Back JUNG Talk – The Podcast Audio Library

Every two years, architects turn their attention to Barcelona. This is because it is here inside the German Pavilion – designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Lilly Reich for the 1929 Barcelona International Exposition – that the "European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture – Mies van der Rohe Prize" is awarded. The prize is considered Europe's most important award for groundbreaking architecture. It is therefore both a seismograph of future developments and a snapshot of the diversity of the current construction tasks. Established offices compete alongside young, up-and-coming architects, with entries selected in a multi-stage, interdisciplinary selection process. The focus of the competition is on the cultural role of architecture in the construction of our towns and cities, and prize-winners receive confirmation from the professional world while being provided with a springboard with which to reach a broader public.
Since 2016, architect Anna Ramos has been the director of the Fundació Mies van der Rohe. In our podcast today, we talk to Anna Ramos about the balancing act of fulfilling the public mission for the goals set by the Fundació and at the same time developing new formats and themes for the architectural discourse.
 

We are facing ecological problems of unprecedented dimensions and complexity, and all of them are self-inflicted. The construction industry is contributing to global warming like no other industry. Today, a large proportion of climate-damaging emissions are caused by construction, so the industry also has a responsibility to develop solutions for the construction of tomorrow. Werner Sobek is known for his pointed statements, the sharpness of which serve to remind, enlighten and at the same time point the way to the future. Resource and energy consumption, research into new construction methods, and also the impact of construction on achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change are all topical issues, with the pandemic exacerbating the explosiveness of some of them. The worldwide standstill and the current shortage of materials have made it clear to us how dependent we are also locally on the global economic cycle.
The fact that we need to shape our future more consciously and more actively than has happened so far should be a concern for everyone. In our podcast today, we will talk to Prof. Dr. Werner Sobek about the questions, viewpoints and global connections that arise for him from this discussion.