Bracket 4 [Takes Action]

The rise of several divisive leaders within contemporary politics, has once again brought action to the foreground. As a new generation makes their voices heard, they are also grappling to find effective platforms for action through design. The notion of action simultaneously evokes a discussion on what we are acting for and value. This is particularly important to consider at a moment when the authoritative systems — governments and corporations — appear more divergent to the voices on the ground. At the same time, within an increasingly pluralistic society, what we collectively value is increasingly unclear, which presents a primary challenge on action. Bracket 4 [Takes Action] is situated at a critical point in history where the who, what, where, and how of action need to be re-conceptualised to relate to who we are, how we live, and how we communicate today. The role of design and the agency of the designer are at stake in facilitating or stifling action.

About the Author :
Neeraj Bhatia is a licensed architect and urban designer whose work resides at the intersection of politics, infrastructure, and urbanism. He is an assistant professor at the California College of the Arts where he also co-directs the urbanism research lab, The Urban Works Agency. Prior to CCA, Bhatia held teaching positions at Cornell University, Rice University, and the University of Toronto. Neeraj is also founder of The Open Workshop, a transcalar design-research office examining the negotiation between architecture and its territorial environment. In 2016, the Open Workshop was awarded the Young Architects Prize from the Architectural League of New York as well as an Emerging Leaders Award from Design Intelligence. Mason White is a Canadian-American architect and urbanist based in Toronto, Ontario. White is founding partner of Lateral Office, a Toronto-based experimental design practice that operates at the intersection of architecture, landscape, and urbanism. In addition to his practice, White is associate professor at the Daniels Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design at the University of Toronto. He is recipient of the Emerging Voices and Young Architects Prize from the Architectural League of New York; the Wheelwright Fellowship from the Harvard University Graduate School of Design; the Friedman Visiting Professorship at the University of California, Berkeley; and the Lefevre Fellowship at The Ohio State University. White is co-editor of Bracket, vol. 1 and co-editor of Pamphlet Architecture, no. 30: Coupling--Strategies for Infrastructural Opportunism.