At the International Architecture Biennale Rotterdam (IABR) The Mobile City organized a number of events between November 5th and 12th 2009, including a keynote, workshop and exhibition with the American artist, architect and researcher Mark Shepard. The events are part of the ‘Connectivity’ theme of the IABR and are organized in cooperation with the IABR, the Netherlands Architecture Institute and the Royal Institute of Dutch Architects.

Reports and Accounts

Read our extended version of our keynote speech at the Day of the Young Architect “How can architects relate to digital media?”

Read our Report on the Sentient Rotterdam Workshop

Institute of networkcultures Blog ‘Sentient City workshop @ IABR‘ by Elena Tiis

Liesbeth Huybrecht’s Report of the workshop for E-Cultuur Weblog

Brief News announcement on Architectenweb

Overview of Events

• November 5th 20:00-22:00 Keynote with Mark Shepard
  NAi Auditorium Rotterdam
• November 6th 12:00-17:00 Sentient Rotterdam Workshop with Mark Shepard & The Mobile City. IABR Forum, NAi Rotterdam
• November 6th 17:00-19:00 Opening of the Exhibition The Sentient City Survival Kit. The opening events includes a public presentation of the workshop results
  IABR Open Podium, NAi Rotterdam. The Exhibition will last until November 12th. This event is followed by a Pecha Kucha Program at 20:20.
• November 7th 10:00-20:00 Day of the Young Architect with keynote lecture by The Mobile City.

All events take place at NAi Rotterdam.

The theme of the 4th International Architecture Biennale Rotterdam is the Open City, a city that is diverse, lively and socially sustainable, where people can productively relate to each other culturally, socially, as well as economically. More specifically, with the theme Open City: Designing Coexistence, the 4th IABR raises the question of social cohesion in the city from the point of view of its designer: how can architects and urbanists make realistic contributions to the sustainable quality of the urban condition.

With the theme ‘Connectivity’ the IABR examines the role of digital media technologies in urban culture. Can these technologies be applied to contribute to the Open City? Or are they endangering its ideals? How can architects and designers anticipate and take advantage of these new technologies?

In relation to the ‘connectivity’ theme, we have invited Mark Shepard as a special guest. Mark Shepard is an architect, artist and researcher. He directs the Media Architecture Computing program at the Univeristy of Buffalo, and recently curated the exhibit ‘Toward the Sentient City‘ that was organized by the Architectural League of New York . He is also one of the editors of the The Situated Technologies Pamphlet Series.

Earlier this year The Mobile City published an interview with Mark Shepard.