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Linda C. Samuels on the forces reshaping 21st-century; A discussion on ‘Infrastructural Optimism’

2022-01-26T12:00:00-05:00

In cynical times, optimism gets a bad rap.

In her new book “Infrastructural Optimism” (Routledge 2021), Linda C. Samuels, associate professor of urban design at the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis, argues that optimism is not simply a reflexive emotional state, but a critical driver of public investment, societal progress and — perhaps — democracy itself.

In this Q&A, Samuels discusses “Infrastructural Optimism,” the current political moment and the resurgence of the common good.

Linda C. Samuels (Photo: Van Vo Photography)

You coined the phrase ‘infrastructural optimism’ in a 2009 article for Places Journal. What was the focus of that piece?

In the wake of catastrophe, infrastructure reconstruction can be a powerful morale builder and a signal for collective optimism — as scholars like Kevin Rozario have pointed out. After the Sept. 11th attacks, the quick resumption of public transit in Lower Manhattan, and ultimately the promise of t...

Rivera named chair of graduate architecture at Washington University in St. Louis

2018-10-25T19:46:00-04:00

Barcelona-based architect Mónica Rivera has been named chair of graduate architecture in the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis.

Rivera, who also serves as professor of practice, joined the Sam Fox School’s College of Architecture and Graduate School of Architecture & Urban Design as a visiting professor in 2015. She later served as co-coordinator of the school’s international housing studio, and remains a partner with Emiliano López Mónica Rivera Arquitectos, the office she co-founded in 2001.

“Architecture is layered, both as an aesthetic and social endeavor,” said Carmon Colangelo, the Ralph J. Nagel Dean of the Sam Fox School. “Mónica has earned an international reputation for carefully crafted projects that combine environmental responsibility with rigorous attention to site, context and communal experience. We are very excited and proud that she is leading our graduate program in architecture.”

Social Housing Apartments, Gavà, Barcelon...

‘Drawing Ambience: Alvin Boyarsky and the Architectural Association’

2014-08-12T13:09:00-04:00

Is architecture a trade or an art?

For Alvin Boyarsky, the answer was clear. As longtime chair of the Architectural Association (AA) in London, and one of the most influential figures in 20th-century design education, Boyarsky argued that architecture was not only a profession but also an artistic venture — an open, wide-ranging practice that comprises drawing and publication as much as it engages design and construction.

This fall, the Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum at Washington University in St. Louis will present “Drawing Ambience: Alvin Boyarsky and the Architectural Association,” the first public museum exhibition of drawings from Boyarsky’s private collection.

Featuring early formative works on paper by a generation of prominent architects — including Frank Gehry, Zaha Hadid, Daniel Libeskind, Rem Koolhaas and Bernard Tschumi — “Drawing Ambience” explores Boyarsky’s role as a collector of drawings and also, metaphorically speaking, of the ideas and people that have come to defin...