RECORD’s monthly curation highlights a diverse array of upcoming and ongoing architectural exhibitions, international events, and design competitions shaping the contemporary built environment.
Exhibitions
Beyond Territories: Made. Make. Making
The Hong Kong Institute of Architects has launched an ambitious four-city traveling exhibition designed to showcase the work of both local and international architects who have profoundly shaped Hong Kong’s built environment over the past 25 years. Curated to offer a comprehensive chronology of the city’s past and future development, the exhibition is divided into three distinct zones: Made, Make, and Making. Visitors are invited to explore a dynamic display of significant architectural innovations alongside speculative, conceptual projects that envision the future of the metropolis. Further details can be found at m3beyond.hk.
Ole Scheeren: Spaces of Life
Karlsruhe, Germany
December 10, 2022–June 4, 2023
The ZKM | Center for Art and Media is hosting the first major solo exhibition dedicated to high-rise architect Ole Scheeren, founder of his eponymous firm established in 2010. Born in Karlsruhe, the prominent German architect initially launched his career at Rem Koolhaas’s OMA office in Rotterdam, where he gained international acclaim for his monumental and highly experimental structures. Among his most celebrated works are the award-winning China Central Television (CCTV) Station in Beijing and the complex, interconnected residential volumes of the Interlace building in Singapore. The winter exhibition offers visitors a deep dive into his design philosophy and spatial investigations. More information is available at zkm.de/en.
Model Behavior
New York City
Through November 18, 2022
Presented by the Irwin S. Chanin School of Architecture at Cooper Union, this compelling exhibition brings together more than 70 works created by 45 distinguished artists and architects, including prominent figures such as Olafur Eliasson, Peter Eisenman, Eyal Weizman, and Greg Lynn. Curated by the collective Anyone Cooperation, "Model Behavior" explores a fundamental question within the discipline: how physical architectural models serve as both reflections of and active contributors to changing societal behaviors far beyond the traditional realm of design. Additional information can be found at cooper.edu.
N*thing is Possible
Singapore
Through December 15, 2022
Over the past 12 years, the Potato Head Beach Club in Seminyak, Bali, has undergone a remarkable transformation from a traditional resort into a modernist creative village anchored by an uncompromising zero-waste mission. This ongoing evolution was achieved with the vital assistance of AMO, the dedicated research and design studio of Rem Koolhaas’s firm OMA. Curated and designed by AMO/OMA, an exhibition currently on view at the National Design Centre of Singapore examines this multi-year zero-waste journey. By transparently displaying both the failures and the successes encountered along the way, the exhibition illustrates how a truly regenerative architectural blueprint is entirely possible. Further details are accessible via link.potatohead.co.
With Intention to Build
Boston
Through January 2, 2023
Safdie Architects is presenting a comprehensive retrospective exhibition of unbuilt designs from its illustrious 55-year practice at the Boston Architectural College. The presentation moves beyond finished built works by showcasing a rich collection of physical models, preliminary drawings, and hand sketches utilized throughout the firm’s rigorous creative process. These items are contextualized alongside period news articles, photographs, critical commentary, and unique artifacts that together reveal the untold stories, discarded paths, and deep thinking behind the designs. For more information, visit the-bac.edu.
Housing Unlocked
Dublin
Through January 21, 2023
Born out of a collaborative effort between the Irish Architecture Foundation and the country’s national housing agency, an exhibition at the Science Gallery Dublin highlights eight innovative, architect-led solutions aimed at tackling pressing housing crises, including affordability, spatial resiliency, high density, and overall quality of life. Among the standout proposals is "Eco:Cube," a modular housing concept utilizing interlocked cubes that can be stacked and rotated to generate diverse configurations for one-, two-, three-, and four-bedroom homes. Another featured proposal, "Start Spreading the Mews," investigates how new residential supply can be unlocked across parts of Ireland simply by exempting suburban laneways from overly restrictive planning codes. More details are available at housingunlocked.ie.
Close to the Edge: The Birth of Hip-Hop Architecture
Atlanta
Through January 29, 2023
Hip-Hop Architecture represents a rapidly expanding design movement driven by a loosely organized network of creators who integrate the cultural ethos and aesthetics of hip-hop into their approaches to the built environment. Hosted at the Museum of Design Atlanta, this exhibition curates a selection of projects from a distinct design canon that has emerged over the past quarter-century. The works range from experimental spatial installations to full building designs and comprehensive urban-development proposals. Curated and designed by architect Sekou Cooke—whose work was also featured in the acclaimed 2021 MoMA exhibition Reconstructions: Architecture and Blackness in America—the show presents a collective, forward-looking vision for alternative forms of architectural expression and professional practice. Additional information can be found at museumofdesign.org.
What’s Going On
Washington, D.C.
Ongoing
Collectors Don and Mera Rubell have spent decades acquiring contemporary art since they began collecting in 1965, building one of the most extensive and significant private collections in the world. Following the 1993 opening of their initial museum in Miami, the foundation has expanded its footprint by opening a second venue: a 32,000-square-foot space located within a former public high school in Washington, D.C., meticulously renovated by architecture firm Beyer Blinder Belle. The inaugural exhibition is titled as a direct homage to the iconic 1971 album by Marvin Gaye, an alumnus of the historic school building. The exhibition features more than 200 works created by 40 artists, highlighted by a notable 20-part ink-and-gouache series by Keith Haring, which the artist famously completed in a single sitting while listening to the music of Gaye and Bob Marley. Further information is available at rubellmuseum.org.
New Practices New York
New York City
Through February 25, 2023
Currently on display at the Center for Architecture, this exhibition highlights the winners of AIA New York’s 2020 biennial competition of the same name. Six emerging design practices were selected as exemplary representatives of innovative and forward-thinking firms operating within the city: BRANDT: HAFERD, Byrony Roberts Studio, City-group, GRT Architects, New Affiliates, and ANY. Each of these practices has demonstrated a deep, active engagement with the physical fabric of New York and its diverse citizenry. Further details can be found at centerforarchitecture.org.
The Architecture of Collage: Marshall Brown
Santa Barbara, California
Through January 7, 2023
The Santa Barbara Museum of Art is currently hosting the first-ever solo museum exhibition dedicated to award-winning architect Marshall Brown. The show features 25 of his striking architectural collages, which the architect refers to as "chimeras"—borrowing the name of the mythical creature composed of a lion, goat, and snake. These artistic works utilize photographic fragments of existing buildings, recombining their individual elements to generate entirely new architectural forms and spatial imaginations. Additional details are accessible at sbma.net.
After Modernism: Through the Lens of Wayne Thom
Pasadena, California
Through January 22, 2023
Over a prolific 50-year career, architectural photographer Wayne Thom documented more than 2,600 individual projects spanning Southeast Asia, Hawaii, and the Western United States. Raised in Hong Kong, Thom relocated to Los Angeles in the late 1960s, where his career was launched by a major commission from late-modernist architect A. Quincy Jones. Thom quickly established himself as the premier architectural photographer for Southern California’s leading firms. The University of Southern California Pacific Asia Museum, which acquired his extensive photographic archive in 2015, is currently exhibiting a curated selection of his prints capturing 50 landmark projects. More information is available at pacificasiamuseum.com.
The Energy Show—Sun, Solar, and Human Power
Rotterdam
Through March 4, 2023
Presented at Het Nieuwe Instituut as a central component of Rotterdam’s inaugural Solar Biennale, this exhibition investigates the expansive design potential of solar energy. Curated by Berlin-based designer Matylda Krzykowski, the presentation features works contributed by an international cohort of architects and designers—including historical figures and contemporary practices such as Mária Telkes, Michael Jantzen, and architecture firm Jessen Vollenweider. Together, their works construct a compelling collective vision of a future world entirely powered by solar energy. Further information can be found at energyshow.hetnieuweinstituut.nl/en.
Events
Design Miami
Miami Beach, Florida
November 30–December 4, 2022
The 18th edition of the prominent Miami Beach design fair is organized around the overarching thematic umbrella of "The Golden Age: Looking to the Future." The event celebrates both real and imagined eras of historical prosperity while simultaneously advancing a sustainable design vision for tomorrow. International galleries, including AGO Projects, Friedman Benda, and Diletante42, are presenting museum-quality contemporary furniture, lighting, and collectible art objects. An accompanying series of lectures and panel discussions explores broader contemporary issues facing architecture and design. Additional details are available at designmiami.com.
Driving the Human: Seven Prototypes for Eco-Social Renewal
Berlin
November 25–27, 2022
Driving the Human is an artistic and scientific collaborative initiative founded in 2020 with financial backing from the German Federal Ministry for the Environment. This intensive three-day festival marks the culmination of three years of rigorous, transdisciplinary collaboration, academic research, and applied design focused directly on the realities of the global climate crisis. The festival centers its programming around seven realized prototypes that respond to complex contemporary scenarios, investigating concepts such as the generative potential of AI-driven design or collaborative biological systems involving humans and bacteria to help mitigate climate change. For more information, visit drivingthehuman.com.
Competitions
2023 FORM Student Innovation Competition
Deadline: March 6, 2023
Leading surface manufacturer Formica has officially opened submissions for its annual student design competition. This year’s design challenge invites eligible students to submit a detailed color rendering paired with a comprehensive project statement for an original furniture design directly informed by the aesthetic concept of maximalism. All student submissions are required to incorporate three or more products from the Formica or FENIX brand portfolios, including at least one distinct surface selection sourced directly from the SurfaceSet 2022 collection. Further details and submission guidelines are available at formica.com.
