Tuesday saw the launch of a new magazine entitled Architecture Snob. The publication emerged out of a need to discuss modern architecture and to take a critical look at the surrounding reality.
In her book Writing About Architecture art critic Alison Lange wrote that: “Buildings are everywhere, large and small, ugly and beautiful, ambitious and dumb. We walk among them and live inside them but are largely passive dwellers in cities or towers, houses, open spaces, and shops we had no hand in creating.” Architecture Snob wants this to change and invites you to a discussion about the space we live in, the objects we surround ourselves with, and places and facilities which we operate in. It’s high time we became more than just their passive users.
Architecture Snob is a new opening in the discussion about public space to which the authors invite not only specialists in the field of architecture, but above all – its users. We want to present architecture a in a broad context of various fields, from fashion and design to social sciences to ecology.
The magazine’s editor-in-chief is Marcin Szczelina, architecture critic and curator, and European Mies van der Rohe Award expert, while journalist Anna Ostrowska is the managing editor. “Together, we want to look for hope for the future in times of the climate crisis and try to (re)organize the surrounding reality which is full of inequalities – also in terms of access to architecture,” emphasizes Marcin Szczelina.
Architecture Snob is the natural complement to the archisnob.com platform, where a discussion about the world around us has taken place for many years now. This over 150-page bilingual magazine will be available in Empik stores from July 20, 2021.
The first issue begins with an interview with Joseph Rykwert, one of the most eminent architectural historians and theorists in the world whose knowledge and achievement go beyond the limits of academia. Rykwert wrote books and taught classes that have influenced several generations of architecture critics, specialists, and enthusiasts alike. Using various perspectives to shed light on architecture, including anthropology, philosophy, and even religious studies, he created an innovative body of work that is essential to contemporary architecture criticism and theory.
Drawing from Rykwert’s heritage and spirit, we remain open to various perspectives. The magazine will promote good design practices, explain the differences between buying a pre-designed house from a catalogue and working with an architect, and present progressive designers for whom the future of the planet and counteracting climate change are important. “We will write about the most interesting events and phenomena, serve as inspiration, and provide tools for discussion,” adds Marcin Szczelina.
The motto of the magazine is #architecturematters. “Living without architecture would take us back to the cavemen times,” Swiss architect Christian Kerez told Architecture Snob.
On the day of the magazine’s launch, a special event was held as part of the Łódź Design Festival with, among others, the winners of this year’s Pritzker Award, Lacaton&Vassal. You will find more on the event on the festival website: https://www.lodzdesign.com/news/tworcy-przyszlosci-architektura-ma-znaczenie/