Scratching the Surface

Ila Bêka and Louise Lemoine are filmmakers, video artists, producers, and publishers. Their films focus on experimenting with new narratives and cinematographic forms in relationship to architecture and the urban environment. In 2016, their complete works were acquired by the Museum of Modern Art in New York. In this conversation, Jarrett talks with Bêka and Lemoine about filmmaking as architecture, how their work is a type of design criticism, and countering the dominant design discourse. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/231-ila-beka-louise-lemoine. — If you enjoy the show, please consider supporting us on Patreon and get bonus content, transcripts, and our monthly newsletter! www.patreon.com/surfacepodcast

Sarah Whiting is an architect, writer, editor, and the current dean of Harvard GSD. She is a design principal and co-founder of WW Architecture and from 2010 to 2019, she served as the dean of Rice University's School of Architecture. Her interdisciplinary research focuses on architecture's relationship with politics, economics, and society. Her writing has appeared in a range of publications from ANY to Wired and she's edited a variety of books, periodicals, and anthologies. In this conversation, Jarrett and Sarah talk about the value of interdisciplinarity, the intersection of theory and practice, and why editing is core to her practice. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/230-sarah-whiting. — If you enjoy the show, please consider supporting us on Patreon and get bonus content, transcripts, and our monthly newsletter! www.patreon.com/surfacepodcast

Fraser Muggeridge is a graphic designer based in London. His studio works across a range of formats with a focus on typography and formal innovation. In 2010, he founded and is a tutor at the Typography Summer School, a week-long program for recent graduates and professionals and in 2022, he completed a PhD at RMIT called ”A Knowing Wrongness: Innovation in graphic design through combinations of traditional mastery and deliberately unconventional techniques”. In this conversation, Jarrett and Fraser talk about the ideas behind a knowing wrongness, the importance of process, and why so much contemporary graphic design looks the same. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/229-fraser-muggeridge. — If you enjoy the show, please consider supporting us on Patreon and get bonus content, transcripts, and our monthly newsletter! www.patreon.com/surfacepodcast

Jeremiah Chiu is a creative director, artist, synthesis, and educator. He is an Assistant Professor at Otis College of Art & Design, a lecturer at Art Center College of Design, and a resident DJ at Dublab. His studio, Some All None, is a hybrid creative studio working at the intersection of graphic design, art, music, and technology. His most recent album, recorded with Marta Sofia Honer, is called Recordings from the Åland Islands. In this conversation, Jeremiah and Jarrett talk about balancing personal work with client work, how to rethink classroom critiques, and how performing music influences his design practice. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/228-jeremiah-chiu. — If you enjoy the show, please consider supporting us on Patreon and get bonus content, transcripts, and our monthly newsletter! www.patreon.com/surfacepodcast

Andrés Jaque is the founder of the Office for Political Innovation and the newly appointed dean of Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation. His work spans architecture, performance, publishing, curating, and research. In this conversation, Jarrett and Andrés talk about what he wants to do in his new position at Columbia, the intersection of politics and architecture, and how thinking in scales influences his work. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/227-andres-jaque. — If you enjoy the show, please consider supporting us on Patreon and get bonus content, transcripts, and our monthly newsletter! www.patreon.com/surfacepodcast

Katherine McCoy is a graphic designer and educator. From 1971 to 1995, she was the co-artist-in-residence with Michael McCoy of the pioneering design department at the Cranbook Academy of Art. With Mike, she is the co-author of Cranbrook Design: The New Discourse and continued to teach at a variety of schools around the world. In this conversation, Katherine and Jarrett talk about the state of graphic design in seventies, learning how to teach design, and the influence of Dutch design on Cranbrook's curriculum. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/226-katherine-mccoy. — If you enjoy the show, please consider supporting us on Patreon and get bonus content, transcripts, and our monthly newsletter! www.patreon.com/surfacepodcast

Michael McCoy is an industrial designer and educator. From 1971 to 1995, he was the co-artist-in-residence with Katherine McCoy of the pioneering design department at the Cranbook Academy of Art. With Katherine, he is the co-author of Cranbrook Design: The New Discourse and continued to teach at a variety of schools around the world. In this conversation, Michael and Jarrett talk about his early industrial design education, how he and Kathy joined Cranbrook, and how they fostered a space of experimentation in the department. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/225-michael-mccoy. — If you enjoy the show, please consider supporting us on Patreon and get bonus content, transcripts, and our monthly newsletter! www.patreon.com/surfacepodcast

Carson Chan is an architecture writer, curator, and educator. He is the inaugural director of the Emilio Ambasz Institute for the Joint Study of the Built and Natural Environment at MoMA and a curator in the department of architecture and design. He previously co-founded the Current Collective for Architecture History and Environment and the Berlin-based project space PROGRAM. In this conversation, Jarrett and Carson talk about the ambition of the Ambasz Institute, the process of redefining architecture, and why aquariums are a lens to view the intersections of the natural and built worlds. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/224-carson-chan. — If you enjoy the show, please consider supporting us on Patreon and get bonus content, transcripts, and our monthly newsletter! www.patreon.com/surfacepodcast

James Bridle is a writer, artist, and technologist. They are the author, most recently, of Ways of Being and previously wrote New Dark Age. They've exhibited art in galleries and institutions around the world and have written for publications like Wired, The Atlantic, and the Guardian. In this wide-ranging conversation, Jarrett and James talk about the limited ways we talk about artificial intelligence, why human-centered design might just be corporation-centered design, and the value of working across mediums. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/223-james-bridle. — If you enjoy the show, please consider supporting us on Patreon and get bonus content, transcripts, and our monthly newsletter! www.patreon.com/surfacepodcast

Iker Gil is an architect and director of MAS Studio, the editor-in-chief of MAS Context, and the Executive Director of the SOM Foundation. He was the co-curator of Exhibit Columbus 2020-2021 and associate curator of the US Pavilion at the 16th Venice Architecture Biennale in 2016. In this conversation, Jarrett and Iker talk about the relationship between architecture and editing, sustaining a publication, and the value of organizing and administration in creative work. Links from this episode can be found at scratchingthesurface.fm/222-iker-gil. — If you enjoy the show, please consider supporting us on Patreon and get bonus content, transcripts, and our monthly newsletter! www.patreon.com/surfacepodcast