The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA)’s Material Worlds speaker series is returning for its second season with six new topics. The online discussions, which focus on “equitable and resilient sourcing of building materials” as they relate to climate change and architecture, were curated by the museum’s Ambasz Institute, a research platform launched in November 2020, devoted to the relationship between the built and natural environments. Each of the six talks will be moderated by Lindsey Wikstrom, cofounding principal of New York–based architecture practice Mattaforma and adjunct assistant professor at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation.
“This series aims to promote sustained discussion about the impact of the building sector, examine new research in both academia and the industry, and establish a vocabulary of ecological architecture, all in the hope of engaging the newest generation of architects to reassess the discipline in the face of urgent change,” MoMA explained in statement announcing the second season of the series.
Material Worlds brings activists, architects, artists, engineers, historians, journalists, and other professionals together in dialogue with one another to touch on topics related to building materials. The first season, launched last year, with discussions on mass timber, earth, concrete, carbon, plastics, and waste. This year, panelists will delve into topics including solar, water, stone, silica, plants, liquids, and the unknown.
Material Worlds kicks off today, September 8, 2022 with a live (and virtual) discussion held in Rotterdam focused on solar energy, recalling its history and use in ancient times and how energy generated from the sun is used today to develop new technologies. Panelists will include Alice Wong, a story designer and tutor at Design Academy Eindhoven; artist Amor Muñoz; filmmaker and author John Perlin; Marjan van Aubel and Pauline von Dongen, co-initiators of the Solar Movement and the Solar Biennale; Neel Tamhane, Solar Strategy Lead at SPACE10, IKEA’s external global research and design lab; and Dutch designer Peter Niessen.
Discussions are spaced six weeks apart, and will run through May 2023. The presentation dates and topics are as follows:
Solar September 8, 2022 2–3:30 p.m. ET
Photosynthesis October 20, 2022 12–1:30 p.m. ET
Water Futures December 1, 2022 12–1:30 p.m. ET
Liquids January 12, 2023 6–7:30 p.m. ET
Silica Signals February 23, 2023 6–7:30 p.m. ET
Lithospheres April 6, 2023 12–1:30 p.m. ET
Given Conditions May 16, 2023 12–1:30 p.m. ET
The discussions will take place on Zoom and participants can register in advance online.
