Radical Pedagogies

Annotation

Radical Pedagogies is the outcome of a long-lasting collaborative research project by Beatriz Colomina with her PhD students Ignacio G. Galán, Evangelos Kotsioris and Anna-Maria Meister. The book consists of many pedagogical experiments from the 20th century, from various geographies and cities, focussing primarily on the architecture field, and including a critical stand against architectural and other types of normative education within modernity. The experimental design pedagogies are either in an institution, or outside of an institution, or experiment as a temporary short-term gathering and many other forms run by architects, teachers and scholars. The case studies present a global mapping. The book also includes many interesting pedagogical experiments about alternative pedagogies with critical content, as well as presenting itself as an interesting archival case project. As an entangled archival work, this project may inspire socially engaged art practices that formulate themselves as pedagogical practice, as well as archival projects.

Pelin Tan

Radical Pedagogies is a collaborative history project that explores a series of pedagogical experiments that played a crucial role in shaping architectural discourse and practice in the second half of the twentieth century. As a challenge to normative thinking, they questioned, redefined, and reshaped the postwar field of architecture. They are radical in the literal meaning stemming from the Latin radix (root), as they question the basis of architecture. These new modes of teaching shook foundations and disturbed assumptions, rather than reinforcing and disseminating them. They operated as small endeavors, sometimes on the fringes of institutions, but had long-lasting impact.