Farshid Moussavi, “Architecture As an Instruction-Based Art” @TheHarvardGSD
Farshid Moussavi, “Architecture As an Instruction-Based Art”  @TheHarvardGSD
Uploaded December 2024 | Updated September 2026, 8 hours ago
In Fall 2024, the Druker Design Gallery will host an exhibition of drawings used to coordinate the construction process, that is, drawings that reflect the nature of architecture as an “instruction-based” art.

Construction coordination drawings differ from the sketches, perspectives, diagrams, maquettes, and other images that architects use to convey their ideas for a building. Unlike the painter or the sculptor, the architect’s final act results not in a completed work of art but in a set of instructions that enable the work of art to be realized. In this sense, an architect’s work is closer to that of a conceptual artist.

These instructions are then implemented on a site that is usually exposed to the elements and to the dynamics of often several years that it takes for the many specialist builders, roofers, carpenters, plumbers, electricians, and decorators to complete the building. Meanwhile, the architect remains both legally and morally accountable for all that follows from or is attached to his or her instructions.

This event, moderated by Farshid Moussavi, will feature presentations by several practices whose drawings appear in the exhibition. In brief remarks, the designers will reflect on the drawings and the complex processes they represent.

0:00 Introduction by Sarah Whiting
07:14 Presentation by Farshid Moussavi
27:51 Zoom Presentation by Mack Scogin and Merrill Elam
35:50 Presentation by Sean Canty
39:33 Presentation by Angela Pang
43:55 Presentation by Philip Schmerbeck
50:58 Video Presentation by Toyo Ito
54:25 Video Presentation by Bruther
58:07 Video Presentation by Video Presentation by Iñaki Ábalos
01:03:11 Discussion and Q+A
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Harvard GSD |

Farshid Moussavi, “Architecture As an Instruction-Based Art”

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