United States

Tod Williams is a Founding Partner of Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects | Partners. Their practice is known for their humanistic approach to architecture primarily for institutional clients such as museums, schools, and nonprofits. Prioritizing experience above all, their designs choreograph light, texture, solidity, and a deep sensitivity to the places for which they’re built. While the work has grown in scale, the foundational principles of the practice remain intact: “to serve, to make good marks on the earth, to acknowledge the work comes from not just two hands, but many hands, and, fundamentally, architecture is an act of profound optimism.”

FIU Department of Architecture Lecture Series
Spring 2023

Can we use today's and future empirical means to raise our understanding of the phenomenological effect of sacred spaces and structures, particularly as they relate to spirituality and faith? The work and thought of late neuroscientist Francisco Varela loom large here, but much has occurred since his passing, and a whole new world in neuroscience is unfolding. We will consider the science behind what has been termed 'aesthetic cognitivism' by some philosophers and latest empirical insights coming from theological aesthetics.

FRIEDMAN BENDA
8260 Marmont Lane, Los Angeles CA 90069, www.friedmanbenda.com
10am to 6pm Tuesday through Saturday