If…Then: Armature, Interface, Exhibition

The theme behind this competition was If…Then. The call for entries read: “Architectural invention relies on the presentation of a story, or speculative fiction…What effects do our speculations generate?…What possibilities can architecture present within the framework of the built environment in writing these social fictions?” Reflecting on this speculative context, Studio Luz took the opportunity to rethink and question methods for the development of site, program, form, technology, and materials. The resulting inventive installation was an experiment in exploring and challenging intuitions. A web of interlocking steel brackets created a neural-like system that supported a series of illuminated stereoscopic slide viewfinders and magnifier. This framework simulated the world wide web, a cultural symbol unto itself. The works presented within the viewfinders observed and reacted to various forms of social relationships, ranging from a mail-slot to a 13,000 square foot Fellowship Center. The effect was a socio-cultural investigation that Studio Luz has become renowned for. Studio Luz’s accompanying entry statement for the installation posited: “If architecture can establish a dialogic relationship with its users, receiving and creating meaning, then architecture can be a cultural expression affirming its relationship to the community in which it serves.”