We can no longer judge the quality of a project solely by its response to a certain set of problems existing at a particular moment in time. Rather, it is the capacity of the project to adapt to a changing reality, to integrate new ways of living and to evolve in pace with the shifting pattern of needs and expectations of current and future users. It is the ability of architecture to anticipate the world of tomorrow.

The designer must, therefore, begin by reinventing himself. Whatever the project, whether it be a piece of a city or an architectural work, the designer must project himself into the future in order to imagine all the possible ways in which the project may evolve, and to cater for the unforeseeable. He must be able to deal with a constantly changing present, which may be evolving faster than the duration of the project. His thought process must allow for a constantly changing timescale, and a large measure of uncertainty and unpredictability. He must risk proposing different hypotheses, and alternate between firm control and improvisation, creating a dynamic equilibrium and versatile spaces.

The Arte meta-card evokes a selection of themed questions which we consider highly topical, and of strategic value, for the start of 2019 and the coming years, which form the foundation of our research and development.

ARTE CHARPENTIER ARCHITECTES

ARCHITECTURE,
ARCHITECTURE INTÉRIEURE,
URBANISME, PAYSAGE

Paris • Lyon • Shanghai
www.arte-charpentier.com