Lebbeus Woods

Following studies in architecture at the University of Illinois, Lebbeus Woods (b.1940) worked in the studio of Eero Saarinen/Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo Associates. After 1976, he abandoned the profession to devote himself totally to theory and experimental design. Following a cycle of utopian and visionary projects prefiguring symbolic spaces (Einstein Tomb, 1980) or non-localized new cities (Centricity, 1987), since 1988 Woods has applied his research to existing cities. Among these projects included are: the cycle of "architecture and war" for the reconstruction of Sarajevo and Bosnia (1993/96—war in the traditional sense, between men), and San Francisco Houses (1995/97—war against natural forces). From the outset, what characterizes Lebbeus Woods is not just the radical and experimental nature of his projects but also an extraordinary capacity for draftsmanship and an unceasing theoretical research, demonstrating a profound interest toward the philosophical, psychoanalytical, and cybernetic. Woods has received numerous awards and recognitions, such as the American Institute of Architects Honors Award (1991) and the American Academy of Arts and Letters Award for Architecture (2007). His works may be found in public and private collections, including those of MoMA and the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York, and the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.

Michele Porcu, architect and critic, graduated in the Faculty of Architecture, Politecnico of Milan in 1992, is professor at the Faculty of Design, Politecnico of Milan and at the Faculty of Exhibition Design at NABA, Milan.