Into the Open: Positioning Practice

The exhibition Into the Open: Positioning Practice, the official U.S. representation at the 11th International Architecture Exhibition, La Biennale di Venezia, focuses on the increasing interest in civic engagement in American architectural practice, and examines the means by which a new generation of architects is reclaiming a role in shaping community and the built environment. Into the Open: Positioning Practice features 16 architectural groups who actively engage communities, responding to social and environmental issues including shifting demographics, changing geo-political boundaries, uneven economic development, and the explosion of urban migration. These intellectually entrepreneurial actors are designing the conditions from which new architectures can emerge--becoming activists, developers, facilitators of inclusive urban policies, as well as innovative urban researchers. Reaching creatively across institutions, agencies, and jurisdictions, they are negotiating hidden resources in the private, public, and non-profit sectors. The exhibition has been organized by William Menking, founder of The Architect's Newspaper, Aaron Levy, Executive Director of Slought Foundation, and Andrew Sturm, Director of Architecture for the PARC Foundation. The exhibition was conceived in collaboration with architects Teddy Cruz and Deborah Gans. Into the Open: Positioning Practice is organized by Slought Foundation and PARC Foundation, with media partner The Architect's Newspaper, and presented by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, U.S. Department of State, Washington, D.C. Generous support for the project has been received from the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts, Robert Rubin and Stephane Samuel, and PARC Foundation. Sheila C. Johnson Design Center Parsons The New School for Design, New York March 5 through May 3, 2009 www.positioningpractice.us