Miguel Lopez Melendez (MAUD ’14, DDes ’21) has published Architectural Autonomy and the Urban Condition through the Routledge Research in Architecture series. The book is the result of his doctoral research at the GSD under the supervision of Charles Waldheim, Mohsen Mostafavi, and George Baird, and includes a foreword by Charles Waldheim.
Architectural Autonomy and the Urban Condition revisits one of the most controversial themes in architectural theory and history; the book reframes “autonomy” as a cultural issue rather than a purely disciplinary debate centered on architectural form. It offers the first urban formulation of the concept by tracing its philosophical, artistic, and political histories. By revisiting the writings and projects of Peter Eisenman and Aldo Rossi, the book proposes a projective theory that is sensitive yet not subservient to cultural processes and reaffirms the value of critical design frameworks in an urban age in which urgent solutions often eclipse the reflection of theory and the patience of research.
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Photo courtesy of Miguel Lopez Melendez.
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