This summer, SOM will host a discussion series inspired by recent publication of The Future of Public Space. Following the success of an engaging panel at New York City’s Strand Book Store in April of 2018, events will be held across North America to further explore the intersection of design and the public realm. Co-sponsored by the urban affairs magazine and nonprofit organization NextCity, these events are free and open to the public.
The Future of Public Space, the second book in the SOM Thinkers anthology series, is a collection of essays about how different types of public space—urban and rural, real and virtual—impact our everyday experiences in an increasingly privatized world. SOM Thinkers originated from a desire to start an inclusive and unconventional conversation about the built environment. Each installment of the series brings together leading voices on a single topic.
The events will feature a diverse roster of architects, designers, planners, writers, artists, and other practitioners working on urban issues related to public space and the public sphere. Inspired by and building off the book’s provocative essays, the panels are organized to address both larger-scale issues and topics of local concern.
Washington, D.C.
June 19, 2018
6:30-8:00 p.m.
Panelists Edgar Endress (Floating Lab Collective), Dan Reed (Washingtonian), Kristopher Takács (SOM Director), and Kate Wagner (McMansion Hell) will join moderator Amanda Kolson Hurley (CityLab).
West End Library
2301 L Street NW
Washington, D.C.
Chicago
June 26, 2018
7:00-9:00 p.m.
Panelists Joy Bailey Bryant (Lord Cultural Resources), Maurice Cox (City of Detroit), Martin Felsen (UrbanLab), and Angela Mason (Chicago Botanic Garden) will join moderator Jonathan Solomon (School of the Art Institute of Chicago), with introductions from Douglas Voigt (SOM Partner).
The LeRoy Neiman Center
School of the Art Institute of Chicago
37 S. Wabash Avenue
Chicago, Illinois
Register for the Chicago panel discussion through Eventbrite.
Los Angeles
July 12, 2018
6:00-8:00 p.m.
?Panelists Rudy Espinoza (Leadership for Urban Renewal Network)?, Saul Gonzalez (KCRW), Astrid Sykes (Studio-MLA), and Elizabeth Timme (LA-Más) will join moderator Chris Torres (superjacent).
A+D Museum
900 E. 4th Street
Los Angeles, California
Check back here for updates on The Future of Public Space panel discussion series.