The lecture will feature the work of the firm emphasizing their interest in thresholds as mediating conditions for architecture to engage with social and environmental concerns.
Rivera and López are principals and co-founders of Emiliano López Mónica Rivera Arquitectos based in Barcelona, Spain. Their practice focuses on carefully crafted works that understand architecture as a cultural endeavor that is deeply engaged with the environment. Their work encompasses multiple scales and has received numerous international awards. Their work has been published in El Croquis, Detail, Casabella, A+U Japan, Domus, Quaderns, Arquitectura Viva, Dwell, and The Architectural Review among others. A monograph featuring their work, Domestic Thresholds, was published by Quart Verlag.
They combine practice with teaching. Emiliano is Senior Lecturer and Mónica is Professor and Chair of Graduate Architecture in the College and Graduate School of Architecture & Urban Design in the Sam Fox of Design & Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis.
Engaging Pluralism
When ideologies and cultures collide, new ways of working with and living in the world emerge. As a form of political philosophy, pluralism draws upon this dynamic condition, promoting the coexistence of multiple approaches and worldviews. Yet in the context of compounding crises and unchecked inequality, this is far from a neutral position: it becomes a commitment to struggle and discourse. Drawing from a broad-ranging group of speakers, Rice Architecture’s annual lecture series, Engaging Pluralism, explores how architects and designers can work with friction, contradiction, and multiplicity to effect broader social, cultural, and environmental change. It is an all-school platform for reflecting on the possibilities and challenges of designing for a pluralistic society.
All lectures are free and open to the public and, unless noted otherwise, will be held in person in Farish Gallery, MD Anderson Hall, with a livestream component. In the event that COVID-19 circumstances prohibit in-person lectures, the series will be held virtually via Zoom. Each lecture has been submitted for AIA CES approval.
This lecture series is made possible through the generous support of the Betty R. and George F. Pierce Jr., FAIA, Fund; the William B. Coleman Jr. Colloquium Fund for Architecture; the Wm. W. Caudill Lecture Series Fund; and Rice Design Alliance (RDA), the public programs and outreach arm of Rice Architecture, which includes the generous support of its members and RDA Underwriters: Harvey | Harvey-Cleary; Tellepsen Family; Big State Electric; Brochsteins; CED Houston; MAREK; Turner Construction; and Walter P. Moore. Additional support is provided by the Texas Commission on the Arts.