy sheer square meters and not a dream...it’s very mechanical. For architects, this is very attractive...the chance to work with a system, something mechanical, something that can be reproduced. It’s a challenge and we totally embraced it.” - Olga Aleksakova

Amelyn Ng, a second year MSCCCP student, speaks with Mark Wigley in advance of his lecture at the school on November 12, 2018. Mark Wigley is Professor and Dean Emeritus at Columbia GSAPP and is the author of recently published Cutting Matta-Clark: The Anarchitecture Investigation. The book examines the work of Gordon Matta-Clark through extensive interviews and a dossier of archival evidence. “Creating a stable reference point in an unstable world is the classical view of architecture. Life is weird, time is weird, but architecture just sort of stands there… Matta-Clark says what if it’s actually the other way around? What if architecture is the weird thing?” - Mark Wigley

Second year MArch student, Lucy Navarro, speaks with Helen Leung and Elizabeth Timme, co-founders of LA-Más, in advance of their lecture at the school on November 8, 2018. LA-Más is a non-profit urban design organization based in Los Angeles that helps underserved communities shape their future through policy and architecture. Their projects focus on communities in transition that are often underserved or overlooked by traditional service providers. “Architects get to be progressive when there is a multidisciplinary approach that’s meaningful… where an architect can share perspectives with a planner and vice versa.” - Helen Leung

Columbia GSAPP MArch student Luiza Furia speaks with Gaetano Pesce, artist and multidisciplinary creator, in advance of his lecture at the school on October 15, 2018. Renowned for his use of color, innovative materials, and social-political commentary, Pesce is a pioneer of 20th-century design whose aesthetic influence is evident in today’s industrial design. "I tell my students, you have to express yourself, to say what you think personally. Your architecture has to be the language of yourself… Design is a very complex new language, and if you use it in the right way, it becomes an art - like architecture, by the way." - Gaetano Pesce

Dual-degree student Daniel Bernal speaks with Lyndon Neri and Rossana Hu, co-founders of Neri&Hu, in advance of their lecture on October 8, 2018. Their firm works internationally across multiple disciplines, including architecture, master planning, interior, graphic, and product design. Neri&Hu is composed of a multicultural team that reinforces a core vision for the practice: to respond to a global worldview incorporating overlapping design disciplines for a new paradigm in architecture. "By virtue of being interdisciplinary, you attract a number of people who have varying interests. A product designer thinks very differently from a master planner... It allows seemingly very different people within the design field to come together and work together, and they realize that they actually have more similarities than differences." - Lyndon Neri

Third-year MArch student Christine Giorgio speaks with Sheila Kennedy and J. Frano Violich, of Kennedy & Violich Architecture (KVA MATx) in advance of their lecture at the school on October 1, 2018. Their projects engage pressing climate change issues, emerging technology, and user agency. “In crisis situations we often get into a defense mode: build a wall, build a barricade, stop it from coming in. When one uses the imagination, you begin to think of ways to go outside of that direct, hard approach toward how to deal with these crises.” - J. Frano Violich

Dean Amale Andraos speaks with Anna Puigjaner, co-founder of the Barcelona-based architecture office MAIO. Puigjaner was recently appointed as Associate Professor of Professional Practice at Columbia GSAPP, where she coordinates the Core I Architecture Studios. They discuss the relationship between research and design, the connections between academic and professional practice, and Puigjaner’s ongoing project of the “Kitchenless City.” “The kitchen has been used as a political tool during the 20th century and became the center of our so-called homes. To live without a kitchen is a provocation to start a conversation about how the idea of comfort can be redefined in a permanent manner and how architecture can be a tool to rearrange thought.” - Anna Puigjaner

Paula Vilaplana, a second year graduate student in GSAPP's Critical, Curatorial and Conceptual Practices in Architecture program speaks with Jan De Vylder of architecten de vylder vinck taillieuin advance of his lecture at the school on September 24, 2018. Jan De Vylder co-founded the Belgium-based architecture firm, architecten de vylder vinck taillieu, along with Inge Vinck and Jo Taillieu. Their work focuses on the act of making, positioning architecture in the critical role of both craft and cultural production. The firm was recently awarded a Silver Lion at the 2018 Venice Biennale, and has exhibited widely, often in collaboration with photographer Filip Dujardin.