Whatever Happened to History and Theory in Dutch Architecture?Whatever Happened to History and Theory in Dutch Architecture?

The symposium Whatever Happened to History and Theory in Dutch Architecture? will discuss the current role, position, and state of architecture history and theory in Dutch architecture culture. This event will be concluded with a keynote lecture by architecture historian and critic Bart Lootsma.

In December 1988, the exhibition The Eindhoven School: The Modern Past presented the work of twenty-three TU/e architecture graduates and signaled the emergence of a new type of architecture in Eindhoven. Described as a constellation of diverse attitudes, the so-called 'Eindhoven School' presented the unique architectural and educational ethos of TU Eindhoven's Faculty of Architecture throughout the 1980s, where a common embrace of architecture history and theory could be clearly identified. The exhibition The Eindhoven School: a forgotten avant-garde revisits the role of history and theory in shaping the work of those architects particularly influenced by the teachings of Geert Bekaert, Gerard van Zeijl and Joost Meuwissen.

On the occasion of the exhibition _The Eindhoven School: a forgotten avant-garde_ being presented in Rotterdam (at OMI), the symposium 'Whatever Happened to History and Theory in Dutch Architecture?' will discuss the current role, position, and state of architecture history and theory in Dutch architecture culture. Through the contribution of a new generation of architecture practitioners, critics, and historians, this symposium will identify critical issues and question the underlying structures that shape (and have shaped) architecture history and theory in the Netherlands. The symposium will be concluded with a keynote lecture by Bart Lootsma.

The Eindhoven School: a forgotten avant-garde was researched and curated by Sergio M. Figueiredo and a group of students from TU Eindhoven under the banner of the fledgling research program Curatorial Research Collective (CRC).

• 17:00-17:15 Welcome address
• 17:15-18:00 Position statements from participants
• 18:00-19:00 Open Debate
• 19:00-20:00 Dinner Break
• 20:00-21:30 Keynote Lecture by Bart Lootsma

Bart Lootsma is a historian, theoretician, critic and curator in the fields of architecture, design and the visual arts. He is Dean of the Faculty of Architecture and Professor for Architectural Theory at the University of Innsbruck and has been a Guest Professor at several European universities, a member of numerous committees (in multiple countries), and an editor of various magazines and journals, such as GAM, L'industria delle costruzioni, Forum, de Architect, ARCHIS, l'Architecture d'Aujourd'hui and Daidalos. His book 'SuperDutch' (2000) requires no introduction. Having graduated from TU Eindhoven in 1984 with a thesis completed on his own architecture exhibitions and publications supervised by Geert Bekaert, he too is a part of the Eindhoven School.

Curatorial Research Collective (CRC) is a research program dedicated to the theories and practices of curating architecture. CRC develops critical positions on architecture through research and exhibitions, expanding conventional territories for academic architectural scholarship and purposefully engaging a broader public.

In Het Nieuwe Instituut's Thursday Night Live! programme thinkers, designers and makers from the Netherlands and abroad discuss urgent issues, innovative research and critical reflection related to architecture, design and digital culture. Why not grab a bite to eat with the speakers and staff of Het Nieuwe Instituut? Dinner vouchers are available for ¬7.50 up to a day before the particular Thursday Night event via the Tickets link at this page or at the bar this evening.