South-North Reflections




In this talk, I'm interested in discussing in the tensions, challenges, and opportunities of architectural historiography from the south, understood as a conceptual and political position, and the role of the historian in researching, writing, and teaching these narratives. I will reflect  on how these tensions are manifested in my teaching, research, and practice, particularly in relationship to the nature of privilege, the production of otherness within territories traditionally othered, and the agency and right to self-determination of populations under struggle. More broadly, I'm invested in a conversation on how these considerations affect the research and teaching of architectural history, and what is the role of the academic when researching, teaching, or practicing in or on regions under struggle. How might I participate in producing an architectural history from the South when I’m situated in the spaces of the North Atlantic?