19 April 2017 – My colleague Machiel Spaans invited me for a key note lecture at the Conference ‘Crafting the Façade’ at the University of Liechtenstein in Vaduz. Students of three Universities in Glasgow, Amsterdam and Liechtenstein researched and developed façades constructed from three materials prevalent in local construction culture: stone, brick and wood. Throughout the project work, the façades were explored in hand drawings and with hands-on experiments and testing at 1:1. Through these processes students were introduced to new, often alien, materials. They were encouraged to understand the façade as a pivotal point where structure, construction and logic of building materials meet.

The aim of the symposium is to present the results of these three encounters to a broader audience, to offer new points of view and experiences from invited speakers and to broaden the debate around the façade enabled by critics and writers. The results of the symposium will form part of a publication documenting the diverse range of activities, thinking and new learning developed through the Erasmus+ program. The symposium will be of interest to students and tutors of architecture, the wider architecture community as well as Erasmus+ program participants.

Erasmus+ Symposium
Crafting the Façade: Reuse, Reinvent, Reactivate
Friday 5 May 2017, 9:00 – 17.30
University of Liechtenstein, Vaduz