On May 30th, 2005, the University of Calgary Faculty of Environmental Design is hosting a special evening and presentation on the urban condition as part of the EVDS urban campus initiative. Issues explored will be the fabric of urban existence, the place of the public realm, and the power and influence of design and architecture as event space.
World renowned for his work, teachings, articles and books, Michael Sorkin, principal of the Michael Sorkin Studio in New York City will share his perspective and expertise, providing invaluable insight for the University, its education and community partners as the University of Calgary moves forward in creating an urban campus that celebrates and strengthens the dynamism, culture and creativity of urban life in downtown Calgary.
Michael Sorkin Studio is a design practice devoted to both practical and theoretical projects at all scales with a special interest in the city. Recent projects include master planning in Hamburg and Schwerin, Germany, planning for a Palestinian capital in East Jerusalem, campus planning at the University of Chicago, and studies of the Manhattan waterfront and Arverne, Queens. The studio is the recipient of a variety of awards, including three I.D. Awards and a Progressive Architecture Award.
Sorkin is the Director of the Graduate Urban Design Program at the City College of New York. From 1993 to 2000 he was Professor of Urbanism and Director of the Institute of Urbanism at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna. Previously, he has been professor at numerous schools of architecture including Cooper Union (for ten years), Columbia, Yale (holding both Davenport and Bishop Chairs), Harvard, Cornell (Gensler Chair), Nebraska (Hyde Chair), Illinois, Pennsylvania, Texas and Minnesota.
Sorkin lectures widely and is the author of many articles in a wide range of both professional and general publications and is currently contributing editor at Architectural Record and Metropolis. For ten years, he was the architecture critic of The Village Voice. His books include Variations on A Theme Park, Exquisite Corpse, Local Code, Giving Ground (edited with Joan Copjec), Wiggle (a monograph of the studio’s work), Some Assembly Required, Other Plans, The Next Jerusalem, and After the Trade Center (edited with Sharon Zukin). Forthcoming are Weed, AZ. and Work On The City, among others.
Michael Sorkin was born in Washington, DC and received his architectural training at Harvard and MIT. For more information, please visit www.sorkinstudio.com.
The reception for the event begins at 5:00pm with the presentation commencing at 5:45pm at the Calgary Hyatt. Please RSVP by May 26th to [email protected]