Playing against Type

“Think about spaces that don’t exist yet, but that we think society will need in the future.” This was how Giovanna Borasi, director of the Canadian Centre for Architecture (CCA), opened the launch of A Section of Now, a new book she spearheaded (and which accompanies an exhibition of the same name at the institution). Framed as an interrogation into “our new lived realities,” the book features a variety of contributors with a broad socio-investigative scope—examining the future implications of everything from non-domestic workers to family recomposition and even death. Two contributors, Hilary Sample and Florian Idenburg (architects and co-founders of MOS and SO – IL, respectively), joined Borasi in conversation at the launch, which was moderated by CCA editor Alexandra Pereira-Edwards.

Much of the discussion centered around the notion of what role the architect will play (and how effective they will be) in producing new spaces for a new future. “A type can open up so many questions to reflect upon, around issues that are broader than architecture,” said Sample. “Perhaps,” she continued, “moving away from type can be quite radical” in freeing up space for new approaches and ideas. Through a lens of clinical spaces, Sample stressed the need for a greater level of humanity and empathy in design, rather than defaulting to efficient or cost-effective models.

Ultimately, the panelists agreed that the role of architects is to find and introduce nuance to address the complexities of our living, rather than just reacting to what comes in their path. Though current models of architecture stem from a functional modernism where programs and typologies are often rigid and codified, the only means of anticipating spaces for the future lies in resisting and questioning these notions. As Sample put it: “As architects, where can we find space to insert things and push?”