Urban@Parsons Presents Autonomous Infrastructures: Forms of Decay with Pelin Tan

How can autonomous infrastructures become a process, a tool, a methodology of decolonizing design strategies? Is this possible? What are the spatial and local conditions that can be initiated beyond trans-local structures? Those questions relate to our current times of nomadic dwelling and sustaining decolonized infrastructure, cities and living conditions in contested territories. Process such as rebuilding destructed towns after battles, cities under sieged where destruction is a potentialities of building practice of architecture, or both temporary and urbanized refugee camps… The discussion and presentation will focus on recent cases, examples as well on the conceptual framework of decay, autonomy, infrastructure, decolonization and forms of non-belonging.

Pelin Tan is associate professor in architecture at Artuklu University, Mardin, Turkey. She is involved in research-based artistic and architectural projects that focus on urban conflict and territorial politics, gift economies, labor conditions, and mixed methods in research. Tan’s publications on architecture, urbanism and art include Arazi (Sternberg Press, CSPS, Berlin, 2016) and her recent chapter “Transversal Materialism” featured in 2000+: Urgencies of Architectural Theories (GSAPP, 2015). Tan, is leading a socio-spatial research in refugee camps at Southeast of Turkey (BAP project) and is a Lead Author of IPSP chapter of “Towards an Urban Society” edt.by Saskia Sassen & Edgar Peterse (2015 – 2017). She is the Turkey curator of Actopolis project on urban&activism&art (2015-2017).

Friday, November 20, 2015
6:00pm – 7:30pm
Glass Classroom, 206
25 E 13th Street, New York