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Slideshow for the presentation"Architecture Criticism in the Age of Social Networks" given at the Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura de Madrid during the Critic|All international conference. Read the full paper on Academia.edu: http://goo.gl/2tqirJ Abstract: In the Nineties, Ignasi de Solà-Morales described the relationship between critics and architects as one of sadomasochism, with the former controlling their anxiety for the recent collapse of grand narratives by exercising a compensatory aggressiveness! towards the latter, who resignedly offered their pro"ects to the lashes of their chastisers! with the hope that non-evident meaning wo#ld event#ally become manifest. $wo decades later, this relationship has been largely t#rned #pside-down, with many architects now dictating case-by-case the %eys for the interpretation of their pro"ects, and many critics red#cing their role to that of observers of the architect#ral mar%et and promoters of its top prod#cts. &nder the destabili'ing effects of postmodern relativism, ideological conflict has been replaced by pragmatic partnership, legitimately leading to a loss of confidence in criti(#e itself. )#t was conflict a better alternative* +ccording to common interpretations of the idea of criticism, it probably was. In its main acceptations as a profession, as a set of social practices, or as a disciplinary disco#rse the term is in fact #sed to indicate a set of intellect#al activities traditionally placed o#tside of /and possibly against0 the domain of architect#ral prod#ction, being what separates critics from architects precisely what can ens#re in 1#igi Man'ione2s words a margin of efficiency in critical disco#rse!. 3istancing, however, has its side effects. $he fact that +llison +rieff has recently compared reading architect#ral writings to having a tooth extracted is (#ite explicative of the way in which many critics wor% nowadays4 little concerned abo#t the #se that architects will do of their ideas, they write for no-one except for themselves, loc%ing critical disco#rse in a cage of a#tonomy from which no real infl#ence on architect#ral prod#ction can be exercised. 5riti(#e for criti(#e2s sa%e tragically reflects a retreat from reality that seems even more problematic if we consider how many opport#nities for elaborating alternative ways of comm#nication are offered today by new digital media. In this essay, I intend to spec#late on how internet and social networ%s can play an important part in the redefinition of the attit#de and tools of architect#re criticism, insisting on the val#e of sociability over isolation, s#ggesting an extension of the media thro#gh which criti(#e is performed, and proposing a third model of relationship that of the sparring partner as a possible way of overcoming the present moment of social empasse.
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Architecture Criticism in the Age of Social Networkspreliminary thoughts on how web and social media can change critical practice for the better
DAVIDE TOMMASO FERRANDO | 13.06.2014 | CRITIC|ALL | FORMATS #2 [VISUAL CULTURE AND MEDIA] | ETSAM
FACT ICRITIQUE IS A HEAVY WORD TO USE IN A BLOG
FACT IICRITICISM MEANS WRITTEN CRITICISM
FACT IIICRITICS DON'T CRITICIZE,
ARCHITECTS DON'T STAND CRITICISM
I. THE POSSIBILITY OF A WEB CRITICISM
ITHE WEB PROVIDES AN ALTERNATIVE PLACE WHERE
TO DEVELOP ARCHITECTURE CRITICISM
IITHANKS TO SOCIAL MEDIA, CRITICS CAN NOW REACH
A MUCH WIDER PUBLIC
IIIMAKING MONEY OUT OF WEB CRITICISM IS HARD
(BUT NOT IMPOSSIBLE)
1. AntiThesi2. Architectural Theory3. Archiwatch4. Archphoto5. Arquitectura-Política6. Black-Mamba 7. btbwarchitecture8. dpr-barcelona9. Failed Architecture10. Fulcrum11. Gizmo12. N+113. SOCKS14. Spacelab15. The Architecture of Analogy 16. The City as a Project17. The Ship18. Veredes19. Wilfing Architettura20. Zeroundicipiù
1.
2.
20. 4.
6./11. 17.
5./7./8. 3.
13.
14.
9. 10./16.
12.
15.
18.
19.
INDEPENDENT WEB EDITORIAL PROJECTS ARE MORE FLEXIBLE IN TERMS OF:
ECONOMICS(no printing or distribution needed)
DEADLINES(no need to respect a rigid schedule)
and CONTENT DEFINITION(little pressure from sponsors and friends)
II. FUCK IMAGE
ALL THAT ONCE WAS DIRECTLY LIVED HAS BECOME MERE REPRESENTATION. […]
UNDERSTOOD IN ITS TOTALITY, THE SPECTACLE IS BOTH THE OUTCOME AND THE GOAL OF THE
DOMINANT MODE OF PRODUCTION. […]
THE SPECTACLE IS CAPITAL ACCUMULATED TO THE POINT WHERE IT BECOMES IMAGE.
Guy Debord
WHILE AESTHETICIZATION REMAINS A BACKGROUND CULTURAL CONDITION THAT
PERMEATES […] THE WHOLE OF PRESENT SOCIETY, ITS EFFECTS WILL BE ALL THE MORE MARKED WITHIN
A DISCIPLINE THAT OPERATES THROUGH THE MEDIUM OF THE IMAGE.
ARCHITECTURE IS FULLY ENSNARED WITHIN THIS CONDITION.
Neil Leach
THE WORD “ARCHITECTURE” DOESN'T SIMPLY DEFINE A BODY OF THEORIES AND
WORKS, BUT A CULTURAL LANDSCAPE MADE OF CONSTRUCTIONS, WRITINGS AND IMAGES, OF THEIR MUTUAL RELATIONS AND OF THEIR PERSONAL AND
COLLECTIVE INTERPRETATIONS
POETRY CAN ONLY BE CRITICIZED BY POETRY. A JUDGEMENT ON ART THAT IS NOT ITSELF ART HAS
[…] NO CIVIL RIGHTS IN THE REALM OF ART.
Friedrich Schlegel
CRITICISM SHOULD BE VIEWES IN TERMS OF TACTICS AND INTENTIONS, NOT IN TERMS OF THE MEDIA
EMPLOYED.
Wayne Attoe
A MINOR KIND OF CRITICISM:
POTENTIALLY VIRALFASTLY PRODUCEDFASTLY CONSUMED
CLEARLY DEMISTIFYINGLOW COST
AESTHETICALLY CHARGEDSOCIAL
NO BUSINESS
III. THE CRITIC AS SPARRING PARTNER
THE STAR SYSTEM CREATES A PROMOTIONAL SYSTEM THAT DEVELOPS ITSELF IN PARALLEL WITH
THE OBJECTIVE CRITERIA OF ART HISTORY, CREATING A LEGEND IN WHICH THE AUTHOR IS INSEPARABLE
FROM ITS WORK. SUCH LEGEND IS DEEPLY ARTIFICIAL, BECAUSE IT NORMALIZES JUDGMENT IN
ORDER TO BETTER SUBLIMATE IT.
Pierre Restany
