September Editorial Topic: Architecture Without Limits

"Architects today work across many worlds: from designing furniture, landscapes, and urban blocks to creating film sets, photographs, and videos. They restore and retrofit old buildings rather than build anew, while also writing, researching, and publishing. Some design virtual spaces for video games or speculate on habitats in outer space and underwater. Others engage directly with society through politics, activism, or community projects."

"With so many changes in the profession, especially in recent years, one may ask: How is the role of the architect evolving in response to global crises and shifting societal needs? In what ways can interdisciplinarity expand the scope and impact of architectural practice? And what skills beyond traditional design are becoming essential for architects in today's world? Different approaches could help answer these questions."

"Should architects learn from scientists and their methodology when dealing with new materials and the city? Is individual work doomed to disappear in the face of collaborative practices? Is the architect the ideal mediator between communities, governments, and companies? Are they efficient policymakers? Did the architectural narrative become more important than the building itself? In September, ArchDaily investigates Architecture Without Limits: Interdisciplinarity and New Synergies, a theme that looks at how the boundaries of practice keep expanding."

Architects now operate across furniture, landscapes, urban blocks, film sets, photography, and video. They restore and retrofit existing buildings, write, research, publish, and design virtual environments for games and speculative habitats in outer space and underwater. Many engage in politics, activism, and community projects while others experiment with biology, test new materials, and apply scientific methods. Architects pursue decolonization of narratives and decarbonization of construction by combining personal interests with pressing social and environmental challenges. Questions arise about evolving professional roles, the expansion of impact through interdisciplinarity, necessary nontraditional skills, the balance between individual and collaborative practice, and the architect's potential as mediator and policymaker.

Read at ArchDaily