Syracuse University

The School of Architecture at Syracuse University in Florence and the Observatory
on Architecture of the Targetti Foundation, in collaboration with Istituto degli
Innocenti and Osservatorio Arte Contemporanea Ente CRF, will present the
symposium "Civic Space in Scattered Cities" on Wednesday, March 25, at the Salone
Brunelleschi, Istituto degli Innocenti in Florence. The event explores the possibilities
for generating civic identity in the sprawl of contemporary Europe. The lack of
cultural spaces that serve this widespread development presents one of the most
challenging, yet least considered, problems in social management and design.

The day will include presentations and a round table discussion by architects and
urbanists, who will introduce projects and strategies for public spaces that address
this critical issue. Among the participants:

• Winy Maas is one of the co-founding directors of MVRDV. Maas' current
  projects include a master plan for Greater Paris; a mixed-use development in
  Tirana, Albania; a bank's headquarters building in Oslo; and a market hall in
  Rotterdam. Currently a visiting professor of architectural design at the
  Massachusetts Institute of Technology, he is a professor in architecture and
  urban design in the faculty of architecture at Delft University of Technology.

  
  

• Teddy Cruz is recognized internationally for his work with community-based
  nonprofit organizations such as Casa Familiar for their research and work on
  housing and its relationship to alternative land use policies, modes of
  sociability and economic processes. He is currently an associate professor in
  public culture and urbanism in the Visual Arts Department at the University
  of California at San Diego.

  
  

• Margaret Crawford is a professor of urban planning and design theory at
  Harvard University's Graduate School of Design. Her principal area of
  research and writing is focused on the nature and status of public space in the
  contemporary built environment. Her writing focuses on "suburban life and
  public space" and includes work on shopping mall architect John Jerde and
  the widely read article "The World in a Shopping Mall."
  

The symposium is organized by Pino Brugellis, an architect and head of the
Observatory on Architecture in Florence; Richard Ingersoll, professor at the Syracuse
Architecture program in Florence; and Lawrence Davis, a professor at the Syracuse
University School of Architecture and coordinator of the Syracuse Architecture
program in Florence.

Syracuse University School of Architecture is the fourth-oldest program in the United
States and is consistently rated among the top architecture schools in the country.
The school's undergraduate program was recently ranked fourth in the nation by
DesignIntelligence. As part of its Global Campus Studies, the school offers programs
in Florence, London and New York City.

For more information, visit http://soa.syr.edu.