October 2023 Table of Contents

THE DARK MATTER ISSUE
The Dark Matter Issue: Framing The Dark Matter Issue The Dark Matter Issue: Framing

Dark Matter U, a democratic collective responsible for the design, content, and coediting of this month’s issue of ARCHITECT, was formed in 2020 alongside protests for the reinvigorated Black Lives Matter movement and the global COVID-19 pandemic. Read more

TRANSFORMATION AND REPAIR
Constellations of Change: Checking in with a Design Justice Cabal The Dark Matter Issue Constellations of Change: Checking in with a Design Justice Cabal

Reflections on the creation of design justice network in academia and the zeitgeist of a movement. Read more

Transforming the Future of Professional Practice The Dark Matter Issue Transforming the Future of Professional Practice

How practitioners can hold a more expansive view of the architect’s role within the design profession. Read more

Context: A Subversive Act of Communing The Dark Matter Issue Context: A Subversive Act of Communing

Rethinking context as a tool of liberation woven from reflections, thoughts, and conversations within the Dark Matter U network. Read more

(Dark) Notes on the Caribbean The Dark Matter Issue (Dark) Notes on the Caribbean

A collaborative manifesto. Read more

PRACTICES WITHIN THE COLLECTIVE
This Florida Project Supports the Revival of a Historically Black Community The Dark Matter Issue This Florida Project Supports the Revival of a Historically Black Community

Helmed by Miami-based designer Germane Barnes, the Regenerating Roots project "shifts the narrative of this community from one of vulnerability and charity to one of power and authenticity," Barnes writes. Read more

This Revamped Oregon Library Fosters Community Inclusivity The Dark Matter Issue This Revamped Oregon Library Fosters Community Inclusivity

With the New Orleans– and Portland-based firm Colloqate serving as design architect, this "library renovation connects the stories of its residents into its architectural fabric," Colloqate founder Bryan C. Lee Jr. writes. Read more

This Toronto Project Encourages Co-Occupation Between Animals and Humans The Dark Matter Issue This Toronto Project Encourages Co-Occupation Between Animals and Humans

Dreamed up by Double Happiness, the Bentway Conservancy–commissioned project "offers an urban 'lounge' for human recreation, while acting as an aggregation of spaces designed for animal inhabitation and awareness," the architects write. Read more

This Agro-Botanical Space in Chicago Helps Address Environmental Issues The Dark Matter Issue This Agro-Botanical Space in Chicago Helps Address Environmental Issues

The project, which includes a 1.75-mile nature trail, also "integrate[s] science and art, fostering a connection with the land and enhancing cultural belonging," María A. Villalobos H. writes. Read more

With 9 Gammon, Atelier Cory Henry Brings Atlanta Micro-housing and Community Amenities The Dark Matter Issue With 9 Gammon, Atelier Cory Henry Brings Atlanta Micro-housing and Community Amenities

The Los Angeles–based firm used community discussions and thorough research to frame the expansion and adaptive reuse project. Read more

An Installation That Reexamines Origin Mythologies The Dark Matter Issue An Installation That Reexamines Origin Mythologies

Brought to life by Jennifer Newsome and Tom Carruthers of Dream the Combine, this Columbus, Ind., project addresses "extractive and exploitative practices." Read more

These Quilted Designs Are Realized With AI The Dark Matter U These Quilted Designs Are Realized With AI

Working with Midjourney, Curry J. Hackett conjured photorealistic worlds that evoke the "sophistication and resourcefulness embedded in Black material culture." Read more

This New York Installation Is Afro-futuristic and Ancestral The Dark Matter issue This New York Installation Is Afro-futuristic and Ancestral

Realized by the New York–based Jerome Haferd Studio, Sankofa is a modular structure that provides a gathering space for nearby communities. Read more

PRESERVATION, STORYTELLING, AND PLACE
The Joys of Just Preservation THE DARK MATTER ISSUE The Joys of Just Preservation

Dark Matter U's approach to historic and cultural preservation is not only more just and sustainable, it's multivocal, multigenerational, and multicultural. Learn how the collective finds joy in connecting with what’s been left behind by engaging with who has been left to care for it. Read more

Is There Such a Thing As Asian Diasporic Architecture? The Dark Matter Issue Is There Such a Thing As Asian Diasporic Architecture?

What would it look like for our Asian diasporic communities to experience a deep affirmation of who we are in the buildings, landscapes, and everyday spaces we occupy and shape? Read more

Building Relationships to Design Spatial Justice The Dark Matter Issue Building Relationships to Design Spatial Justice

Dark Matter U's work with the Gowanus community Brooklyn, N.Y., resulted in a Neighborhood Design Fellowship in which residents "participated in workshops that centered community knowledge and visioning of goals and objectives for collective spaces." Read more

Meet the New Mellon Foundation Initiative That Is Keeping and Shaping Our Places The Dark Matter Issue Meet the New Mellon Foundation Initiative That Is Keeping and Shaping Our Places

The New York–based organization’s Humanities in Place program aims to support designers who are preserving and building more just communities. Read more

Creating the Apalachicola Hill Neighborhood Design Guidelines The Dark Matter Issue Creating the Apalachicola Hill Neighborhood Design Guidelines

Meet the BIPOC professors and professionals in service of rural communities. Read more

SHARED FUTURES
Design Justice 101 The Dark Matter Issue Design Justice 101

Teaching anti-racist models of design education to the youth. Read more

More Than Just Us The Dark Matter Issue More Than Just Us

NOMA youth summer camps train tomorrow’s design justice advocates. Read more

Next Progressives: The Students of Dark Matter U Next Progressives Next Progressives: The Students of Dark Matter U

Building on the work of Dark Matter U, these members of the next generation of design justice advocates are bringing experience and situated knowledge to transform the classroom and the discipline, making it more inclusive and community-centered. Read more

Poly Particles: Dark Matter U In Conversation The Dark Matter Issue Poly Particles: Dark Matter U In Conversation

Read excerpts from the design justice network in conversation, as collected in May 2023. Read more

AIA ARCHITECT
Expanding the Narrative AIA Voices Expanding the Narrative

How can architects prioritize health and equity for all communities? Read more

Employment for architects is expected to grow 5% over the next 10 years. AIA Now Employment for architects is expected to grow 5% over the next 10 years.

The impact of new technology is still an unknown quantity. Read more

Is AI a Tool or a Taskmaster? AIA Feature Is AI a Tool or a Taskmaster?

Designers are confronting changes in practice and purpose wrought by sweeping technological shifts. Read more

Adaptive Reuse AIA Perspective Adaptive Reuse

AIA’s point of view as a client for our building renewal. Read more

REFLECTIONS
Reflections: DMU x You The Dark Matter Issue Reflections: DMU x You

Respond to The Dark Matter Issue. Read more

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