A is for Architecture Podcast

• Christian Schmid: Henri Lefebvre and the space of the city.

  In this, the 160th episode of the A is for Architecture Podcast, I was joined by Professor Christian Schmid, geographer, sociologist, urban researcher and until recently Professor of Sociology in the Department of Architecture at ETH Zurich. Christian’s scholarship is wide and deep and includes, among many other things, co-authoring the remarkable Switzerland. An Urban Portrait, with Jacques Herzog and Pierre de Meuron among others whilst researcher at ETH Studio Basel in 2006. We met thought to speak about the recent publication in translation of his wonderful book Henri Lefebvre and the Theory of the Production of Space which came out in English with Verso in 2023.In our discussion, Christian describes his engagement with Henri Lefebvre, the great theorist of everyday life, starting with his own activism – an urban revolt, no less – as a student in Zurich in the 1980s. From this, as he tells, ‘Lefebvre was really this kind of philosopher and theorist that really matched somehow our own experiences on the streets, in the struggles [and] became, then a starting point for our collective theory building, and [and] collective research.’We go from that through Lefebvre’s concept of urbanization, the production of space and its commodification in modern societies, and the role of the architect in that – either as agent or resistance. We turn in the end to the present and future: where are we now and where should we aim to go.This is a very excellent episode, believe, because Christian is wonderfully funny, grounded, expert and honest.  Pay attention.Christian can be found at ETH Zurich and on a lot of the internet. The book is linked above.+Music credits: ⁠Bruno Gillick 

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• Azza Aboualam: Food, culture, architecture.

  In the this episode of the A is for Architecture Podcast, Emirati architect and co-founder of Holesum Studio, Azza Aboualam discusses her curation of Pressure Cooker, the National Pavilion of the United Arab Emirates' 2025 contribution to the 19th International Architecture Exhibition at the Venice Architecture Biennale. Pressure Cooker examines the UAE’s evolving relationship with food production, focusing on how architectural interventions that synthesize indigenous and contemporary knowledges can address food security in one of the world’s most arid regions. Azza frames the exhibition as a response to the UAE’s unique environmental, cultural and social challenges, whilst responding to the specific, situated realities of everyday life in the UAE. But, might well you ask, if the spatiality of food is global, should not Pressure Cooker speak beyond borders? Well, spoiler alert, it does. Azza can be found at work here and on LinkedIn here. The exhibition is linked above. +Music credits: ⁠Bruno Gillick 

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• Paul Chatterton: The social city.

  In the newest episode of the A is for Architecture Podcast, Paul Chatterton, Professor of Urban Futures at the University of Leeds, discusses parts of his quite recent book Unlocking Sustainable Cities: A Manifesto for Real Change (2019), published by Pluto Press. In the book, Paul argues against the contemporary city as is, suggesting instead that whilst they are presented as ever-improving hybrid spaces of choice and identity, of the authentic self, lived independently of the strictures of family, tradition, culture and obligation – after all, aren’t we all moving there now? –in fact foster individualism, status anxiety and an erosion of compassion.In contrast to this, Paul proposes a transformative approach to urban sustainability through four key city systems—transport, energy, nature, and community—framed by five themes: compassion, imagination, experimentation, co-production and transformation. These counter-measures, Paul suggests, will get us closer to the sustainable, social city.Paul can be found at work and on LinkedIn. The book is linked above.#UnlockingSustainableCities #PaulChatterton #UrbanFutures #SustainableCities #RealUrbanChange #JustTransition #EcoUrbanism #RightToTheCity  #PostCapitalistCity #ArchitecturePodcast #AisforArchitecture+Music credits: ⁠Bruno Gillick 

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• Scott Balmforth and Gerard Reinmuth: Territories of Architecture.

  In this episode of the A is for Architecture Podcast, Gerard Reinmuth and Scot Balmforth, co-founders and directors of Terroir, speak about their practice in this, its 25th year of operation. Terroir are a collective of architects and urban designers based in Tasmania, Australia and Denmark, with a large portfolio of work that includes significant civic, recreation, health, education, housing and commercial work, such as the Penguin Parade, Philip Island, Victoria, the extension to the World Maritime University, in Malmö, Sweden (with Kim Utzon) and the Bernie Maker’s Workshop in Tasmania, among many award-winning schemes.Gerard and Scott ably describe parts of Terroir’s particular, situated and global approach to architecture, urban design and research, guided by four core principles: Contextual Engagement, Civic Generosity, Material and Spatial Experimentation and Collaborative Practice. These they articulate not only in their built work, but luckily for us, in a series of three books – Instruments (2019), Third Spaces (2019) and Territories (forthcoming 2025), all published with Uro Publications.Terroir is a terrific practice and Scott and Gerard are the best ambassadors for it, of course, but more generally for a new type of design practice rooted in place, conscious of people, time, ethics and obligation, wrestling with the significant problems of being a Good Architect in the uneven terrain of contemporary society. Have a sticky and find out how.There’s a link to Terroir above. Otherwise, they can be found on Instagram, and on LinkedIn.  The books can be found here.#AustralianArchitecture #TERROIRArchitects #GerardReinmuth #ScottBamforth #ContemporaryArchitecture #PlaceBasedDesign #CreativePractice #ArchitecturePodcast #AisforArchitecture+Music credits: ⁠Bruno Gillick 

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• Richard J Williams: Expressways and the urban imagination.

  In this episode of the A is for Architecture Podcast, the University of Edinburgh’s Richard J. Williams discusses The Expressway World, his brand new book with Polity Press. Richard is an old friend of the podcast, having recorded the first episode in the autumn of 2021. Back then, we spoke about Richard’s book on that bearded provocateur Reyner Banham who, among things, was known for his 1971 book, Los Angeles: The Architecture of Four Ecologies. I guess Expressway World naturally springs from this…While often associated with destruction, severance and car-centric modernity, urban expressways are complex, multifaceted spaces, not merely engineering structures. Richard argues that we would be better served to read expressways as cultural, political, and social landscapes shaped by their design, use and resistance. And rather than demolition of what are increasingly moribund artefacts of a bygone age, he advocates for a nuanced approach to living with these infrastructures. Drawing on global case studies in cities as diverse as New York, London, São Paulo, Madrid, Seoul and Glasgow (and of course, LA), Richard demonstrates how communities, activists and planners have creatively repurposed expressways into public spaces, parks, or cultural hubs. Another banger from a great scholar. Listen, then drive out to buy his book.Richard can be found here at work, on Instagram and on his personal website. The book is linked above.+Music credits: ⁠Bruno Gillick 

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