From the SA Chapter Executive Director

From the SA Chapter Executive Director

Practicing architecture in South Australia can feel isolated at times.  Our access to debate, speakers and diversity of built work is limited by our scale and location.  Having the National Conference in Adelaide last year was a fantastic opportunity to engage outside our regular circle and to showcase what we are doing in South Australia to a wider audience.  Those who attended, locals and visitors, were impressed with our capacity to deliver a quality program of fringe events that complemented the stimulating conference theme.

The good news is that we don’t have to wait another 20 years for the next National Conference to be held in Adelaide to engage in discourse about architecture.  The Festival of Architecture and Design (FAD) is just around the corner and offers a diverse program including interstate and international speakers plus excellent local content.  With the theme of Future Cities and a focus on social exchange, FAD will explore issues that are of great relevance as we develop new planning systems and respond to increasing urbanisation and density in our city.

Highlights of the FAD program include:

David Shah – As a leading thinker in design and its future, David Shah explores design as an agent of change. His keynote speech for FAD will focus on how technology will influence the spaces in which we live and how we can use design to humanise our interaction in the face of increasing impersonal transactions and the proliferation of artificial intelligence.  Shah is also the publisher of ViewPoint magazine http://www.viewpoint-magazine.com/past-issues/  ViewPoint’s current issue focuses on city futures.

Peter Elliott – Peter Elliott is the 2017 Gold Medalist and has been recognised for building, urban and landscape projects, many of which have received awards, as well as his writing, exhibitions and teaching.   He is highly skilled at reading and understanding places and his work frequently enables renewed engagement and occupation of urban environments.  This can be seen in his work at RMIT and his collaboration with TCL in the transformation of North Terrace.  We look forward to hearing him speak about the role that design plays in fostering social engagement and the creation of meaningful urban space. 

Jordi Pardo – Architect Jordi Pardo has contributed to cultural development strategies in Spain, South America and Asia.  He will be discussing how heritage, cultural expression and cultural activity can improve the competitiveness of a city and foster the wellbeing of its inhabitants.  Pardo speaks with great passion and experience about the impact that informed design and development policy has on shaping urban environments to create vibrant, liveable cities. 

Charles Wolfe – Environmental lawyer Charles (Chuck) Wolfe uses photography as a tool for observing and analysing urban space with a view to creating better urban environments.  Wolfe proposes that to create a more vibrant, sustainable city we need first to gain a better understanding of what happens naturally when people congregate.  How do they interact with each other and their environment?  How can we learn from observing successful urban environments to shape and effectively apply urban policies and initiatives?  In addition to speaking Wolfe will also lead a tour of Adelaide that will challenge participants to observe the city in different ways using the lens of photography. 

Superdiversity – Over the last 20 years the world’s population has been increasingly mobile at a global level.  This has led to wholly new and increasingly complex social formations arising from the interplay of factors such as ethnicity, language, culture values and practice, religious tradition and legal status.  These in turn influence opportunities for integration, education and employment.  This evolution from multiculturalism to superdiversity is shaping our cities.  Hear a panel of speakers from a range of disciplines address the implications of superdiversity in relation to the future of Adelaide.

In addition to these speaker and panel events there are tours, exhibitions and interactive activities to get you out and about and to stimulate you to thinks in different ways about Adelaide.

And whether you are between events, deep in discussion or meeting up with friends head to the  Analogue Missions installation in Victoria Square – the perfect spot for social exchange!

For the full FAD program and event details go to http://fad.org.au/events/

Nicolette Di Lernia
SA Chapter Executive Director