The World Around Summit 2021

Marking the launch of a year-long residency at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York City, The World Around, an itinerant cultural platform dedicated to telling new stories about contemporary architecture, presents 20 groundbreaking projects from the past year as well as insights into work in the making at its second annual summit, held on Saturday, January 30. The World Around Summit 2021 will live-stream the latest work from award-winning international architects, designers, filmmakers, researchers, and artists confronting today’s most urgent topics, from equity, health, and the environment to racial justice and indigenous rights. Conference speakers will participate in situ from 14 sites around the world, including Abu Dhabi; Burkina Faso; Johannesburg; London; Melbourne; Mexico City; Nairobi; Shanghai; Stockholm; Tokyo; and Yucatán, Mexico.

The day will be divided into three thematic sessions, and each session concludes with a town hall during which members of the virtual audience will be able to ask questions and join in a live discussion.

Sir David Adjaye | Winter Park Library & Events Center
The award-winning architect guides viewers through the building process of a public library currently under construction in Florida.

Deborah Berke and Jason Price | NXTHVN
Learn about NXTHVN, a new national arts model that empowers emerging artists and curators of color through education.

BlackSpace | BlackSpace Manifesto
Listen as BlackSpace, an interdisciplinary collective of urban planning professionals share its manifesto as urbanists working to support Black and marginalized communities.

Cave_Bureau | Museum of Anthropocene
Explore the anthropological and geological context of a series of caves on the coast of Kenya.

Comunal + Onnis Luque + LIGA DF | Tipologías
Gain insight into the history of vernacular architecture of rural communities in Mexico.

Counterspace 
Take part in an immersive experience that explores the role of soil and land in Sumayya Valley’s Johannesburg community.

El Futuro Imposible | The Impossible Future
Meet the team behind a series of animated documentaries that posits an optimistic vision of the future based on the most important ideas and movements of today.

Ensamble | Ca’n Terra
See Ca'n Terra, a spectacular new home and studio within a former quarry in Menorca, Spain.

Alia Farid | The Space Between Classrooms
Discover how Kuwaiti-Puerto Rican artist Alia Farid responds to the limitations of learning within the archetypal school setting in her forthcoming exhibition at the Swiss Institute in New York.

Feral Atlas | A Guide of the Feral Atlas
Watch this specially commissioned film about Feral Atlas, an interactive online resource made by anthropologists, artists, and scientists that explores the impact of humans on the planet.

Fernando Frías | Ya No Estoy Aquí
Tune in as film director Fernando Frías presents his latest multi-award-winning movie, Ya No Estoy Aquí, which follows the creation of a countercultural movement around traditional cumbia music in Monterrey, Mexico.

For Freedoms | Wide Awakes
Listen to artist-led group For Freedoms speak about their new project, the Wide Awakes, and its campaign to increase visibility for civic justice and voting rights across the United States and beyond.

Francis Kéré | National Assembly Benin
Hear architect Francis Kéré describe how the history and stories of West Africa informed his design for the new National Assembly in Benin.

Joar Nango + ArkDes | Kiruna Forever and Virtual Girjegumpi
Explore the digital manifestations of the Sámi Architecture Library, a mobile resource bank and social platform, and ArkDes’s recent exhibition Kiruna Forever.

Ryūe Nishizawa | Ochoquebradas House
Discover architect Ryūe Nishizawa’s spectacular new single-family house on the coast of Chile.

Alice Rawsthorn | Design Emergency
See how designers and critics have responded to the COVID-19 crisis.

SO—IL + Philip Tinari | In conversation
Gain a deeper understanding of the state of international art spaces today in this conversation between Brooklyn-based architects and the Beijing-based museum director.

Deanna Van Buren | Designing Justice + Designing Spaces
Listen to a presentation on the Love Building, an ongoing project in Detroit addressing the criminal justice system by Designing Justice + Designing Spaces.

waiwai | Wetland
Learn about waiwai’s environmentally friendly cement alternative inspired by the sabkha, or salt flats, of the United Arab Emirates.

Liam Young + NGV | Planet City
Hear the story behind Liam Young’s new film Planet City, which imagines a city for 10 billion people.

Register for the free program here.
 

Credits:
The World Around in residence at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum.
Support for this program was provided in part by a grant from Carnegie Corporation of New York.
The World Around is supported by Facebook Open Arts and Arper.