Practice, a conversation series at Milano Arch Week 2018

Today we face a paradox: on the one hand, the field of architecture seems to be more successful and expanding than ever before, while on the other, it seems to shrink and contract to a marginalized expertise for formal packaging of the dramatic spatial changes in the political, social, and economic sphere.

Squeezed between art and engineering, between an increasing number of consultants, managers, manufacturers, developers, users, clients, and philanthropists, the contemporary architect has to creatively search for a new position. The architect has no choice but to prove and legitimize themselves beyond the role of a mere service provider. What is at stake is architecture’s role in society at large, and ultimately its very existence as a discipline.

In collaboration with Milano Arch Week 2018, e-flux Architecture has commissioned a temporary pavilion, designed by Matteo Ghidoni - Salottobuono, for the purpose of conducting interviews with world-renowned architects. Taking place on May 26–27 between 2–10pm, e-flux Architecture editors Nick Axel and Nikolaus Hirsch will hold discussions that seek to reflect on the contemporary agency and future challenges of architectural practice. The conversations will be broadcast live on Milano Arch Week's Facebook page, and edited transcriptions will be published online at e-flux Architecture over the course of the summer. Confirmed interviewees include: David Adjaye, Paola Antonelli, Patrick Blanc, Stefano Boeri, Giovanna Borasi, Iñaqui Carnicero & Lorena del Rio, Sou Fujimoto, Jeanne Gang, Matteo Ghidoni, Joseph Grima, Juan Herreros, Bjarke Ingels, Toyo Ito, Matteo Poli & Sara Gangemi, Wang Shu, and José Luis Vallejo.