Call for Papers: From Conventional to Experimental – Mass Housing and Prefabrication. Online, 14-15 June 2021
DOCOMOMO Israel – Germany Conference
Mass housing owes much of its social ideas and design to architectural prefabrication. However, it seems that the history of prefabrication and its relationship to modernist architectural concepts and their dissemination, has remained somewhat at the margins of contemporary scholarly debates. This is perhaps because most scholarly contributions discuss phenomena that do not engage canonic or iconic case studies of industrialized architecture, while other aspects of research are in the fields of engineering, rather than history.
This conference seeks to explore the connection between prefabrication and mass housing worldwide. The conference invites new research that can deepen our understanding of the inherent and crucial connection between the revolutionary advances in prefabrication that characterized the modern era, and their impact on design. Papers dealing with the dissemination of knowledge with regard to prefabrication – such as the role of organizations, exhibitions and professional publications, are also welcome. The conference further seeks papers that address prefabrication in architecture as an embodiment of distinct social and political ideologies and conditions, such as colonialism and nation-building.
The thematic sessions are organized around the following themes:
- Prefabrication in colonialism and nation building
- Prefabrication at exhibitions
- The emergence and consolidation of typologies out of prefabrication
The full description of the thematic sessions can be downloaded here.
The conference will be held online 14-15 June 2021 and is hosted by the Technion Israel Institute of Technology, DoCoMoMo Israel, DoCoMoMo Germany, and EU COST action Middle Class Mass Housing.
The accepted format is for pre-recorded 15-20 minute presentations and for a virtual poster session. Abstracts of no more than 200 words should be sent by 15 April 2021 to docomomo.is@gmail.com
Please include your name, affiliation, email address and a brief, 100-word biographical note.