Architectural Being and Architectural Doing

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SID: 440390053

Architectural Being and Architectural Doing The Shift from a Professional Autonomy to Heterogeneity and the Implications for Global Practice

“Do as I say, not as I do” is the wryly spoken comment by nearly every respected teacher I have had the opportunity to study under. Its surface value speaks with a self-deprecating humor with notes of a hyper-aware hypocrisy. However, it is the self-awareness of such statements that strengthen the character of those by whom it is spoken; an awareness that there are limitations in the translation of rhetoric to realisation particularly with a shifting playing field or architectural identity.

The dynamics of being and doing signify the construction of a professional identity in terms of alignment between architectural theory and practice. For twentieth century socialists the process of being is core to the profession: it is both the development of a unique set of knowledge and skills and the understanding of implementation in creative and design practice 1. The rhetoric and discourse of being within the profession hark to an era of autonomous practice where an emphasis on talent is viewed greater than demonstrations of how we objectively increase the social value of our designs. Our highest accolade, the Pritzker prize honors the hero architect, reinforcing the mystique of architectural authorship2. The image of the architect as the lone-creative genius is still evident today with its modified title; the Starchitect3. However, the sentiments of being do not always align with the realities of doing. Sounding a strong resonance with Peggy Deamer’s aptly titles paper on ‘Works’, we need to assess the manner in which we as an architectural professionals have created a discord between the theory, or being that underpins the profession and the work or doing though which we labor, engage and produce4,5.

1. We Work Within A Globalised And Capitalist Market. 2. The Romance And Relevance of The Autonomous Architect is Becoming Outmoded.

Architecture is not the autonomous art that it was once perceived as. To effectively engage with a global market we are dependent upon numerous other processes, institutions and professionals 6 , 7 . The challenges and 1

Judith R. Blau, Architects and Firms : A Sociological Perspective on Architectural Practice(Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 1984). Hilde Heyen, "Genius, Gender and Architecture: The Star System as Exemplified in the Pritzker Prize," Architectureal Theory Review 17, no. 2 (2012). 3 Donald McNeill, The Global Architect : Firms, Fame and Urban Form(New York: Routledge, 2009). 4 Peggy Deamer, ed. The Architect as Worker : Immaterial Labor, the Creative Class, and the Politics of Design(London: Bloomsbury Publishing, 2015). 5 Peggy Deamer and Phillip Bernstein, Building (in) the Future : Recasting Labor in Architecture(New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2010). 6 Kris Olds, Globalization and Urban Change : Capital, Culture, and Pacific Rim Mega-Projects, Oxford Geographical and Environmental Studies (Oxford ; New York: Oxford University Press, 2001). 7 Neil Leach, Rethinking Architecture : A Reader in Cultural Theory(New York: Routledge, 1997). 2


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