On 19-20-21-22 September, I was at Alicante for EURAU Conference. 9TH CONGRESS context was "Retroactive Research": ARCHITECTURE’S CAPACITY TO CHALLENGE AND EXTEND THE LIMITS OF OTHER DISCIPLINES. An interdisciplinary research of architecture is something that society demands from our profession. Furthermore, in many countries that are currently immersed in a recessive economic process, it is the only possible solution.In that context, it is urgent to clarify the scope of our projects:Those whose ultimate goal consists of going beyond the limits of other disciplines through the application of architecture. Starting with Architecture’s capacity to learn from other disciplines and to follow their guidelines and techniques, we will build and offer new specific tools. With these new tools, our research will provide the opportunity to challenge and expand the boundaries of those original disciplines. text taken from:
The orgnization and the design details of the conferance was one of a kind. The name tags were 3d Printed and laser-cut, and also has the personalized USB stick with the proceedings attached to the pin. The name tag already became my favourite name tag that I got from a conference!
The opening lecture was organised at Casa Mediteraneo at Alicante center, with Flemenco welcoming, followed by Izaskun Chinchilla lecture. The location was impressive, and organised just at the wonderful sunset time, with poetic golden hour lights.
Izaskun Chinchilla is one of the most interesting figures of today´s Contemporary Architecture due her strong commitment to innovation. Her projects become multidisciplinary exercises by incorporating ecology, sociology and science into architecture, which makes it meet with the complexity of real life in our contemporary world. These can be seen in the City of Dreams in New York, Garcimuñoz Castle restoration, ARCOMADRID 2016 pavilions as well as in research works run in her studio in Madrid and her unit at the Bartlett School of Architecture in London.
My presentation was on 20th September, and our session was chaired by Prof. Gülsün Sağlamer, who is an architect and the former rector of ITU, as well as being the first woman rector of Turkey. I presented my current PhD project Symbiotic Data Platform, and my supervisor Dr. Ana Cocho-Bermejo presented Urban Design vs. Science of Cities: From the Digital Gap to the AI Barrier, co-authored with Dr. Diego Navarro-Mateu.
The closing lecture was given by Jose Mª Torres Nadal Architect and former Professor of Architecture Design at Alicante University, at Benidorm, with monumental paella and great sangria. José María Torres Nadal, his work, ideas and life are strongly connected to what the Architecture School of Alicante represents today: offering the students the independence to propose what Architecture is and, what is more, what it should be in the future. This is a methodology that Torres Nadal has developed through his recognized built work, classes and lectures, performances and installations, as well as festivals, with a strong affinity between Art and Architecture. Even to develop concepts like “Ecologizante” as a theoretical frame for the Design Project. The lecture and the scenery was spectacular and it was a night, impossible to forget.
Lastly, the environmentally responsible attitude of the conferance organisation was remarkable. The sustainable Japanese design: "WASARA" cups were used during the conference, which is an added value since, those products combine sustainability, materiality, design and architecture in a simple daily object.
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