AIA envisions the future and celebrates the heritage of the past

2012 is off to a great start at the AIA New York Chapter, and February is proving to be another exciting month. The Center for Architecture is opening two complementary exhibitions, City of Mirages: Baghdad, 1952-1982, and CHANGE: Contemporary Architecture and Engineering in the Middle East, 2000-Present, on February 22. The opening reception is free and open to the public, and I encourage you to come see the U.S. debut of City of Mirages, which travels to the Center after being on view in Barcelona. Likewise, CHANGE is the first survey show of modern architecture and engineering in New York City, and I look forward to welcoming AIANY members, our colleagues from other firms, and the allied professionals from throughout the building trades to see the exhibitions The exhibitions explore themes of diverse architectural strategies and styles, presenting varying means of architectural expression in a region of multiple climates, topographies, and ecosystems. Throughout the spring, the Center for Architecture will host a series of programs that will examine the political, cultural, and economic forces that have shaped built environments of the countries and territories of the Middle East, from the oil rich nation-states of the Persian Gulf to the megalopolises of Cairo, Istanbul, and Tehran. The programs will begin on February 25, with the Saturday symposium "Change in the Middle East: Preserving the Past, Inventing the Future," from 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. "Culture and Climate: Contemporary Architectural Responses in the Middle East," will follow on March 1, 6 - 8 p.m. "Faster and Bigger: Building in the Middle East," is scheduled for April 2 from 6 - 8 p.m. "Architecture in Baghdad, Then and Now," will be presented on April 26 from 6 - 8 p.m. Finally, "The National Mosque of Baghdad Competition: A Conversation Between Denise Scott Brown, Renata Holod and Frederic Schwartz," will present a very interesting perspective on the heritage of modern architecture in Baghdad on May 4 from 6 - 8 p.m. On January 23, the winners of the New Practices New York 2012 competition were announced at the Center for Architecture. That afternoon, jury members Stan Allen, FAIA, principal, Stan Allen Architect, Kit von Dalwig, AIA, principal, Manifold (and winner of New Practices New York 2010), William Menking, editor-in-chief, The Architect's Newspaper, Mahadev Raman P.E., Chairman, Americas, Arup, and Billie Tsien, AIA, Principal, Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects LLP, met and selected the seven winners from the fifty-one entries. The winners are: Holler Architecture, Tobias Holler, AIA, LEED AP (http://hollerarchitecture.com/); The Living (http://www.thelivingnewyork.com/); Abruzzo Bodziak (http://www.abruzzo-bodziak.com/); SLO Architecture (http://sloarchitecture.com/); Formless Finder (http://www.formlessfinder.com/); Mark Fornes & THEVERYMANY (http://theverymany.com/); and Christian Wassman (http://christianwassmann.com/). I extend my warmest congratulations to them all. The New Practices New York 2012 exhibition, featuring the competition winners, will open on June 14, 2012, at the Center for Architecture. Each of the winning practices will have the opportunity to present their winning portfolios and discuss what it is like to be an emerging architectural firm in New York City at competition sponsor Hansgrohe's showroom at 29 Ninth Avenue throughout the second half of the year. The Emerging New York Architects (ENYA) The Harlem Edge | Cultivating Connections competition winners will also be announced this month, on February 14. This competition's winning entries, in addition to New Practices New York 2012, will comprise the other exhibition of my presidential theme, FutureNow!, with an opening on July 12th. I am fully confident that these young architects and designers will demonstrate the very best of the design talent here in New York City. I encourage you to come out to the Center for Architecture to see the bright future of the city's built environment on display. Joseph Aliotta, AIA, is the 2012 president of the N.Y. chapter of the AIA, New York, N.Y.