Panel IV

“Activist Architecture & Design”

Panelists

Victoria Beach

Dan Pitera

Raphael Sperry

Moderator

Evelyn Lee

Should architects provide services to those who cannot afford their fees? Many worry that this kind of charity undercuts the viability of our beleaguered profession, but ethical codes from other professions indicate that the opposite may be true.

Victoria Beach is Principal of Beach Designs, an award-winning architecture, landscape, and furniture design practice, established in 1996. For 15 years, Victoria taught design and ethics at Harvard Graduate School of Design. She established Design Foundations, a nonprofit through which aspiring architects have given hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of pro bono services to under-served communities. She also writes and speaks nationwide on topics in architectural ethics. Victoria earned her Bachelor of Arts in Political Philosophy and Economics from Yale University and Master of Architecture from Harvard Graduate School of Design. She is also a registered architect and member of the AIA. Victoria was born outside Boston, Mass., raised in Miami, Fla. She now lives in San Diego, Calif., with her husband, James Lindholm, and their daughter, Elizabeth Margot.

It is not only living people who are leaving Detroit; the dead are leaving too. Every year, 500 graves move from the City of Detroit to the suburbs. Every hour, Detroit loses 8.1 [live] inhabitants. Though the numbers may come as a surprise, many people do not find their connection to Detroit surprising. It has been described as “the nation’s preeminent basket-case.” T-shirts proudly state: “Detroit: Where the Weak are Killed and Eaten.” It seems the image of Detroit exists to make others feel better about their own cities. “Look at Detroit. At least we are not that bad. They burn their city down every year!” Burning our City Down: Devil’s Night—a three-day Halloween arson spree—still receives national and international attention. In 2003, there were 100 daily fires within the city limits and presently there are 8,000 burned houses. The Detroit Collaborative Design Center, along side community artists, acts within this space. What motivates these mercenary or guerrilla actions is the intense desire to transform this blight into an asset. As a fire-break stops or redirects the spread of fire, our actions are intended to not erase or cover up the prior existence of these houses. Through our transformative acts, we celebrate both the house and the burning, which perhaps can redirect its future. The intent of this lecture is to present the work of the Design Center as a proactive and reactive activist endeavor within the shifting social and development structure of Detroit.

Dan Pitera is a political and social activist masquerading as an architect. He is presently the director of the Detroit Collaborative Design Center at the University of Detroit Mercy School of Architecture. With the view that “good design” is an essential force in establishing human relations, the Design Center is dedicated to fostering university and community partnerships that create inspired and sustainable neighborhoods and spaces for all people. The Design Center provides not only design services but also empowers residents to facilitate their own process of urban regeneration. Under his direction, the Design Center has won the Grand Award in the first annual national 2002 NCARB Prize and was included in the international exhibit/conference ArchiLab 2004 and 2001 in Orleans, France. In the past year, the work of the Design Center was published and exhibited in six countries. In 1998, Dan was the Hyde Chair of Excellence at the University of Nebraska. He has lectured and taught throughout North America, South America, and Europe. Dan was a 2004-2005 Loeb Fellow at Harvard University. Born in Camden, NJ, Dan earned his MArch from Georgia Tech and is now a registered architect in Michigan. He lives in Detroit with his wife, Allegra, and their daughter, Anneka.

Established in 1981, Architects / Designers / Planners for Social Responsibility (ADPSR) works for peace, environmental protection, ecological building, social justice, and the development of healthy communities. We believe that design practitioners have a significant role to play in the well-being of our communities. The built environment is one of the most powerful expressions of each society’s aspirations and priorities. Design professionals claim responsibility for shaping the built environment, but usually only to highlight our successes. Can the design profession take responsibility for the negative impacts of the built environment, and how? By calling for a “Prison Design Boycott,” ADPSR raises the possibility of collective responsibility and a new form of design activism. This presentation will discuss how the dire yet often neglected problems of the U.S. prison system are deeply linked to the largest social problems of violence, racism, and inequality, and how prisons are uniquely suited to a response from design professionals.

Raphael Sperry is the National President of Architects / Designers / Planners for Social Responsibility (ADPSR) and a project manager at 450 Architects in San Francisco. As President of ADPSR, Raphael conceived and continues to direct the Prison Design Boycott, ADPSR’s campaign calling on architects to pledge not to design prisons. At 450 Architects, he contributes to the design and administration of a range of residential and institutional projects. As 450’s green building consultant, Raphael was the lead author of the 2004 San Mateo Countywide Guide to Sustainable Building. He also contributes to green building public interest work as the subcommittee chair of the San Francisco Planning and Urban Research Association’s (SPUR) Sustainable Development Committee, where he took the lead in implementing a streamlined approval process for solar panel installations in San Francisco in 2003-2004. Raphael was appointed to the City of San Francisco’s Green Building Task Force by the Mayor in 2004. In 2000, Raphael was the project manager for the 17,000 sq. ft. straw-bale winery for Ridge Vineyards in Healdsburg, CA--the largest straw bale building in the country. Raphael earned his undergraduate degree from the Harvard University and Master of Architecture from Yale University. He is a registered architect and a LEED Accredited Professional. He was born in New York City and now lives in San Francisco with his fiancé, Laura Juran, a public interest attorney.

Evelyn Lee works for Dougherty + Dougherty Architects, LLP in Orange County, California. Founded in 1979, the firm is dedicated to the design of technically advanced, environmentally responsive facilities that meet functional demand and provide for future needs. Evelyn has been involved extensively with the AIA, including present service as chair of the AIA National Associates Committee and as Vice President of Emerging Professionals on the AIA California Council Executive Committee. She is also an editor and writer for Inhabitat.com, a blog devoted to the future of design, tracking the innovations in technology, practices and materials that are pushing architecture and home design towards a smarter and more sustainable future. Evelyn earned her Bachelor of Architecture with honors from Drury University and Master of Architecture from Southern California Institute of Architecture. She is a LEED Accredited Professional and currently completing the ARE. Evelyn was born in Los Alamos, NM.

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Panel IV