Has architectural theory
become a historical phenomenon to be anthologized and studied as another
passing phase in the history of the discipline? Do the current
commonplace watchwords of "practice" and "research" mark the end of
theory's place in architectural discourse? This edited volume posits the
contrary—that theory remains urgent and even unavoidable, so ingrained
in architectural practice and pedagogy that it remains a vital if
sometimes latent influence.
Architectural theory is not confined
to its supposed heyday in the decades leading up to the year 2000; it
has persisted and expanded as the stakes of theoretical discussions have
transformed. 2000+: The Urgencies of Architectural Theory
collects new essays from a range of the most compelling architectural
historians and theorists of the moment, including Lucia Allais, Beatriz
Colomina, Mark Cousins, Arindam Dutta, John Harwood, Catherine Ingraham,
Mark Jarzombek, Mari Lending, Spyros Papapetros, Felicity Scott, Pelin
Tan, Bernard Tschumi, Eyal Weizman, Mark Wigley, and Mabel Wilson.
Brought together for a conference marking the end of Wigley's tenure as
dean of Columbia University's Graduate School of Architecture, Planning
and Preservation, these thinkers chart new directions and points of
critical importance for theory in architecture.
