Tectonic Shifts: Reflections on Our Practice, a monograph by Wolff Architects

Join us for the New York launch and sale of Tectonic Shifts: Reflections on Our Practice the new book by Wolff Architects. We will be joined by authors Heinrich and Ilze Wolff from Wolff Architects in Cape Town who will be discussing the book and their work with Tianyu Yang and Emanuel Admassu.

Tectonic Shifts, reflects on 12 years of work through the lens of 10 themes and continues a series of reflections on Wolff Architect's working methods and primary concerns. The previous iteration of these reflections was the basis of the 2023 Venice Architecture Biennale exhibition that received a Special Mention from the Jury. The book showcases a wide range of outputs, including projects such as the provincial hospital in Vredenburg, the University of Western Cape’s Centre for Humanities Research in Woodstock, the Bahá’í temple in Kinshasa, and a series of films including ‘Summer Flowers’ about Bessie Head’s garden.

"The work in this book is presented in the manner of a studio visit. We share what we are working on at this moment in time, offering a collage of current work, reflections, and imaginings. We also publish essays, lectures and thought provocations, some for the first time." Wolff Architects

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Wolff Architects is a design studio concerned with developing an architectural practice of consequence through the mediums of design, advocacy, research and documentation. In their Cape Town office, Ilze & Heinrich Wolff lead a team of highly skilled, committed and engaged architects, creative practitioners and administrators. Heinrich held visiting professorships at Harvard GSD (2021/22) and ETH Zurich (2014/5). Ilze is a Dean’s Visiting A. Professor at Columbia University GSAPP (2023/24 ) and a Professor of Practice in Architecture at the School of Architecture at Liverpool University (2023 - present). Both principals have lectured internationally including Switzerland, Germany, Italy, USA, Canada, Japan, and India and continue to do so. The work of the practice has also been included at various international exhibitions including the Venice Architecture Biennale, Shenzhen Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism, Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, the Chicago Architecture Biennale, the São Paulo Art Biennale, and the South American Architecture Biennale. In 2023 the practice was awarded an honourable mention for their work 'Tectonic Shifts' at the 18th Venice Architectural Biennale, curated by Lesley Lokko. wolffarchitects.co.za

Tianyu Yang is a New York-based architectural writer, researcher, and educator. In 2022, she served as an Assistant Adjunct Professor at Columbia GSAPP. Her latest work, "Media Studies: On I.M. Pei at M+, Hong Kong," was published in Artforum. She is currently working on her second publication, Scenographics of Crime, in collaboration with the Berlin-based publishing practice cover crop.

Emanuel Admassu is an architect and assistant professor at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation (GSAPP). He teaches design studios and theory seminars in architecture and urban design. Prior to joining GSAPP, he taught at the Rhode Island School of Design and Harvard GSD. He is also one of the founding board members of the Black Reconstruction Collective. Admassu’s work focuses on spatial justice and African urbanism. His art and architecture practice AD—WO—in partnership with Jen Wood—investigates how race and space are constructed through practices of imaging and measuring. Their work has been exhibited internationally, including at the Venice Biennale (2023), the Chicago Architecture Biennial (2023), the Museum of Modern Art (2021), Architekturmuseum der TU München (2018), and the Studio Museum in Harlem (2017). AD—WO’s work is part of the permanent collections at the Art Institute of Chicago and the High Museum of Art in Atlanta. Admassu is the co-editor of Where Is Africa (with Anita N. Bateman; CARA, 2024), an anthology of interviews, essays, and artworks concerned with the dominant (mis)positioning of the arts in and on Africa.

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Head Hi is an organization dedicated to art, architecture and design specializing in publications and cultural programming with an espresso bar located in Fort Greene, Brooklyn by the Navy Yard. We feature a curated selection of publications from around the globe. Working with local and international artists, designers, publishers, community members and organizations in various fields, Head Hi is a space for exploration and interaction that hosts talks, book launches, art shows, music performances and other events.