After successful completion of the course, students are able to independently write a scholarly essay of at least 5,000 words in the field of feminist, decolonial and postcolonial theory on a topic of their choosing. Students will be equipped with the skills required to write such an essay, which include the practice of critical reading and writing, as well as the application of critical thinking to architecture, the arts, and wider social issues. Students will attain an understanding of intersectional feminist theory as a methodology for considering dynamics of space in physical as well as digital environments. 

© Simon Veres

Decolonial Spatialities in the Digital Era

To understand the digital world’s impact on architecture today, it is fundamental to consider the role of colonialism in constructing the world as we know it. Colonialism has shaped and continues to shape how we relate with one another on various scales, in asymmetrical ways. From this critical departure, this seminar will focus on de-colonial approaches to exploring platform urbanism – or the digital platforms’ impact on the built environment. How can we de-colonize platforms to imagine more equitable futures? 

Some issues addressed include crypto-currency urbanisms in the global south, Google Earth visualisations, the production of ‘the natural’ online, and the use of digital platforms in anti-colonial social movements. We will explore what it means to de-centre colonial-patriarchal assumptions of digital architecture towards expanded, more inclusive spatial and philosophical vocabularies.

We will engage writings from feminist, decolonial and postcolonial theory such as: Sylvia Wynter, Aimé Césaire, Walter Mignolo, Anibal Quijano, Emmanuele Coccia, Frantz Fanon, Nelson Maldonado-Torres, Anna Tsing, Laboria Cuboniks and Donna Haraway. Examples from contemporary art, architecture, fiction and film will be shown throughout the course, and students will be encouraged to research in an inter and trans-disciplinary way to widen the scope of what architecture entails.

The seminar will be taught via group discussions, lectures, and excursions, which will include exhibition visits, walks, attendance at public events and maybe picnics. There will be group work throughout the course, but in order to complete the course successfully, each student will be asked to write a 5,000-word essay in English. In the seminar, we will also discuss different strategies for critical writing, and students will be given the support and equipped with the skills needed to write such an essay. Individual tutorials will also be possible, if necessary, to support the development of the final essay.

The main elements of the seminars will be exhibition visits, excursions, attendance of events, group discussions, group assignments, lectures, and literature study. Individual tutorials will also be possible if necessary to support with the development of the final essay.

Dates:

First Seminar: 19 March 2024, 2pm

Second Seminar: 9 April 2024, 2pm

Third Seminar: 7 May 2024, 2pm

Fourth Seminar: 14 May 2024, 2pm

Fifth Seminar: 28 May 2024, 2pm

active contribution to the seminar; seminar paper