Thom Mayne, FAIA, on Urban Projects

AIALA Urban Design Committee presents:
Thom Mayne, FAIA: Combinatory Urbanism / Architecture as a Social Art

1.5 LU/HSW

Pritzker Prize recipient Thom Mayne, FAIA of Morphosis Architects in Culver City, California will present a series of urban projects across a variety of scales that demonstrate the belief that architecture and urban planning are not mutually exclusive fields, nor do they occupy certain territories of scale. For Morphosis, every project begins with research as the driving force of production and the work illustrates the balance that the firm has sought between the rational and intuitive processes of design. These notions are present in the firm’s earliest work and carry through Thom’s research at UCLA and more recently, The Now Institute. Among other projects, Thom will present his research project for the development of the Wilshire Corridor in Los Angeles.

Learning Objectives:
Participants will be able to describe how the firm implements a research-based approach to design at all scales. Every project begins with research as the driving force of production, and the work illustrates the balance that the firm has sought between the rational and intuitive processes of design.

Participants will discuss how the firm instills an urban sensibility in projects of all scales, and how early investigations informed later, larger scale projects. They will explore the principles present in the firm’s earliest work that also carry through Thom’s research at UCLA and more recently, The Now Institute.

Participants will analyze how the firm approaches architecture and urban design in varying global contexts. Among other projects, Thom will present his research project for the development of the Wilshire Corridor in Los Angeles. The Now Institute study includes a proposal to extend the purple Metro line and provide a high density, interconnected, urban community along Los Angeles’ iconic Wilshire Corridor.

Participants will be able to explain how the Wilshire Corridor is an ideal urban laboratory for studying the interrelationship of density, demographics, transit, and access to resources in the city, and for exploring various planning scenarios that respond to and accommodate anticipated population growth, while encouraging positive transformation in terms of walkability, safety, and environmental responsibility.

Participants will examine Wilshire Boulevard in comparison to significant streets in other global metropolises — including Barcelona’s Avenue Diagonal and New York’s Broadway — and how the Now Institute’s study examines real-world responses to growth and transformation that could offer alternative, more sustainable strategies for Los Angeles.