Michael and Jason Lee’s studio, Crisis Fronts is participating in The Culture Now Project, a design research initiative led by Thom Mayne at UCLA’s Department of Architecture engaged developing design research addressing the intersection of public policy, urban design, and emerging social, cultural, and technological trends of importance to the future of the American city. In its first iteration as the UCLA Post Professional Suprastudio, the project examined a number of declining or at-risk American cities, including Merced, Toledo, Flint, New Orleans, and Atlantic City.
As of 2011, the project has been expanded to include ten additional schools of architecture with the aim of creating an inter-institutional consortium for the generation and exchange of new ideas and design strategies exploring a broad range of spatial, economic, technological, and cultural issues. Each participating school has identified a design studio and/or seminar which will address the research agenda of The Culture Now Project, produce a body of related research and design work over the course of the year, and participate in collaborative events, publications, reviews, exhibitions, and presentations with the other teams.
The studio will focus on Newark, New Jersey. Look for research updates and design folios on the Pratt page at Culture Now.
