A presentation by Richard Plunz engaging his recent book, New York_Global. Critical Writings and Proposals 1970-2020 (Actar, 2023), tracing the five decades of Plunz’s pedagogical commitment to question the cannons of the design and urbanism fields and their relationship to the built environment. Discussion will follow with global urbanization serving as a backdrop for a heightened consideration of the intermingling of housing, infrastructure and pedagogy. The narrative will explore the evolution of mainstream theory and praxis in architecture and planning, as relates to Mutation, Advocacy, History, Cognition, Endpoint.

A chronology of projects for New York and other global cities will be projected as a lens for understanding the potential for metropolises everywhere to serve as firewalls against dystopic social inequities and ecological adversity. In questioning the discourse surrounding urban research and action, Plunz will engage with the primordial question of “urban” itself, not as a cautionary tale, but rather an assemblage of timestamped evidence toward understanding our current condition. Audience discussion will include a focus on the very tools that have fostered today’s environmental and societal consequences, and how design pedagogies can will contribute to engagement with a post-accelerated future. 

At the final roundtable, we will have the presence of Joan Busquets, Lucía Cerrada, Ramon Prat, Maria Rubert and Eugènia Vidal.

Richard Plunz is Professor Emeritus of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation at Columbia University, where he has served as Chair of the Division of Architecture and Director of the Post-Professional Urban Design Program. He is known for a wide range of urban research, development and design projects both nationally and internationally, with special expertise in urban infrastructure and housing. 

The conference is free, but prior registration is required. Sign up!