September 13-14, 2018
California College of the Arts
1111 8th Street, San Francisco
Nave Presentation Space
Constructing Architectural Ecologies convenes designers, makers, researchers, and thinkers to speculate on architecture’s capacity for expanded ecological agency. The symposium will explore theoretical investigations of architecture’s relationship to nature, alternative models for extra-disciplinary collaboration with scientists, and new material logics rooted in ecological processes. The event, planned as part of the Global Climate Action Summit (September 12-14 in San Francisco), is organized by the Architectural Ecologies Lab at California College of the Arts, and will take place at CCA’s campus in San Francisco’s Design District. The symposium will open on the evening of Thursday, September 13 with a keynote by Dr. Adrian Parr of the University of Texas at Arlington, followed the next morning by a series of panel presentations exploring the relationship between architectural technology and nature.
Free and open to the public. See this link for registration.
Organized by: Adam Marcus, Margaret Ikeda, and Evan Jones
Sponsors: Kreysler & Associates, CCA Architecture Division, CCA MFA in Writing Program
Thursday, September 13
6:00pm: Keynote: "Urban Clearcutting"
Dr. Adrian Parr, UT Arlington
Reception to follow.
Friday, September 14
8:45am: Coffee
9:00am: Introductions
Adam Marcus, Margaret Ikeda, Evan Jones, CCA Architectural Ecologies Lab
9:15am: Panel: Technology in Nature
"Patents, Agency, and Environment"
Richard L. Hindle, University of California, Berkeley
"Renarrating the City in a Time of Change"
Sara Dean, California College of the Arts
"Queer Ecologies, Queer Architectonics"
Nicole Seymour, Ph.D., California State University, Fullerton
Moderated by Irene Cheng, California College of the Arts
11:00am: Panel: Nature in Technology
"Notes from Bioteknica: From Architecture to Cosmecology"
Albert Narath, University of California, Santa Cruz
"Digital Ecologies"
Virginia San Fratello, Emerging Objects / San Jose State University
"Adaptive Landscapes"
Gena Wirth, SCAPE
Moderated by Janette Kim, California College of the Arts
12:30pm: Closing Conversation
Reception to follow.
About the Architectural Ecologies Lab
The Architectural Ecologies Lab at California College of the Arts serves as a platform for collaborative research between designers, scientists, and manufacturers. Operating at the intersection of architecture, fabrication, and ecology, the lab merges spatial practice with innovative techniques of material production and rigorous ecological research. The lab’s work leverages interdisciplinary expertise and meaningful collaborations with science and industry to develop compelling architectural strategies to address ecological challenges like sea level rise, habitat restoration, and climate change. Central to the lab’s work is a commitment to experimental fabrication processes, full-scale prototyping, and proof-of-concept tests that extend design ideas beyond the academic studio and into the real world.
About the Global Climate Action Summit
The 2018 Global Climate Action Summit will bring people together from around the world to showcase climate action and inspire deeper commitments from national governments, and one another, in support of the Paris Agreement. It will be a moment to celebrate the extraordinary achievements of states, regions, cities, companies, investors and citizens with respect to climate action. It will also be a launchpad for deeper worldwide commitments and accelerated action from countries—supported by all sectors of society—that can put the globe on track to prevent dangerous climate change and realize the historic Paris Agreement.