As the global architecture and design community continues to navigate evolving cultural, political, and technological landscapes, Architectural Record has released its comprehensive monthly roundup of upcoming and ongoing exhibitions, international events, and high-profile design competitions. Highlighting everything from avant-garde historical retrospectives and cutting-edge virtual reality installations to powerful social justice projects and public art initiatives, this season’s curated selection underscores how architects and designers are actively engaging with the pressing issues of our time.
From New York City’s waterfront to the museums of Berlin, Seoul, Vienna, and London, institutions are exploring the intersection of the built environment, social consciousness, and technological innovation.
Upcoming Exhibitions
Pamphlet Architecture 37: Visions and Experiments in Architecture
Rhinebeck, New York
September 4 – October 17, 2022
Founded in 1978 by visionary architect Stephen Holl, Pamphlet Architecture established itself as a vital experimental publication platform designed to champion the bold, unbuilt work of emerging architects. Historically, the publication served as an early career catalyst for prominent figures who would later shape the global architectural landscape, including Zaha Hadid, Lars Lerup, and Mark Mack.
To celebrate the milestone of publishing 37 issues across more than four decades of continuous production, ‘T’ Space Gallery is presenting a dedicated exhibition showcasing the work of the five finalists from Pamphlet’s 2021 open call. Titled Visions and Experiments in Architecture, the competition invited applicants to conceptualize entirely new architectural paradigms suited for a modern social and political consciousness.
Beyond displaying the finalist proposals, the exhibition will offer a comprehensive retrospective exploring the storied history of Pamphlet Architecture. This historical overview stands as a special tribute to publisher Kevin Lippert, who passed away in the spring of 2022, honoring his monumental contributions to independent architectural publishing and discourse. Further information and visitor details can be found at the official gallery website, tspacerhinebeck.org.
Ongoing Exhibitions
Chairs. Dieckmann!
Berlin
Through August 14, 2022
At the Kunstgewerbemuseum in Berlin, visitors have a rare opportunity to experience the first major solo exhibition dedicated to the pioneering furniture designer Erich Dieckmann (1896–1944) in over thirty years. Dieckmann occupied a central role in 20th-century design history, teaching at both the legendary Bauhaus and the prestigious arts-and-crafts school at Burg Giebichenstein in Halle (Saale).
The exhibition draws extensively from museum archives to present a comprehensive look at Dieckmann’s career, featuring original designs, detailed architectural and furniture drawings, and 120 meticulously preserved pieces of furniture. The showcase highlights his rigorous typological approach to furniture design and his enduring influence on modern craft and industrial production. Additional details are available through the State Museums of Berlin at smb.museum/en.
Meta-Horizons: The Future Now
Seoul
Through September 18, 2022
Following their groundbreaking unveiling of Liberland, an experimental metaverse city, Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA) are further cementing their footprint in virtual realms through a major exhibition at the Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP) museum in Seoul—a striking landmark structure originally designed by the firm in 2014.
The exhibition centers on the immense potential of advanced architectural technologies, showcasing how virtual reality, generative algorithms, and artificial intelligence-based design methodologies are actively transforming ZHA’s contemporary portfolio. Alongside architectural explorations by the firm, the exhibition features immersive digital installations by renowned new-media artist Refik Anadol, offering visitors a glimpse into the fluid boundaries between physical space and digital architecture. More information can be accessed via ddp.or.kr.
Justice is Beauty: The Work of MASS Design Group
Washington, DC
Through September 30, 2022
The National Building Museum in Washington, DC, is currently hosting an extensive showcase celebrating the portfolio of MASS Design Group, an architecture collective renowned for its human-centric approach and commitment to the architecture of health. The exhibition brings together comprehensive research initiatives, unbuilt architectural proposals, and built projects that demonstrate how thoughtful design can foster healing, dignity, and community resilience.
Running concurrently with the MASS Design Group retrospective is The Gun Violence Memorial Project, a deeply moving collaborative installation by artist Hank Willis Thomas, developed in partnership with the Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund. Constructed from four glass-brick "houses," the memorial contains personal mementos dedicated to individual lives lost to gun violence, creating a solemn space for collective reflection and public mourning. Further details are available at nbm.org.
Missing Link: Strategies of a Viennese Architecture Group (1970–1980)
Vienna
Through October 2, 2022
The MAK Exhibition Hall in Vienna is currently presenting the first comprehensive institutional view of the work produced by Missing Link, an avant-garde architecture collective active during the 1970s. Founded in 1970 by Angela Hareiter, Otto Kapfinger, and Adolf Krischanitz, Missing Link sought to deliberately break free from traditional academic and professional constraints, exploring architecture as an interdisciplinary cultural critique.
Their diverse body of work encompasses visionary utopian proposals for collective living arrangements alongside meticulous analytical research studies mapping urban networks and infrastructural systems across Vienna. The exhibition sheds light on an influential yet under-examined chapter of European radical architecture. Further details can be found on the museum’s website at mak.at/en/missinglink.
The Garden of Privatised Delights
London
Through October 15, 2022
Originally presented to critical acclaim at the Venice Architecture Biennale, The Garden of Privatised Delights makes its home in London. Commissioned by the British Council and curated by Unscene Architecture, the exhibition investigates the contentious rise of privately-owned public spaces (POP_s) across the United Kingdom.
The show issues a sharp critique of current urban policies while calling for innovative design approaches to resolve persistent conflicts between private corporate interests and the collective public good. To illustrate these possibilities, a collective of forward-thinking British architecture practices—including the Decorators, Studio Polpo, and vPPR Architects—have contributed seven distinct, highly inclusive design interventions reimagining privatized urban domains. Additional information is available through the Building Centre at buildingcentre.co.uk.
Black Atlantic
New York City
Through November 27, 2022
Stretching across the sweeping landscape of Brooklyn Bridge Park, which historically functioned as a vital maritime harbor connecting the Americas to Europe and Africa, the Public Art Fund’s Black Atlantic exhibition transforms the public park into an open-air gallery. Named after cultural theorist Paul Gilroy’s influential 1993 book, the exhibition is deeply inspired by the profound historical and cultural impacts of transatlantic networks on the African diaspora.
Curated to engage directly with the site’s rich maritime heritage, the exhibition features striking, large-scale site-specific installations created by contemporary artists Hugh Hayden, Leilah Babirye, Dozie Kanu, Tau Lewis, and Kiyan Williams. Through their monumental fabrications, the artists emphasize complex global histories while powerfully articulating deeply personal contemporary identities. Comprehensive exhibition guides and public program schedules can be accessed at publicartfund.org.
Events
Concéntrico 08
Logroño, Spain
September 1–6, 2022
Also widely recognized as the Logroño International Festival of Architecture and Design, the annual Concéntrico festival returns to northern Spain to focus intense critical attention on the urban environment and the inherent value of public space. A series of imaginative, large-scale architectural installations crafted by winning design teams—including AAA, Ander López, and Collective X—have been temporarily integrated into various urban sites throughout the city.
The installations are accompanied by a dynamic roster of public exhibitions, roundtable discussions, and panels that explore the nature of contemporary community life, placing special emphasis on sustainable construction materials, circular economies, and eco-friendly fabrication processes. Further details and scheduling can be found at concentrico.es/en.
Competitions
Miami Floating Housing
Competition Deadline: November 9, 2022
Organized in conjunction with ongoing academic programming, contemporary design competitions continue to offer a platform for speculative thinking regarding climate adaptation and housing crises. Among the active calls, the Miami Floating Housing competition—hosted in partnership with academic networks—challenges designers to conceptualize resilient aquatic habitats suited for coastal urban centers facing rising sea levels.
Simultaneously, the architectural discourse is engaging with heritage preservation; related conferences hosted by institutions such as the University of Kent are building upon architectural visualization programs to evaluate the material and social value of architectural heritage. These academic presentations highlight innovative preservation projects and modern methodologies for working with historic sites under environmental and economic pressure. Further particulars on the Miami Floating Housing competition can be reviewed at archoutloud.com.
