What was the most difficult issue about working within this building type or the most unexpected challenge that may have influenced new thought in your project?

The Institution has an interactive artist-in-residence program that effectively transforms the way the exhibit space works, going from a conventional passive exhibit to a participatory viewing of the work in progress. In the context of a public space this presents challenges for both the artist and the public while adding richness to the experience.

Did this project evolve your role as an architect in any way? In general, do you feel that the role of the architect is changing on current projects?

In every building that we undertake we are posed with new challenges. Nowadays the public has an increased level of expectation for public buildings. Art itself has expanded to include a variety of media that challenge a conventional exhibit space. Our architectural approach is by preference inclusive. Challenging curatorial demands can provide opportunities for added architectural richness.

How is your building possible today in a way that it may not have been before and how have trends in technology and society inspired new thought and solutions?

Technological advances in visualization have had a positive impact in architectural practice. The ability to test design ideas and to simulate them convincingly in virtual reality has allowed for a deeper level of participation of the user in the design process. In turn this yields better-informed commentary, allowing for an improved outcome.

In the context of this project, how is your office and design process being influenced by current trends in academic curricula and incoming young architects? In turn, how are current projects and processes guiding the ongoing reformulation and development of academic curricula?

Because of a common interest in new information technology both in academia and in professional practice, young architects have something tangible to offer to employers, in the form of advanced knowledge of software and visualization techniques thereby replacing the formerly mandatory and most desirable skill of drawing well. These new skills help bridge a longstanding gap between the academic world and the practice of architecture where a new graduate had a long training period before becoming productive in an architectural practice.
Whether information technology is viewed as an important source of design ideas or only a way of improving documentation and project delivery, advanced knowledge of current technological tools has become fundamental in the practice of architecture.

Architype Review thanks Renzo Zecchetto for his interview and for contributing to this collection of Architype Dialogue.