MASTERCrit

MASTERcrit was inaugurated in 2015 as a hybrid series of events that encompassed lectures, critiques and a charrette. Modelled on the traditional notion of a ‘Master Class’ the workshop enlisted the best graduating students from the school as nominated by the faculty to work in an intensive pedagogic setting with a world-class practitioner. The so-called invited ‘MASTERcritics’ were MOS in 2015, Andrew Zago in 2016, and Jurgen Mayer H. in 2017. In all cases, these architects were tasked with presenting a project brief to the team, which reflected a current pre-occupation in their own discursive production. Students in turn were asked to produce artefacts that manifested their responses. In addition to documentation of the workshops and resultant work, the book includes the briefs and transcripts of conversations. AUTHOR: Jasmine Benyamin is Associate Professor of Architecture at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee School of Architecture and Urban Planning. She received her Ph.D. in Architecture (history/theory) from Princeton University and her Master of Architecture degree from Yale. She currently teaches design studios and seminars at all levels and is the Chair of the PhD. Program. SELLING POINTS: MASTERcrit is a publication that documents and exceeds the outcomes of a curated series of events at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee School of Architecture and Urban Planning Novel pedagogic model. It bridges the discursive gaps between polemical essays, histories, monograph and project documentation Geared to students and practitioners Includes previously unpublished content, including interviews with renowned figures in the profession 180 colour images