Although we announced it earlier this week, it is important to repeat it: Alberto Pérez-Gómez has received the 2021 ACSF Outstanding Achievement Award. This recognition acknowledges, celebrates, and raises public awareness of exceptional work that significantly advances the mission of the ACSF in architecture, landscape architecture, art, design, urbanism, planning, and related fields. Phenomenologist Pérez-Gómez was chosen for his “…extraordinary emotional, spiritual, and perceptual sensibility and sharp intellect,” according to the ACSF Board of Directors. For more, see http://www.acsforum.org/2021-acsf-outstanding-achievement-award/
We want to report the resounding success of our first call for grant proposals to be supported by the brand new Lindsay Jones Memorial Research Fund. We received 44 applications!!! This clearly demonstrates the need for this type of program and the currency of the topics ACSF is addressing. The reviewing panel, chaired by Thomas Barrie, will be busy examining the various proposals with a decision and announcement planned by June 1st.
 Lastly, we would like to remind our members of two events we are organizing this coming May. They are part of our Critical Conversation Project in association with Princeton’s Center of Theological Inquiry. On Thursday, May 6, 12.00 – 1.30 EST (New York), we’ll have the first one focused on Cultural Consciousness and Transcendent Human Habitats. The second one will take place on Thursday, May 27, 12.00 – 1.30 EST (New York) and consider Justice & Participation and Environmental Adaptation and Ecotechnology. These WEBINARS will host a multidisciplinary group of experts to discuss how the cultural, ethical, environmental, or transcendent aspects of the built environment can address contemporary challenges of globalization, urbanization, economic disparity, climate change, migratory pressures, political and religious radicalization, and disruptive technologies. For more information or to register (they are free), go to:
https://us18.campaign-archive.com/?u=88029a3f9d5ce0ced4b95d2da&id=0102367628
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John Marx wins the prestigious James Gates Percival International Prize for Literature. The organizing committee of the Galena International Poetry Festival, made up of distinguished poets from around the world, has named San Francisco architect, John Marx as current the recipient of the John Gates Percival International Prize for Literature ( https://globaldesignnews.com/architect-john-marx-wins-the-prestigious-james-gates-percival-international-prize-for-literature/ ). Congratulations, John!
Matthew Neiman announces the publication of his book The Humble Creative. This manuscript integrates the long-held Christian understanding of moral vice with creativity, providing an accessible exploration of individual vices and their role in disordering creativity. The book introduces the reader to the often-overlooked relationship between the moral character of the creative and the successful pursuit of flourishing creativity. For more information, go to: The Humble Creative by Matthew Niermann
Anat Geva is editing a book on water and sacred architecture to be published by Routledge. She specially invites ACSF members to submit 300 words abstract no later than May 10, 2021 to her at a-geva@tamu.edu. For detailed information on this, please, see below under ‘opportunities.’
Trey Trahan founder of Trahan Architects shares that his firm has received the 2021 Interior Architecture Award for the Coca-Cola Stage at the Alliance Theatre presented by the National Chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA). Says the AIA, “At the heart of a celebrated arts center campus in Atlanta, the Coca-Cola Stage at the Alliance Theatre has been transformed, demonstrating what is possible when a multi-disciplinary team works in concert." For more, visit: https://www.aia.org/showcases/6378779-coca-cola-stage-at-the-alliance-theatre Congratulations to Trey and his team!
Sarika Bajoria is announcing the launch of Contemplative Designer. Contemplative Designer’s mission is two-fold: to assist the design community in creating spaces of deeper connection, wellbeing, and transcendence in our built environment, and to help designers find more flow, joy, passion, and compassion in their design practice. Contemplative Designer offers lectures and experiential workshops at universities and firms, coaching for designers, and a unique membership community where designers will engage in ongoing learning of Contemplative Designer tools and practices and find supportive fellowship. Sarika invites members of ACSF to join the Contemplative Designer community, which is launching in May 2021. Learn more and enroll at https://www.contemplativedesigner.com/ If you have any questions, please contact Sarika at: sarika@contemplativedesigner.com
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‘God-less’ Might be Good for you!
https://religionnews.com/2021/03/04/being-godless-might-be-good-for-your-health-new-study-finds/
A new study questions the correlation between religious belief and health.
When Possessions Stand Between You and Death
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/03/08/how-to-practice
The writer struggles to unburden her life as it comes to a close.
America Without God
https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2021/04/america-politics-religion/618072/
As religious faith has declined, ideological intensity has risen. Will the quest for secular redemption through politics doom the American idea?
Need a Prayer?
https://religionnews.com/2021/04/21/likes-and-prayers-facebook-tests-new-prayer-post-feature/
A new feature on Facebook allows you to ask for or post prayers.
Preachers and their $5K sneakers
https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/preachers-and-their-5000-sneakers-why-one-man-started-an-instagram-account-showing-churches-wealth/
A man starts an Instagram account shaming church wealth.
‘Nones’ are Becoming More Diverse
https://religionnews.com/2021/03/24/the-nones-are-growing-and-growing-more-diverse/
Why are people leaving organized religion? It’ not what you might think.
US Church-Goers Fall Below Majority
https://news.gallup.com/poll/341963/church-membership-falls-below-majority-first-time.aspx
For the first time in the country’s history, America’s church members are in the minority.
Can the Meritocracy Find God?
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/10/opinion/sunday/religion-meritocracy-god.html?auth=login-email&login=email
The writer believes that the belief of elites will make the difference.
Theologian Hans Küng Dead at 93
https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2021/04/06/hans-kung-death-obituary-vatican-ii-240394
Censured by a pope, and an influential critic of the Catholic Church
The Ritual of Healing
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/04/02/multimedia/black-healing-ritual.html
Seeking spiritual intimacy beyond the realm of organized religion.
Buddhist A.I. Poet Seeks Aliens and Enlightenment
https://religionnews.com/2021/02/17/the-salvage-crew-buddhist-artificial-intelligence-yudhanjaya-wijeratne-audibi-poetry/
In a new novel, the protagonist is an A.I. that practices Buddhism.
A ‘Hipper’ Bible
https://www.washingtonpost.com/religion/good-publishing-bible-/2021/04/16/03e37028-9ecc-11eb-9d05-ae06f4529ece_story.html
A $300 Good Book Made for Today’s Gilded Age
Faith in the Face of Death
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/03/tim-keller-growing-my-faith-face-death/618219/
Can a minister follow the advice he has given those on death’s doorstep?
When Could the United States Reach Herd Immunity? It’s Complicated.
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/02/20/us/us-herd-immunity-covid.html
With the vaccine rollout underway and coronavirus cases declining after a dark winter surge, it may seem as though the end of the pandemic is in sight. In reality, how soon could we get there?
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Architecture & Spirituality
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Archaeologists discover mysterious monument hidden in plain sight
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/archaeologists-discover-mayan-monument-hidden-plain-sight
New find pries open an enduring question: why two ancient superpowers abruptly turned from diplomacy to brutality.
British Pagans Arrested for Trespassing at Stonehenge
https://religionnews.com/2021/03/11/convictions-upheld-for-british-pagans-who-trespassed-at-stonehenge/
Perpetrators argue that their religious beliefs make it okay.
D.C.’s New World War I Memorial Is An Attempt To Remember What’s Forgotten
https://dcist.com/story/21/04/21/dc-worldwari-memorial-pershing-park-opens/
The sun is setting on Friday night at D.C.’s newest national memorial along Pennsylvania Avenue.
Secular pilgrims: why ancient trails still pack a spiritual punch
https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2021/mar/28/secular-pilgrims-why-ancient-trails-still-pack-a-spiritual-punch
Where kings and abbots walked, tourists now follow. Are these increasingly popular trips just another holiday, or are we getting more religious?
‘House of One’ to break ground
https://religionnews.com/2021/02/15/dream-of-three-faiths-worshiping-in-one-building-close-to-reality-in-berlin/
A single interfaith building housing a church, synagogue, and mosque breaks ground in May in Berlin.
Urban planning is an inherently Catholic practice
https://uscatholic.org/articles/202104/urban-planning-is-an-inherently-catholic-practice/
This urban planner’s work is shaped by Ignatian spirituality.
Finding the sacred in Istanbul: The pilgrimage site of Eyüp Sultan
https://www.dailysabah.com/life/travel/finding-the-sacred-in-istanbul-the-pilgrimage-site-of-eyup-sultan
An expat takes us to the heart and Islamic spiritual center of Istanbul, Eyüp, which may be the perfect place to keep the spirit of Ramadan alive amid the COVID-19 pandemic
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Banning Religious Symbols
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/20/world/canada/quebec-religious-symbols-ruling.html
Public-sector employees in Canada might think twice about wearing religious symbols.
Stations of the Cross. Monuments to the Future Global, 2021
https://www.luceartsandreligion.org/global-2021
This year’s exhibition takes viewers on a virtual journey around the world. Each station responds to a monument or memorial, reflecting a tumultuous year in which fresh memorials sprung up to grieve the dead and historic monuments to prejudice were toppled and dismantled. We invited artists to keep these connotations in mind, but ultimately left the terms ‘monument’ and ‘memorial’ open to interpretation.
Horror as Religious Experience with Jonathan Greenaway from University of Chester
https://templetonreligiontrust.org/explore/horror-as-religious-experience/
What if, in horror, we find a cultural form which not only provokes fear and disgust but carries with it some form of religious knowledge? Horror has a rich symbolic vocabulary, much of it drawn from religion and theology. And it is fascinated with issues which are decidedly religious or spiritual. Things like ghosts, hauntings, even possessions are based on religious or spiritual ideas about ourselves and the nature of existence.
How the World’s Oldest Wooden Sculpture Is Reshaping Prehistory
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/22/science/archaeology-shigir-idol-.html
At 12,500 years old, the Shigir Idol is by far the earliest known work of ritual art. Only decay has kept others from being found.
NFTs Are Shaking Up the Art World. They May Be Warming the Planet, Too.
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/13/climate/nft-climate-change.html
Making the digital artworks requires colossal amounts of computing power, and that means greenhouse gases.
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Who Should Stop Unethical A.I.?
https://www.newyorker.com/tech/annals-of-technology/who-should-stop-unethical-ai
Researchers are increasingly alarmed at what they see.
Will Computers Make Themselves Smarter
https://www.newyorker.com/culture/annals-of-inquiry/why-computers-wont-make-themselves-smarter
The author questions the logic of an ‘Intelligence Explosion.’
The bioethics of the first human-monkey hybrid embryo
https://www.salon.com/2021/04/16/the-bioethics-of-the-first-human-monkey-hybrid-embryo/
The creation of a human–long-tailed macaque hybrid embryo roiled the internet. We asked experts what this means.
Mars first flight unlocked and 5 other top space and science stories this week
https://www.cnn.com/2021/04/24/world/mars-helicopter-science-newsletter-wt-scn/index.html
Don't let these moments get buried in the busyness of the week. Allow yourself to marvel. Talk to your friends and family about it. Ponder what it took to make these feats possible and what it means for the future. Just don't let the moment slip away.
Scientists solve another piece of the puzzling Antikythera mechanism (an ancient cosmic computer)
https://arstechnica.com/science/2021/03/scientists-solve-another-piece-of-the-puzzling-antikythera-mechanism/
Scientists have long struggled to solve the puzzle of the gearing system on the front of the so-called Antikythera mechanism—a fragmentary ancient Greek astronomical calculator, perhaps the earliest example of a geared device. Now, an interdisciplinary team at University College London (UCL) has come up with a computational model that reveals a dazzling display of the ancient Greek cosmos, according to a new paper published in the journal Scientific Reports.
NASA's Ingenuity Mars Helicopter Logs Second Successful Flight
https://mars.nasa.gov/news/8928/nasas-ingenuity-mars-helicopter-logs-second-successful-flight/
NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter successfully completed its second Mars flight on April 22 – the 18th sol, or Martian day, of its experimental flight test window. Lasting 51.9 seconds, the flight added several new challenges to the first, which took place on April 19, including a higher maximum altitude, longer duration, and sideways movement.
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The Architects Who, After a Devastating Earthquake, Rebuilt a Town
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/15/t-magazine/jojutla-mexico-earthquake-architecture.html
Jojutla, Mexico, now home to an array of inventively reimagined public spaces, has become a paradigm for rural revitalization.
The Women of Perkins&Will Designing the Architecture of Tomorrow
https://www.archdaily.com/958378/the-women-of-perkins-and-will-designing-the-architecture-of-tomorrow
For the architects and designers at Perkins&Will, the profession is full of women who deserve to be celebrated. While gender inequity in architecture remains a serious problem, in March 2019 the firm set out to shift the narrative. For the last three years over the course of Women’s History Month, they have highlighted the amazing designers, researchers, managers and professionals who are building a move inclusive world.
‘What Would I Do?’ Frank Gehry, 92, Is Too Busy to Retire
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/13/arts/design/frank-gehry.html
The Pritzker-winning architect is focusing on social justice projects — and can be something of a lightning rod — but he also has lighthearted pursuits.
Frank Gehry’s twisting tower to open in Arles
https://www.wallpaper.com/architecture/frank-gehry-luma-tower-arles-france
With references from Van Gogh to craggy rock outcrops, Frank Gehry’s latest geometric wonder for Luma Arles campus cuts a futuristic form against the historic Arles skyline.
Egypt's new high-tech capital: a path to better government?
https://www.csmonitor.com/World/2021/0317/Egypt-s-new-high-tech-capital-a-path-to-better-government
Egypt’s government is decamping from crowded Cairo to the aptly named New Administrative Capital, a new city being built 28 miles to the east. Despite delays, the first civil servants are preparing to move in July.
Would You Pay for Virtual Architecture? What the NFT Craze Means for the Future of the Design Profession
https://www.archdaily.com/959475/would-you-pay-for-virtual-architecture-what-the-nft-craze-means-for-the-future-of-the-design-profession
If someone tried to sell you a virtual building, would you buy it? That’s right- a virtual building. Not something that will ever be built in the physical world, or something you can occupy, but an image you can look at, or a video you could watch. This is exactly what’s being proposed as architecture enters the realm of NFTs (non-fungible tokens) that have taken the world by storm.
The 20 Largest Cities in the World: 2021 Edition
https://www.archdaily.com/906605/the-20-largest-cities-in-the-world-of-2018
According to the United Nations’ latest report on populations in cities, by 2030, “urban areas are projected to house 60 percent of people globally and one in every three people will live in cities with at least half a million inhabitants”. Growing in both size and number, cities are hubs of government, commerce, and transportation, and in 2021, the world’s 20 largest cities are home to half a billion people. In fact, one in five people worldwide lives in a city with more than 1 million inhabitants.
Building Knowledge: New French Libraries Designed for Cultural Exchange
https://www.archdaily.com/954863/building-knowledge-new-french-libraries-designed-for-cultural-exchange
Designers have created civic institutions, governmental centers, public plazas, and many other spaces as testaments to individual and shared values. As spaces for gathering and exchange are necessary elements to urban life, architecture can also act as a vehicle to encourage understanding. Advocating knowledge while empowering the public, libraries celebrate ideas, curiosity and empathy.
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Videos, Films, Radio, Podcasts
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Stefan Sagmeister on Beauty as Function in Design and the City Podcast
https://www.archdaily.com/958184/stefan-sagmeister-on-beauty-as-function-in-design-and-the-city-podcast
For the fourth episode of Design and the City, a podcast by reSITE on how to make cities more livable and lovable, by raising questions and proposing solutions for the city of the future, the team interviewed Stefan Sagmeister, an Austrian-born graphic designer and typographer. In this episode, the designer discusses the importance of beauty in design, its utility for any properly functioning space or city, and how it contributes to the happiness of citizens.
Trey Trahan on Building Sacred Spaces for Connections (ReSITE Podcast)
https://www.resite.org/stories/trey-trahan-on-building-sacred-spaces-for-connection
This episode of Design and the City features the founder of Trahan Architects, Trey Trahan on the importance of creating sacred spaces devoid of clutter that make way for that human connection, his definition of beauty, and the potential regeneration holds, presenting a different side of that coin
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Reimagining the Visitor Experience - The Ames Estate
Set on Governor Ames Estate in North Easton, Massachusetts, this year's competition asks students to design an event pavilion. Students are challenged to design a 1,500 square foot structure that can enhance the visitor experience and provide a platform for community, family gatherings, and celebrations, inviting new and regular visitors to the Ames Estate. The 2021 competition is open to students currently enrolled in either an architecture or landscape architecture program at an accredited school in North America.
Submission Deadline: Friday, May 28, 2021. Refer to the 2021 Program Brief for more information: https://lyceum-fellowship.org/2021
Monte d’Oiro Wine Hotel
https://architecturecompetitions.com/winehotel/
The Monte d'Oiro Wine Hotel competition is the second in a series of competitions set in Portugal and in collaboration with Quinta do Monte D’Oiro, a family wine project located in the Lisbon Wine Region.
Registration for the Monte d’Oiro Wine Hotel Architecture Competition is now open! 10,000 € in prize money! Early Bird registration deadline: APRIL 1, 2021
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Water & Sacred Architecture — call for chapter proposals
ACSF founder Anat Geva is working with Routledge Publishing on an edited volume on water and sacred architecture. The book intends to explore this relationship through the study of the conceptions and beliefs about water and the sacred, the mythology that ties water with the sacred, and its architectural representation. The discussion will center on two sides of this relationship: (a) how sacred architecture expresses the spiritual meaning of water, and (b) how water influences the sacredness of the building. Papers on this topic could cover water and sacred architecture through history and different religions (e.g., ancient civilizations; the Judeo-Christian cultures; Islam; Buddhism; Hindu; as well as China and Japan).
Interested parties should send an abstract of 300 words by May 10, 2021 to Anat Geva at a-geva@tamu.edu . Authors will be notified of acceptance by May 31, 2021. The full chapter submission will be expected by September 1, 2021.
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Ambiances Journal—call for papers
Ambiances Journal announce sthe call for papers for its next special issue « Underground Atmospheres. Renewing the debate ». The issue will be edited by Farzaneh Bahrami (University of Groningen), Sandra Guinand (University of Vienna), Dimitra Kanellopoulou (ENSA Paris Malaquais), Monique Labbé (Ateliers Monique Labbé) and Aurèle Parriaux (Professeur Émérite ENAC EPFL). Papers in English and in French are welcome.
Deadline for article proposals has been extended until 12 May 2021. The issue will be published in December 2021. For more info: https://journals.openedition.org/ambiances/3740
Urban Transcripts Journal —call for papers
The journal is calling for contributions that look into the often neglected relationships between emotions and cities. How do emotions shape the urban and how does the urban shape our emotions? Exploring emotions and how they move people and move around in (urban) space can tell us much about how cities work and for whom. Which emotions are heard, justified, elicited, invited and which ones are not? How may they be expressed, where and by whom? What role does the physical and material space play in how we become emotionally involved and attached? And finally, how can emotions help us better understand our cities and the way we organise, design and inhabit them?
Deadline for submissions: 15 June 2021, 23:59 London time. For more information:http://journal.urbantranscripts.org/article/emotions-and-the-city-call-for-submissionsclosing-15-06-2021/
Architecture + Design (TAD ) — call for articles
The Editorial Board of TAD shares its current Call for Papers for the forthcoming Histories issue: https://tadjournal.org/call-for-papers/
Manuscripts (3000 to 5000 words) for double-blind peer review are due June 15, 2021. Submission standards can be found in the TAD Journal Author Guide. TAD is a peer-reviewed international journal of the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA). TAD invites original research for peer-review from educators, practitioners, researchers, scholars, architects, engineers, and scientists whose work engages the fields of technology, architecture, or design.
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International Association for Environmental Philosophy
Twenty-Fifth Annual Meeting 15–16 October 2021 (Online Only)
IAEP’s conference this year will be online only. We hope this will be the last time we will have to meet in this way, but there remains far too much uncertainty for us to go ahead and commit to an in-person conference, knowing that we may have to cancel it.
The workshop format we followed last year was highly successful. We thus will follow that format again this year. We ask now for proposals for papers and panels. Those whose proposals are accepted will need to submit a complete paper of no more than 3,000 words by 15 September 2021. These papers will be made available to everyone who registers for the conference so that they may read them in advance. At the conference you will be limited to ten minutes to summarize your paper, thus leaving twenty minutes for questions and discussion.
IAEP welcomes papers and panels in the critical environmental humanities including: • environmental philosophy • environmental political theory • environment and difference • environment and culture • critical animal studies
Deadline: 15 May 2021. NOTICE OF DECISION: Mid-June 2021. For more info: https://environmentalphilosophy.files.wordpress.com/2021/04/iaep-cfp-spep2021final.pdf
Architecture of the Post-Anthropocene
(Lectures + Symposia + AHRA International conference)
Pratt School of Architecture, NYC (November 17 2022 - November 19 2022)
“Post Anthropocene” means we wrestle with our anthropocentric exploitation of the planet; that we examine and acknowledge the inextricable relationship between racism and environmental degradation; and that we look at the manner in which social inequity is inscribed in the built environment. Queer urbanism, blackspace, planners without manners, social work versus violence work: Our fields are constrained by a lack of representation, a lack of listening, and a lack of diversification that such terms may challenge. This conference decolonizes the spaces of thinking and action asking “where do we stand?” ; it evaluates food security in a precarious climate asking “How do we eat together?’; it brings non-humans into the humanities asking “whose voices are heard?” Inclusive in its global reach, ecological in its low carbon footprint, this conference models ideas of social and environmental justice required in the post-anthropocene period. Further details will follow. Contacts: Ane Gonzalez Lara, agonz370@pratt.edu and Ariane Harrison aharriso@pratt.edu
PRELIMINARY DATES: Call for Papers: Nov. 2021. Conference Dates: Nov. 17, 18, 19, 2022
The Urban Condition: Architecture, Environments, People, Cities
13th to 25th March 2022. Delhi/Bangalore, India
Website: https://architecturemps.com/india/
Contact person: Cindee Hogan
INTERNATIONAL - INTERDISCIPLINARY CONFERENCE on CITIES: Architecture, Sustainability, Technologies, Urbanism, Heritage and Communities Held in New Delhi / Bangalore. Publishers: Routledge, Cambridge Scholars, UCL Press Coordinated by AMPS.
Organized by: Noida International / Dayananda Sagar University
(In)Tangible Heritage(s)
15th to 17th June 2022. Canterbury, UK, United Kingdom
Website: https://architecturemps.com/canterbury-2022/
Contact person: Cindee Hogan
Historic Canterbury hosts a global interdisciplinary conference on ARCHITECTURE, HISTORY, HERITAGE, DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES, ART, DESIGN and CITIES Publishers: Intellect Books and UCL Press Organisers: University of Kent / AMPS
Organized by: University of Kent
Deadline for abstracts/proposals: 30th June 2021
Cultures, Communities and Design
28th to 30th June 2022. Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Website: https://architecturemps.com/calgary/
Contact person: Lorraine Gess
An international conference in ARCHITECTURE, URBAN PLANNING, DESIGN, LANDSCAPE, SUSTAINABILITY, CULTURAL HERITAGE, SOCIOLOGY, TRANSPORT, DEVELOPMENT, COMMUNITIES Publishers: UCL Press Visit: the Rockies, Banff National Park, Calgary, Canada
Organized by: University of Calgary
Deadline for abstracts/proposals: 1st July 2021
Religion and Migration: Culture and Policy
8th to 10th December 2021. Canberra, Australia
Website: https://hrc.cass.anu.edu.au/events/religion-and-migration-culture-and-policy-0
Contact person: Dr David W. Kim
The aim of the 3rd ANU Religion Conference is to explore the various phenomena related to religion and migration; the political and social transitions impacting upon the transnational religiosity of contemporary communities.
Organized by: Australian National University
Deadline for abstracts/proposals: 21st May 2021
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