Architectural Workers United
Consensus-Building Workshop

Monday April 8, 2024
12:30–1:30 p.m.
Zoom link available on registration through this link.

Please join us for a 1-hour value-mapping workshop facilitated by members of Architectural Workers United. The workshop will  introduce participants to skills that can be used in contexts that require negotiation.

Audience: This workshop is catered towards architecture students, but is open to faculty, staff, and practitioners. Please register in advance through the link below by Monday April 1 to help us determine if separate sessions would be helpful to address different audiences.

Recommended Readings:

1. "Why Don't Architects Have Unions?" by Jess Myers, The Architect's Newspaper, October 28, 2019

2. The Sherman Antitrust Act and the Profession of Architecture", by Peggy Deamer, The Avery Review, Issue 36;

3. "Architects must reject the 'follow your passion' narrative and see ourselves as workers," by Andrew Daley, Dezeen, August 15, 2022

Facilitator: Andrew Daley

Lecture: Emmanuel Pratt (Sweet Water Foundation)

Re-Mapping the Publics: Resolutions for Regenerative Neighborhood Development

Watson Chair in Architecture
Organized by the Remaking Cities Institute

Friday April 5, 2024, 5 p.m.
Venue TBD, please RSVP below to be notified of the venue once it is confirmed.

Emmanuel Pratt is an American Urban Designer. In 2009 he co-founded the Sweet Water Foundation, which practices "Regenerative Neighborhood Development" on the South Side of Chicago. The foundation is centered around bringing inter-generational members of the community together for education and to work on urban agriculture and reclaiming abandoned properties and transforming them into productive landscapes.

Pratt was born in Virginia and graduated in 1995 from Maggie L. Walker Governor's School in Richmond, Virginia. In 1999, he graduated with a Bachelors of Architecture from Cornell University, and he received a Masters of Science in architecture and urban design from Columbia University in 2003. From 2016 to 2017, Pratt was a Loeb Fellow at Harvard University Graduate School of Design.

From 2011 to 2018, Pratt was director of the aquaponics program at Chicago State University. He was the Charles Moore Visiting Professor at the Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning at the University of Michigan, and is a visiting lecturer in Environmental and Urban Studies at the University of Chicago.

In 2019, Pratt was invited to participate in the third Chicago Architecture Biennial, where his entry Reroot + Redux explored the connections between architecture and the Great Migration. Pratt was also named a MacArthur Fellow.

Lunch Lecture: Vinu Daniel (Wallmakers)

Supported by the Architecture–Engineering–Construction Management Program

Vinu Daniel completed his B. Arch in 2005 from The College of Engineering, Trivandrum, following which he worked with Auroville Earth Institute for the UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) Post-Tsunami construction. On returning from Pondicherry in 2007 he started 'Wallmakers' which was christened thus by others, as the first project was just a compound wall. Many eye-openers in the course of his practice prompted him to resolve to devote his energies towards the cause of sustainable and cost-effective architecture. With a practice, spanning over more than a decade, Wallmakers has won many international accolades including being selected by ArchDaily as the only Indian practice in the list of 20 Young Practices of 2020, being nominated for the Brick Award 2022 and winning The Royal Academy Dorfman Award 2022 conducted by the Royal Academy of Arts, London to name a few. Vinu Daniel is also the youngest Indian Architect invited to be a speaker at the TED Talks (TED 2023: POSSIBILITY, Vancouver)

Rescheduled from the original date of February 5, 2024.

Lunch Discussion: Values in Practice

With the Value-Based Design seminar taught by Bill Bates.

This discussion led by Carnegie Mellon Architecture Faculty will examine specific instances where designers and practitioners learn to articulate their values and stand by them through their work. 

Applications for the Spring 2024 Architecture Awards are due on Tuesday, March 12, 2024 at 11:59pm ET.

Over $44,000 of funding is available to support undergraduate and graduate students. Awards recognize student work in public interest design, design and representation, sustainability, and real estate, as well as professional promise.

More information is available on the Awards page.

Lunch Lecture: Formats

Phillip Denny (B.Arch ‘14, Harvard GSD)

Friday, February 23, 2024
12:30–1:30pm, Kresge Theatre
College of Fine Arts, 4919 Frew Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15213

Phillip Denny works across architecture. A trained architect and historian, his practice combines inquiry and design to create projects in formats including books, essays, archives, lectures, pedagogies, and exhibitions. Alongside Rem Koolhaas and Irma Boom, he taught The Book in the Age of…, a graduate research seminar at Harvard GSD, and subsequently created an exhibition and book under the same title.

He has recently contributed articles to Architectural Digest, Log, and Domus, and has previously written for The New York Times, Metropolis, and other publications. In parallel with his research and writing, Phillip collaborates with architects to develop books, exhibitions, and archives. He is currently working with Diller Scofidio + Renfro and SITE/James Wines. He is editing a comprehensive monograph on the work of Diller Scofidio + Renfro since its founding in 1981. 

A PhD Candidate at Harvard University, his dissertation attends to the architectural history of modern labor movements in Germany. Phillip holds a Master’s degree in architectural history from Harvard, as well as a Master’s in Architecture from Princeton University, where he received the School of Architecture History and Theory Prize as well as the Certificate in Media + Modernity. He also holds a Bachelor’s degree in architecture from Carnegie Mellon University, where he received the Pittsburgh History and Landmarks Foundation Prize, the Louis F Valentour Fellowship, and the Henry Adams AIA Medal. In 2019, he was awarded a Graham Foundation grant to support his work on Nicolas Schöffer’s urban manifesto, La ville cybernétique. Phillip has taught courses in architectural design, history, and publishing at Pratt Institute, Boston Architectural College, Harvard University, Princeton University, and Syracuse University in NYC. He has given lectures and hosted workshops at ETH Zürich, Catholic University of America, Virginia Tech, Dessau Bauhaus Foundation, Harvard University, Princeton University, and Columbia University. He lives in New York City. 

Bookmaking Workshop with Phillip Denny (B.Arch ‘14, Harvard GSD)

Thursday February 22, 2024

5–8 pm, Margaret Morrison Carnegie Hall Room 303

It is almost impossible to imagine architecture without books: from theoretical treatises to construction documents, our field is built one page at a time. Although books are ubiquitous in practice and discourse, architects rarely have the opportunity to engage the book as a format with an architecture of its own. 

This workshop explores the material, experiential, historical, formal, and social dimensions of the book. A series of short exercises will introduce participants to fundamental bookmaking processes and techniques that make the book a generative medium for architectural thought.

Hand Drawing: Why it Still Matters for Architects in the Digital Age
Keynote: Juhani Pallasmaa

A Symposium with perspectives from embodied cognition, neuroscience, teachers, and practitioners.

Convened by Doug Cooper, Andrew Mellon Professor of Architecture
Supported by the Doug Cooper, A 1970, Fund for Drawing and Architecture

Saturday, February 17, 2024, McConomy Auditorium
Cohon University Center, 5000 Forbes Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15213

What is the case for freehand drawing for architects in the digital age? Architecture students draw less and less by hand and now develop their proposals predominantly with design software.  We need a clearer and unsentimental understanding of just what might be lost with this sea change.  This symposium will enlist practitioners, teachers, and scientists alike in addressing the visual/haptic content of freehand drawing and the value it still has for the field.  Here is a schedule of conversations and some of the questions we’ll address in each.

Schedule

9 a.m. Welcome
Omar Khan, Head, Carnegie Mellon Architecture

Doug Cooper. Carnegie Mellon Architecture

9:15am—10:45 a.m. Conversation 1 : Perspectives from Science

• Is there evidence that the haptic/gestural content of freehand drawing helps in sustaining three-dimensional visualization? 

• Is there evidence that freehand drawing connects designers to their past experience of architecture?

• Do "sketchiness" and ambiguity contribute to design thinking?  If so, when and why?

Moderator: Milton Shinberg, Principal Emeritus Shinberg Levinas Architects, Adjunct Professor of Architecture School of Architecture and Planning Catholic University, Building on Architectural Intuition in Practice and Education, A Pragmatic Framework

Presenters:

• Barbara Tversky, Professor Emerita of Psychology, Stanford University: Mind in Motion: How Action Shapes Thought.

• Mark Hewitt, Draw in Order to See: A Cognitive history of Architectural Design

11:00 a.m.—12:30 p.m. Conversation 2: Perspectives from Practice

• In your practice, when do you tend to use freehand drawing the most?  When the least? 

• What skills needed in architectural design are still improved by hand drawing?

• Do you seek freehand skills in your recruits?  What characteristics do you look for? 

• What hybrid practices have proven most useful? 

• What changes and development in hardware and software might make freehand drawing more useful in design?

Moderator: Stefani Danes, Carnegie Mellon Architecture

Presenters:

• Anssi Lasilla, OOPEAA Office for Peripheral Architecture, Finland, Professor of Practice in Contemporary Architecture at the Oulu School of Architecture, Finland

• Brian MacKay-Lyons, MacKay-Lyons Sweetapple Architects, Halifax Nova Scotia, Canada

1:30–2:30 p.m. Keynote Address:  Juhani Pallasmaa

Former Professor of Architecture Helsinki University of Technology. Author of The Eyes of the Skin;  The Thinking Hand;  Architecture and Neuroscience (with Harry Mallgrave, Michael A. Arbib);  The Architecture of Image: Existential Space in Cinema. 

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Dual Lecture: Brian MacKay-Lyons (MacKay-Lyons Sweetapple Architects) & Anssi Lassila (Office for Peripheral Architecture)

Supported by the Doug Cooper, A 1970, Fund for Drawing and Architecture

5:00 pm ET, Kresge Theatre, College of Fine Arts, 5000 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15213

Brian MacKay-Lyons was born and raised in the village of Arcadia in Nova Scotia, on the East coast of Canada. Brian received his Bachelor of Architecture from the Technical University of Nova Scotia in 1978 and his Master of Architecture and Urban Design at the University of California Los Angeles, in the United States. 

He has developed a leading global practice from Nova Scotia that has been honoured with over 160 design awards, including the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC) Gold Medal in 2015 and the RAIC Firm Award in 2014; eight Governor General Medals; six American Institute of Architects (AIA) National and International Honor Awards of Architecture; fifteen Lieutenant Governor’s Medals of Excellence; eight Canadian Architect Awards; four Architectural Record Houses Awards; and thirteen North American Wood Design & Building Awards. 

A fellow of the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (FRAIC), and the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts (RCA), Brian MacKay-Lyons was named Honorary Fellow of the American Institute of Architects (Hon. FAIA) in 2001 and in 2016 was made an International Fellow by the Royal Institute of British Architects (FRIBA) in London. In 2022, Brian was appointed to the Order of Canada for his contribution to the architectural community. Brian was a full professor and faculty member at Dalhousie University for 37 years and has held 17 endowed academic chairs and visiting professorships at leading universities worldwide, such as: The Peter Behrens School of Architecture, Washington University in St. Louis, Harvard University, and University of Houston Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture and Design. 

Twenty years after founding the firm Brian MacKay-Lyons Architecture Urban Design, Brian partnered with Talbot Sweetapple to form MacKay-Lyons Sweetapple Architects Limited. In 2017, Brian and Talbot were honoured as laureates of the prestigious Global Award for Sustainable Architecture by the Cite de l’Architecture et du Patrimoine in Paris, under the patronage of UNESCO. The work of the firm has been recognized in 900+ publications including eight monographs and has been featured in 100+ exhibitions internationally.  

Anssi Lassila is the founder and director of OOPEAA Office for Peripheral Architecture and Professor of Contemporary Architecture at Oulu School of Architecture. His architecture combines a sculptural form with traditional materials and innovative techniques. Placing the human being at the center, he has a keen interest in exploring the potential of wood as a sustainable solution and in developing new systems of modularity. His personal experience in working with wood extends from building with hand carved logs to the use of CLT. His work has been recognized with some of the highest merits achievable both in Finland and internationally. 

OOPEAA works on a wide range of projects from churches and public buildings to housing and urban visions. There is an active focus on research and development with an emphasis on social and ecological sustainability. A desire to find solutions that take advantage of the natural qualities of materials and a willingness to courageously explore new ways of doing things is at the core of their work. Their objective is to create architecture and milieus that are functional, technically and ecologically sustainable, of aesthetically high quality, and committed to the location. The office is based in Seinäjoki and Helsinki, Finland.

Anssi’s recommended readings:

• OOPEAA Office for Peripheral Architecture, Arvinius + Orpheus Publishers, Stockholm, 2014

• Todd Saunders and Jonathan Bell: Share: Conversations about Contemporary Architecture – The Nordic Countries, Artifice Press, 2022

• Junihiro Tanizaki: In Praise of Shadows, Vintage Publishing, 2001, reprinted 2019, 

• Peter Zumthor: Thinking Architecture, Birkhauser, 2010.

Collective Knowledge Building workshop on Air Quality and Community Health


In conjunction with MUD Systems Studio, organized by Nida Rehman and Ginger Brooks Takahashi
Where: General Sisters. 1140 Kirkpatrick avenue, North Braddock  
When: Friday, February 9 from 2.30-4.30pm. 

Zoom info: https://cmu.zoom.us/j/97310695258?pwd=NVhXOTlpTnZITUYvZVk2NWZldHhjdz09
Presentations and a panel discussion with Germaine Gooden Patterson (Community Health Worker, Women for a Healthy Environment), Abhishek Viswanathan (PhD Candidate, Information Science, University of Pittsburgh) and Emily Dale (Low Cost Monitoring Program Coordinator, ROCIS). We will also have a workshop with Ana Hoffman (Director of Air Quality Engagement, Create Lab CMU) about monitoring, visualizing, and reporting air quality data!

Chris Cornelius of studio:indigenous will be speaking by Zoom this Wednesday February 7, 14:00–15:30 (EST) in second year option studios coordinated by Sarosh Anklesaria and Tuliza Sindi. His talk will address the agency of architectural drawing, as well as questions of indigeneity, decolonization and other ways of seeing and conceiving the world. 

CMU x NOMA PGH Mixer and Panel!

RSVP REQUIRED: https://tartanconnect.cmu.edu/nomas/rsvp_boot?id=1928536
Hosted by CMU NOMAS with guests from NOMA PGH
March 12, 2024
5:30 pm
CUC Danforth Conference Room
Includes a panel with experienced firm leaders and hiring experts, and a chance for networking/portfolio reviews with students and NOMA members!

Panelists include career consultants and professionals from WTW Architects & Rothschild Doyno Collaborative. All attendees must RSVP online as space is limited. 
Food and drink provided. Students are encouraged to bring their portfolios.

Lecture & Book Signing by Momoyo Kaijima (Atelier Bow-Wow)

Architectural Behaviorology

Book signing and reception, 5:00pm ET, Carnegie Museum of Art Café

Lecture, 6:00pm ET, Carnegie Museum of Art Theater

4400 Forbes Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15213

Notes:

• This talk is free and open to all.

• Registration is now full. Please join the waitlist to be notified as seats become available. A recording of the lecture will be made available shortly after the event.

• This event is in-person only.

• The lecture is eligible for 1.5 AIA Continuing Education Credits. Please provide your AIA membership credentials at the door.

Momoyo Kaijima

Momoyo Kaijima, a distinguished figure in contemporary architecture, is the co-founder of Atelier Bow-Wow, an influential architectural studio in Japan. Originating from Tokyo, Kaijima's graduated with a degree from the Department of Housing, Faculty of Home Economics, Japan Women’s University. Subsequently, she pursued advanced studies at the Tokyo Institute of Technology, culminating in postgraduate and graduate degrees.

Kaijima is also a Professor of Architectural Behaviorology at ETH Zurich. Beyond her academic role, Kaijima's international impact extends to renowned institutions such as Harvard, Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, Rice University, Delft University of Technology, and Columbia University. In collaboration with Yoshiharu Tsukamoto, she co-founded Atelier Bow-Wow in 1992, contributing to innovative multi-scalar architectural projects and research, including notable built works such as Momonoura Village, the Machiya Houses, and House & Atelier. She was the curator of the Japanese Pavilion at the 16th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia and she received the Wolf Prize Laureate in Architecture in 2022. Since 2017 she has served as vice president of the nonprofit NPO Cheer Art, which aims to make medical settings not only functional, but bring out people’s zest for life.

The breadth of Atelier Bow Wow’s work has been disseminated through many publications, including Made in Tokyo, House Behaviorology, Windowscapes. Graphic Anatomy 1, Graphic Anatomy 2, Pet Architecture 1, and Pet Architecture 2.

In this thought-provoking lecture, "Architectural Behaviorology," Kaijima will share insights gleaned from her extensive involvement in over 150 architectural projects. This session promises to provide valuable perspectives on the intersection of architectural practice and visionary design. A moderated Q&A will follow the lecture.

Book Sale & Signing

From 5-6 PM, Point Line Projects will have copies of Atelier Bow-Wow's recent books, available for purchase and signing during a reception before the lecture in the museum café.

Conversations on Practice and Pedagogy with Momoyo Kaijima (Atelier Bow-Wow)

1–4 p.m., College of Fine Arts Room 201
Refreshments provided.

A moderated drop-in conversation open to all to discuss connections and resonances between Momoyo Kaijima’s practice and our work at Carnegie Mellon Architecture.

Momoyo Kaijima

Momoyo Kaijima, a distinguished figure in contemporary architecture, is the co-founder of Atelier Bow-Wow, an influential architectural studio in Japan. Originating from Tokyo, Kaijima's graduated with a degree from the Department of Housing, Faculty of Home Economics, Japan Women’s University. Subsequently, she pursued advanced studies at the Tokyo Institute of Technology, culminating in postgraduate and graduate degrees.

Kaijima is also a Professor of Architectural Behaviorology at ETH Zurich. Beyond her academic role, Kaijima's international impact extends to renowned institutions such as Harvard, Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, Rice University, Delft University of Technology, and Columbia University. In collaboration with Yoshiharu Tsukamoto, she co-founded Atelier Bow-Wow in 1992, contributing to innovative multi-scalar architectural projects and research, including notable built works such as Momonoura Village, the Machiya Houses, and House & Atelier. She was the curator of the Japanese Pavilion at the 16th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia and she received the Wolf Prize Laureate in Architecture in 2022. Since 2017 she has served as vice president of the nonprofit NPO Cheer Art, which aims to make medical settings not only functional, but bring out people’s zest for life.

The breadth of Atelier Bow Wow’s work has been disseminated through many publications, including Made in Tokyo, House Behaviorology, Windowscapes. Graphic Anatomy 1, Graphic Anatomy 2, Pet Architecture 1, and Pet Architecture 2.

On Monday, January 29, Kaijima will give a lecture called “Architectural Behaviorology.” Learn more and register.