Learning from the masters

The point of viewing is a main consideration in the discourse on Sydney architecture.  

The road to becoming an architect is founded as much in lecture halls as it is in city streets. The art of design is not one simply based on the materials used to physically build a structure, but is pieced together through theory, learning and philosophy. Quite often, architecture is a reflection of society and its form gives representation to our social and political state of mind.
Through a varied program of talks, the Sydney Architecture Festival will draw together some of the industry’s top practitioners to interrogate all aspects of architecture.

2011 Wilkinson Lecture: Architecture is Rendered Society by Andrés Jaque
The 2011 Wilkinson Lecture, ‘Architecture is Rendered Society’ will be presented by the Faculty of Architecture, Design and Planning in collaboration with Instituto Cervantes and delivered by renowned Spanish architect Andrés Jaque.

Architecture has long been used as a tool to educate and improve societies. Through planning and implementation, how, where and why we build our environment also helps us address problems. In doing so, architecture presents itself as a discipline devoted to the production of unity, consistence and coherence in contexts previously fragmented, fragile and contradictory.

Through the perspective of post-foundational politics and Science and the Technology Studies (STS), architectural practices and technologies can be viewed as the process from which a social construction could be rebuilt to represent the participants composing it. From this second perspective, architecture has the power to assist with a constitution to networks containing -before and after- disputes, diversity and discontinuities.

These notions are what Andrés Jaque Architects has been exploring through projects like Techno-Geisha, House in Never Never Land (Ibiza), TUPPER HOME (Madrid), SWEET PARLIAMENT HOME (Gwangju) and Rolling House in the Rolling Society (Barcelona).

Australian Houses of the 1950s & 1960s
The design of Australian houses from the 1950s and 60s offers a doorway not only into our architectural past, but also an insight into our social, cultural and political history. Leading experts and commentators will discuss the emergence of the modern Australian house, interior design and icons of the period and the challenges and opportunities posed by the design spirit of the era.

Speakers include Joanna Nicholas, HHT Curator; Annalisa Capurro, Design Educator at Sydney Institute Design Centre Enmore; Tim Ross, comedian and broadcaster; Trevor Howells, Senior Lecturer and Heritage Conservation Program Coordinator at the University of Sydney; Philip Goad, Professor of Architecture at the University of Melbourne, Keith Cottier AM and Colin Griffiths.

There are for self-drive visits to Rose Seidler House, Atherton House and the Jack House, where specialists will talk about the properties.

Architects Talk Shop
As part of the Sydney Architecture Festival, architects from Crone Partners, Rice Daubney and Ancher/Mortlock/Woolley will ponder the stories behind the conception and culmination of some of Sydneys’ most iconic shopping centres. Sites include World Square and the Queen Victoria Building.

Viewing Architecture in Sydney with Dr Paul Hogben
When architecture in Sydney is debated in classrooms and offices across the world, the issue of the viewing perspective - the positions and angles from which to look at and appreciate city buildings - is one of the key topics. From the introduction of ‘American Romanesque’ style buildings in the late nineteenth century to current concerns about proposals for the Barangaroo site, the angle of view is of critical significance. Join the debate with a talk that will investigate viewing angles, subject positions and Sydney architecture.

Collaboration, Public Art and Creative Cities - Dr Catherine de Lorenzo & Dr Nancy Marshall
Drawing on research that examines models of collaboration in the making of public art, this talk peers beneath familiar relationships such as artist-architect, artist-community, artist-cultural planner and artist-curator. Within Sydney, a much more vibrant network of relationships exist, which Dr Catherine de Lorenzo and Dr Nancy Marshall will identify and analyse, taking into consideration the many kinds of players who contribute creatively to the successful resolution of the work. Current creative city and place-making debates will be addressed through a critical insight into the processes of translating art into built form through a focus on creative partnerships.

For full details of all the talks on offer check out the Sydney Architecture Festival website

Andres Jaque discusses his career in architecture