115 Harris Hall
12pm
Guest presenter: Brendan Muha
Brendan Muha is designer, writer, and curator based in Los Angeles. Mr. Muha received an M.Arch with Distinction from UCLA and a B.A. from Yale University. He has also studied at the Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo, Brazil. While at Yale, Mr. Muha received both a Malcolm Bachelor Grant, a David Baer Fellowship, and a Jonathan Edwards Fellowship for his research work investigating contemporary architectural and construction practices in Brazil. His ongoing research project focuses on variation, standardization, materiality, and Brazil's negotiation of global cultural influences in a post-tropicalist context. His design and research work has been exhibited in Los Angeles, the United Arab Emirates, Japan, and Brazil. Mr. Muha is currently collaborating with Jason Payne's Rio de Janeiro focused research studio at UCLA, where he has also taught design studios and frequently serves as a critic.
Not really as stimulating as i was expecting but i am curious to see where Brendan goes with this study. What i do find intriguing is how cities can still operate with or without the implementations of zoning laws and districts. But then again, who wouldn't prefer order over chaos.
ReplyDeleteOne important aspect to this presentation that was clearly absent was labels on the images. It was very difficult to follow and seemed unclear at times especially since his presentation was directed towards people who had no previous knowledge to what he had been researching. Bottom line: interesting idea but could have been a lot better articulated.
ReplyDeleteI felt that the topic of this presentation was quite interesting yet the way in which it was presented wasn't as dynamic as past lectures and made me lose interest fast.
ReplyDeleteComparing “gap spaces” in areas around the world that are different topographically, culturally and socio-economically was only interesting to a point. Comparing Tokyo vending machine areas with Brazilian shantytowns left me unconvinced that his premise was very apt or compelling.
ReplyDeleteWhat I realize from his research was that city codes and regulations have a large impact on social issues and how citizens live. In absent of codes, there is less order on how buildings are made, which can translate into lower quality of living.
ReplyDeleteThe question here is: Is this type of research going to help us dissolve the way cities are formed, or is it another study on the idiosyncrasies of culture?
ReplyDeleteI'd have to disagree with some of my fellow students, I thought the presentation was clear and bold. The simplicity left us to dissect the images for ourselves and I appreciate the respect he had for our intelligence.