Rozana Montiel | Rice Architecture

Caught in the Act

2022–2023 Lecture Series: Engaging Pluralism, Fall Edition

Oct. 19, 2022
5:30pm

MD Anderson Hall, Farish Gallery

If architecture is a platform for expression, for activation and for reflection, then our ideas should come across through it. Anything that we design, must be rooted in our convictions. In the studio, we have created an Architectural Manifesto that dictates our principles to approach our projects. “To manifest” etymologically means “to be caught in the act”, so each of these points affirms the way our design acts. We research, we think, and we act upon our observations. The projects I will present to you on this lecture will be interconnecting each of the eleven statements of our Manifesto

Rozana Montiel is director and founder of the Mexico City based firm ROZANA MONTIEL ESTUDIO DE ARQUITECTURA (REA) focused on architectural design, artistic re-conceptualizations of space and the public domain. The studio works on a variety of projects at different scales and layers ranging from the city to the book, the artifact, and other micro-objects. Earlier this year, she presented her installation Stand Up for the Seas! for the exhibition Terre! Land in Sight by the Cité de l'architecture & du patrimoine as part of the 2nd edition of the Biennale d'architecture et de paysage d'Île-de-France 2022 in Versailles. She recently presented a compilation of her work in the exhibition Blank in Three Acts which was displayed from October 2021 to March 2022 at the Museo de San Ildefonso in Mexico City. Her trajectory has been recognized by different awards. She has been nominated as a candidate to the 2021-2022 edition of the Swiss Architectural Award.

Her most recent social project PILARES Presidentes de Mexico has been recognize with the silver medal of the XVII Bienal Nacional de Arquitectura Mexicana and it was featured in the exhibition ‘Panorama de Obras de Arquitectura y Urbanismo’ of the XII Bienal Iberoamericana de Arquitectura y Urbanismo (BIAU 2022). In September 2022, her proposal –Terre Commune– was awarded 2nd place in a single-stage architecture competition for the new headquarters of the IOM (International Organization for Migration) in Geneva, Switzerland. In 2019 she was awarded the Global Award for Sustainable Architecture by the Cité de l'architecture et du patrimoine, Paris. In 2016, she was winner of the Emerging Voices Award granted by The Architectural League of New York.

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.