CLOSED: Extended Deadline: Call for Abstracts: Special Issue of the DOCOMOMO Journal - Learning from Modern Movement Interiors in Times of Crisis

2023-04-28

DOCOMOMO International re-announces the Call for Abstracts for a special issue of the Docomomo Journal dedicated to the functioning and experience of the modern interior in times of crisis, showcasing a variety of insightful perspectives from around the world. The Covid-19 pandemic has made us more aware of our intricate relationship to the natural environment and the need for a wide range of strategies to tackle a common issue. These are themes which directly relate to qualities of the Modern Movement and may inspire an expansion of existing discussions.

Having initiated an online discussion at the Tokyo Congress in 2021 ‘Modernism Frozen, Urbanism and Architecture under/after Covid-19: Learning from Modern Movement Interiors in Times of Pandemic’*, organized by Docomomo International, it was clear that the short and long term and small and large-scale effects necessitated further discussion as new pieces of information were discovered.

These are some of the questions that may expand the dialogue:

  • What does the Modern Movement’s legacy teach us about living in health and hygiene?
  • How relevant are its views on related issues, such as the modes of transition between the private and the public, between the built and the natural environment, especially in a context of crisis?
  • Do ideas such as the machine à habiter or the Existenz Minimum provide clues for new typologies, which, with the aid of technology, can adapt the boundaries between the private, collective and public spheres, preventing excesses of distance or solitude, and enhancing solidarity?
  • Can concerns for the truthful treatment of functions or for an architecture focused on the scale, movement and perception of the human body help make space for the personal, the human and the poetic within a framework aimed at control, purification and biosecurity?
  • How can these topics influence new build and re-use design processes?
  • Do original MoMo typologies function well under crisis management?
  • What might a revisiting of our relationship with nature unravel, and what might this say about our interior spaces?

The Docomomo International Specialists Committee on Interior Design believes it is relevant to consider these issues with reference to the Modern Movement. We propose to conceive ‘interior qualities’ as all qualities related to experience – whether indoor or outdoor –, avoiding the narrow interpretation of the interior. This is an open call for academics and practitioners with an interest in the subject to contribute to this special issue of the Docomomo Journal with:

articles (documentation, technical and conservation issues, case studies);
essays and interviews;
best practice cases involving endangered heritage;
tributes and book reviews.

This Docomomo Journal is guest edited by Zsuzsanna Böröcz (KU Leuven and University of Antwerp, Belgium) and Deniz Hasirci (Izmir University of Economics, Turkey). We are seeking contributions based on scientific research of Modernism’s theoretical foundations as well as of its practices, its tangible legacy and its most appropriate sustainable conservation techniques from all continents.

Submission specifications:

Scientific Committee: the guest editors and members of the Specialist Committee on Publishing of Docomomo International.

After double-blind peer review the contributions for this special issue will be selected by the guest editors in cooperation with the editorial team of the Docomomo Journal. The Docomomo Journal is Open Access and indexed by Scopus and DOAJ - Directory of Open Access Journals among others (www.docomomojournal.com).

 

Please, send us your abstract of 300 words and 100-word CV in English, accompanied by maximum three illustrations (300 dpi) to the OJS system by 30th June, 2023. The schedule for the launch of this special issue of Docomomo Journal will be defined after examination of the received material.

 

* This call is based upon work of the Specialist Committee of Interior Design of Docomomo International in the context of the series of debates entitled ‘Modernism Frozen, Urbanism and Architecture under/after Covid-19’ (https://docomomo.be/learning-from-modern-movement-interiors-in-times-of-pandemic/).