Markus Miessen
Markus Miessen (*1978) is an architect and writer. The initiator of the Participation Quadrilogy, his work revolves around the question of critical spatial practice, institution building, and spatial politics.
In various collaborations, Miessen has published, amongst other titles: Actors, Agents and Attendants (Sternberg Press/ SKOR, 2011), Waking Up From The Nightmare of Participation (Expodium, 2011), The Nightmare of Participation (Sternberg Press, 2010), Institution Building (Sternberg Press, 2009), East Coast Europe (Sternberg Press, 2008), The Violence of Participation (Sternberg Press, 2007), With/Without: Spatial Products, Practices, and Politics in the Middle East (Bidoun, 2007), Did Someone Say Participate? An Atlas of Spatial Practice (MIT Press, 2006), and Spaces of Uncertainty (Müller & Busmann, 2002).
His work has been published and exhibited internationally, including at the Lyon, Venice, Performa, Manifesta, Gwangju, and Shenzhen Biennials. Architectural projects include LU Arts Centre (UK), Gwangju Biennial Hub (Korea), Performa Hubs 09/11 (US), the reappropriation of a former post-office for Manifesta 8 (Spain), a new interior for Witte de With (NL), and the largest project to date: a masterplan and Kunsthalle building for a former NATO nuclear-warhead bunker facility in Germany.
As a consultant, Miessen has advised The European Kunsthalle (Cologne), SKOR (Amsterdam), WIRE (Zurich), and The Government of Slovenia (New York).
In 2008, he founded the Winter School Middle East (Dubai & Kuwait). Academic positions include Architectural Association London (2004–08), Berlage Institute Rotterdam (2009–10) and Hochschule für Gestaltung Karlsruhe (2010-11). He has been a Harvard GSD Fellow in 2010.
Miessen is currently a professor for Critical Spatial Practice at the Städelschule in Frankfurt, and guest professor at HEAD Geneva as well as USC Los Angeles.
www.studiomiessen.com
www.criticalspatialpractice.org
www.winterschoolmiddleeast.org