Call for Contributions

What defines architectural quality? Is it based on physical facts? Do the architect's intentions and ideas provide the keys to the building's evaluation? Is it a matter of cultural context? Does it lie in the eye of the beholder? Or is it a combination of all of these?

How do architects, critics or historians define architectural quality? Are there any general methods and theories of architectural quality? Do we need these at all?

Following the International Conference on Architectural Criticism of October 2021, this conference seeks papers that offer definitions of architectural quality.

Abstracts

Abstracts (max. 500 words) should outline a definition of architectural quality, and name two case studies of realized buildings that exemplify the method's application. Abstracts should be submitted to [email protected].

Conference

Selection to the conference is based on the acceptance of the abstract. Authors will be invited to speak in one of four sessions together with four selected keynote lecturers during the online conference on 8–9 and 15–16 October 2022, hosted by the Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura – Universidad de Navarra.

Keynote Lecturers

Silvia Arango, Bogotá, Colombia

William J. Curtis, Cajarc, France

Mpho Matsipa, Johannesburg, South Africa 

Rahul Mehrotra, Mumbai, India

Organization: Wilfried Wang and José Manuel Pozo Municio

Funding

Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura

Universidad de Navarra ETSAUN

Conference Format

The online format of the four-session conference allows for active debate between the audience and lecturers. Presentations will be concentrated to allow for ample discussion time. Besides the four keynote lectures, there will be a maximum of 12 short papers. The entire conference will be recorded and placed on Youtube. The conference language will be English. Registration for free attendance will open on 2 September via [email protected].

Dates

Call for Abstracts: 25 April

Deadline for Abstracts: 1 July

Late Submission Deadline: 15 July

Notification of Acceptance: 29 July

Conference: 8–9, 15–16 October

Publication of Papers: Spring 2023

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, St. Louis
Valerio Paolo Mosco, IUAV
Louise Noelle Gras, UNAM, Mexico CdMx
Şengül Öymen Gür, Beykent Üniversitesi, Istanbul
José Manuel Pozo Municio, Pamplona, ETSAUN
Xing Ruan, Shanghai Jiao Tong University
Paolo Scrivano, Politecnico di Milano
Ana Tostões, Instituto Técnico Lisbon
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

Universidad de Navarra

Universidade Presbiteriana Mackenzie, São Paulo 

IIEs, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México 

Universidad Nacional de Ingeniería, Lima

University of Patras

Washington University, St. Louis

Read more about the conference on the event's website. 

Top image courtesy of International Conference on Architectural Quality.

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