As the architectural landscape continues to evolve in response to pressing global challenges—ranging from climate change and housing affordability to shifting cultural narratives—cultural institutions around the world are spotlighting the cutting edge of design. RECORD’s monthly roundup of upcoming and ongoing exhibitions, major events, and prominent competitions highlights the ways architects, artists, and urban thinkers are reshaping the built environment. From groundbreaking museum surveys to international biennials and forward-looking grant challenges, the cultural calendar offers a comprehensive look at the intersection of architecture, society, and technology.
At the forefront of these initiatives, the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York announced a new exhibition series this year dedicated to showcasing work from emerging architects who are driving innovation in the field. The inaugural presentation shifts the spotlight to 12 recently completed projects located throughout New York City. The featured works come from a diverse roster of architecture practices, including Adjaye Associates, nArchitects, and SO – IL, alongside firms recognized in RECORD’s Design Vanguard 2022 program, such as CO Adaptive and Only If. To deepen the visitor experience, each project is accompanied by a newly commissioned video produced specially for the exhibition by Brooklyn-based filmmaker Hudson Lines.
Beyond MoMA’s new initiative, museums, cultural centers, and institutions worldwide are hosting a diverse array of ongoing exhibitions that tackle some of the most critical issues facing contemporary cities.
In Dublin, an ongoing collaboration between the Irish Architecture Foundation and the nation’s housing agency, titled Housing Unlocked, is on view at the Science Gallery Dublin through January 21, 2023. The exhibition presents eight architect-led solutions designed to address acute housing-related issues such as affordability, resiliency, density, and overall quality of life. Among the proposed interventions is the "Eco:Cube," a modular housing concept comprising interlocked cubes that can be stacked and rotated to generate a wide variety of one-, two-, three-, and four-bedroom homes. Another featured proposal, "Start Spreading the Mews," examines how new housing supply can be unlocked across Ireland by exempting suburban laneways from overly stringent planning codes.
In New York, the New Museum is currently hosting Theaster Gates: Young Lords and Their Traces, the first comprehensive survey exhibition of the Chicago-based artist and designer. Gates, who designed the 2022 Serpentine Pavilion, is celebrated for his interdisciplinary practice that bridges art and architecture. Curated by the museum’s artistic director, Massimiliano Gioni, alongside Gary Carrion-Murayari, the exhibition features sculptures crafted from salvaged materials, tar paintings, clay vessels, collaborative performances, preserved historical photographs and objects, and immersive architectural installations. The works pay homage to the radical thinkers, heroic figures, and everyday icons who have shaped Chicago and the broader American cultural fabric. The exhibition runs through February 5, 2023.
Also in New York, the Center for Architecture is presenting New Practices New York through February 25, 2023. The exhibition highlights the winners of AIA New York’s 2020 competition of the same name, celebrating six emerging and innovative firms that have demonstrated a deep commitment to the city and its citizens: BRANDT: HAFERD, Bryony Roberts Studio, City-group, GRT Architects, New Affiliates, and ANY.
Shifting the focus to renewable energy and sustainable futures, Rotterdam’s Het Nieuwe Instituut is hosting The Energy Show—Sun, Solar, and Human Power through March 4, 2023. Presented as part of the city’s inaugural Solar Biennale and curated by Berlin-based designer Matylda Cyzykowski, the exhibition explores the vast design potential of solar energy. It brings together work from an international cohort of architects and designers—including Mária Telkes, Michael Jantzen, and the architecture firm Jessen Vollenweider—to construct a compelling vision of a world powered entirely by the sun.
In Atlanta, the Museum of Design Atlanta is presenting Close to the Edge: The Birth of Hip-Hop Architecture through March 12, 2023. Hip-Hop Architecture represents a burgeoning design movement driven by a loosely organized collective of practitioners who incorporate the principles and culture of hip-hop into their approach to the built environment. Curated and designed by architect Sekou Cooke—whose work was also featured in MoMA’s 2021 exhibition The Legacy of Racism in the Making of Cities and Communities—the show features a curated selection of works spanning the past 25 years. The projects range from experimental installations to visionary building designs and urban development proposals, collectively presenting alternative forms of architectural expression.
In Washington, D.C., the National Building Museum is showcasing A Better Way Home: The Housing Affordability Breakthrough Challenge through May 8, 2023. The exhibition highlights the stories and approaches behind the six winning ideas of the nationwide $20 million grant competition initiated in 2019 to combat the deepening housing affordability crisis in the United States. Posing the fundamental question of how to break down barriers to ensure equitable access to affordable homes, the exhibition presents solutions divided across three key categories: resident services and support, financing, and construction.
At the Cooper Hewitt Design Museum in New York, visitors can explore Deconstructing Power: W.E.B. Du Bois at the 1900 World’s Fair through May 29, 2023. The exhibition revisits the historic display created by W.E.B. Du Bois and his students at the University of Atlanta for The American Negro Exhibit at the 1900 Paris World’s Fair. Comprising a series of striking data visualizations illustrating the social and economic status of African Americans following emancipation, the original display occupied more than a quarter of the United States’ allocated space yet was largely ignored by the mainstream American press at the time. The Cooper Hewitt exhibition brings these long-overlooked contributions into dialogue with the broader historical event, highlighting persistent disparities in how the World’s Fair is remembered as a spectacle of progress.
Events
The architectural and design calendar for early 2023 also features major international gatherings and celebrations.
In Scandinavia, the Stockholm Furniture Fair 2023 is scheduled to take place from February 7 to February 11, 2023. Marking its return to the capital city’s physical schedule after a two-year hiatus, the region’s largest design fair will introduce a new exhibition space designed to bridge the Stockholmsmässan trade fair with Stockholm Design Week, which runs concurrently in the city.
In Southern California, Modernism Week 2023 will return to Palm Springs from February 16 to February 26, 2023. The annual celebration of modernist design and architecture features more than 350 events spread across various locations throughout the region, including curated home and garden tours, documentary screenings, and expert lectures. This year’s keynote presentation will be delivered by Morphosis principal Thom Mayne.
Competitions
For emerging designers and practitioners looking to make an impact, the Architectural League of New York has launched its 2023 Architectural League Prize under the thematic title Uncomfortable.
Operating against the backdrop of accelerated climate change, evolving labor practices, and the questioning of traditional social and professional hegemonies, the competition invites proposals that directly respond to the current state of professional and environmental discomfort. Entrants must not be current students and must have graduated from a bachelor’s or master’s degree program within the past ten years. The competition accepts conceptual and realized projects across any medium. Winners of the competition will each receive a cash prize of $2,000. Further information is available through the Architectural League’s official channels.
