Frascari Symposium VIII

Mimarlığı merkeze alan yaklaşımlardan ziyade mimarın tarihsel, pedagojik, etik ve kolektif bağlamlar içinde şekillenen konumunu yeniden düşünmeyi ve mimarın rolünü eleştirel biçimde tartışmayı amaçlayan "Frascari Symposium VIII" için 29 Mart 2026 tarihine kadar bildiri özeti gönderilebiliyor. Sempozyum, yüzüncü yılını kutlayan Mimarlar Derneği 1927'nin Ankara’daki mekanında gerçekleştirilecek.

Architect as Lore

Myths, Narratives, and Others That Define Architectural Identity

The 8th edition of the Frascari Symposium will shift the focus from architecture to the architect. Far from being fixed, the architect’s professional persona is continually shaped by intersecting histories, pedagogies, and ideological structures. Architecture with a capital “A” often foregrounds the architect as a singular figure in theory, while the role depends on many contingencies in practice. Whether defined as immaterial labor that is undervalued or as the material craft of producing representations of buildings, the communicative role of architectural labor has been subject to ambiguous and shifting interpretations. Despite its clear association with design since the Renaissance, it has led to ambiguous outcomes concerning authorship, authority, and merit in practice.

As Marco Frascari has argued, at the core of the profession lies the architect’s imagination: “Metis/Sollertia is [described as] the fundamental virtue with which architects infuse their factures… and mediate architecture critically by constructing plots and weaving plans.” (Frascari, 2009 & 2011). Through mediation, the act of design becomes a cosmopoiesis. Therefore, the subjective dimension of architecture is the result of multiple subjectivities, of the architects, as well as the collective memory of clients, collaborators, and the public. The architect’s role as a facilitator among diverse actors in the design and building process needs to be reasserted, even as we critique the myth of the singular genius. It is this in-between position of an individual who works with, for, and through the collective, that we seek to explore.

Given the urgent challenges confronting the profession today, such as the rise of AI and the increasing fragmentation of architectural practice, it is both timely and pedagogically vital to reexamine the lore that has long shaped the architect’s disciplinary identity. These challenges demand more than a critique of current conditions; they call for a deeper investigation into the narratives, institutions, and embodied practices that have historically defined and continue to inform who the architect is and what the architect does. By tracing the intertwined forces of education, authorship, embodiment, and ethics, we aim to open a space for rethinking the figure of the architect beyond conventional frameworks.

To that end, the symposium invites participants to explore this terrain through one or more of the following four currents:

1. Locus: The Situated Body of the Architect
This current invites reflections on the embodied and spatial dimensions of practice, where and how the architect is positioned physically, psychologically, and sensorily in relation to the act of design.

2. Origo: Origins and Formation
This current considers the educational, personal, and cultural origins that shape architectural identity, from early influences to institutional training.

3. Role: Authorship and Agency
This current examines the myths, power structures, and critiques surrounding the architect’s role in the design process and the built environment.

4. Ethos: Cultural Frameworks and Ethical Dimensions
This current explores the larger ethical, ideological, and societal narratives that define and challenge the architect’s place in the world.

Submissions

We invite submissions of scholarly and creative papers and/or creative and scholarly works for each current. Individuals are allowed up to two separate submissions, one for each category. Please include the category (Call for Papers or Call for Works) and the current (Locus, Origio, Role, or Ethos) you are responding to in the subject line and follow the submission instructions for the relevant category specified below. All submissions will remain anonymous and blind peer reviewed.

Papers and creative works will be considered for a future publication following the symposium.

The symposium is planned to be held entirely in person at the The Architects’ Association 1927 in Ankara, Turkey.

Please email the following submission materials to [email protected]

by March 29, 2026 at 11:59 EST

Venue: Mimarlar Derneği 1927

Mimarlar Derneği 1927, Turkey’s oldest architectural organization and founder of the Chamber of Architects of Turkey, is a non-profit architectural institution aiming to develop and disseminate architectural culture.

In 2027, the Architects’ Association will celebrate its centennial.