To build or not to build
The Byzantine and Christian Museum, in cooperation with SARCHA (School of Architecture for All), is launching a yearlong program on architecture that will involve exhibitions, lectures, seminars, workshops and forums attended by international participants from such reputable institutions as the University of London and Columbia University. «A-ktisto» (un-built) – the name of the program – is focused around seven themes: building economies, body/psyche, the un-built city, sound/silence, theology, art and the public. Beginning this week and running through November, each month will focus on a different theme. The topics explored were selected from various proposals that the organizers received from international experts in the field whom they contacted in order to organize the event. The «un-built» title not only refers to utopian architecture and to the impossible but also to that which should remain un-built. Issues related to the lack of urban planning, overzealous building activity, land privatization and other market forces will be explored by experts from different fields. The program begins tomorrow with a discussion on the un-built environment as opposed to economic growth policies. Participants include MPs Constantinos Kartalis and Fotis Kouvelis. Discussions on the topic of fires in architecture and planning, a workshop in Kardamili, Peloponnese, and development along the coastline are also scheduled for May. Info: www.byzantinemuseum.gr/unbuilt/unbuilt.htm or sacha-architecture.blogspot.com. Tel. 210.721.1027.
