CULTURE

Abstract
It would be nice to make architecture like trees, in the broadest sense. So the trees are the architecture, and the forest is the city. So, let’s not forget to see the forest for the city. Just as the saying goes “You can’t see the forest for the trees”.

Bio
Javier Corvalán Espínola, born in Asunción, Paraguay, received his architectural degree from the Catholic University of Asunción and completed his postgraduate studies at the Sapienza University of Rome.
He is Professor at the Facultad de Arquitectura, Diseño y Arte at the National University of Asunción, and Professor at the Facultad de Ciencias y Tecnologías at the Catholic University of Asunción. He also teaches at several universities in Latin America and holds a Visiting Professor title at the Istituto di Urbanistica e Architettura di Venezia (IUAV).

He gives conferences at universities around the world. His projects and works have been published in specialized architectural books, journals and magazines. He has won several public, national, and international competitions, and many of his designs have been built. In 2006, he received the Official Cross, awarded by Juan Carlos I, King of Spain, for his design and work at the Centro Cultural de España Juan de Salazar.
In 2018, he received the Medaglia d’Argento del Pontificato for the design and construction of one of the chapels representing the Vatican at the Venice Architecture Biennale in Italy.
In 2020, he received his PhD in Architecture, City, and Design from the Istituto di Urbanistica e Architettura di Venezia (IUAV).

Location: Temple Buell Hall - Plym Auditorium

Lecture begins 5:30PM

Reception begins 5:00PM

When: 9/15/25 ...

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The Illinois School of Architecture presents BEYOND CLOSURE, an exhibition that examines the lasting architectural and cultural reverberations of the 2013 closure of nearly 50 public schools in Chicago. Through oral histories, design research, and documentation of site activations, the exhibition investigates how school buildings and their grounds have functioned as vital civic spaces—and what is at stake when they disappear.

At the center of the exhibition is the work of Borderless Studio, a Chicago- and San Antonio-based architecture and urban design practice. Their initiative, Creative Grounds, reimagines former school sites as community assets, exploring how art, design, and architecture can open more inclusive pathways for their reuse. During the run of the exhibition, the floor in Temple Hoyne Buell Hall’s atrium is transformed into a map of Chicago that locates the sites of closed schools, creating an inhabitable platform to explore the opportunities for future reuse.

The exhibition also features Asif Wilson, Assistant Professor of Curriculum & Instruction in the College of Education. His project, Closing Schools is a Hate Crime, gathers testimonies that lay bare the profound harm caused by the closure, consolidation, and privatization of CPS schools—particularly in Chicago’s most disinvested and disenfranchised neighborhoods. “Off the Hook” is a reenacted teacher’s desk, inviting exhibit-goers to dial-in and listen to oral histories from educators and activists.

Join us on Friday, September 19 at 1:00pm for a screening of Beyond Closure, a new documentary film by On The Reel Film and Borderless, followed by a discussion and workshop with creator and executive producer Paola Aguirre Serrano, who is also founding partner and urban designer at Borderless Studio.

Exhibit Location : Temple Buell Hall Atrium
Exhibit Dates: September 15–October 5, 2025 ...

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Annual Architecture Awards 2025

Join us for a memorable evening celebrating the remarkable achievements of our students at the Illinois School of Architecture.

A3 Logo Design 2025 - Riley Vernon

Closed Event
Doors open at 5:00 PM
Location: I Hotel & Conference Center, 1900 South First Street

#wedesign #archatillinois #ace ...

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