Ivan Mirkovski, a BIG SEE Nominator, is a Macedonian architect, urbanist, and educator focusing on the social and ethical aspects of architecture. He is Professor of Urban Design at the University American College Skopje (UACS) and co-founder of the architectural studio Superblock. His reflection highlights the need to move beyond constant production toward design that is socially and environmentally responsible.
“It is time to shift our focus from the spectacle of the new to the stewardship of the existing.”
From Production to Relevance: The Ethics of “Just Enough”
Is the question of “enough” truly as obvious as it seems? Perhaps there is no such thing as “too much,” nor is there a state of “just enough” – instead, our built environment exists as a series of fragments within our collective imagination. As Douglas Adams sardonically noted, the reality we perceive may simply be a “product of a deranged imagination.” In this light, the architect’s imagination is a potent tool for deception. Through a refined sense of spatial articulation and scale, we possess the power to skew reality and construct environments biased by theories that may no longer hold relevance.
We crave these “fragmented realities” – new places viewed through specific theoretical prisms. Yet, the architectural process itself is omniscient; whether through procreation or disintegration, it always leaves a residue. Much like the slime-trail of a snail, this leftover material marks a path toward new revelations. We inhabit a world of omnipresent plasticity – a perpetual sandbox for production. We thrive on the challenge of “sucking” form out of functional context, distorting it into a myriad of shapes.
However, we must now pivot. The current climate demands a reevaluation of our output, advocating instead for adaptation, reuse, and accommodation. It is time to shift our focus from the spectacle of the new to the stewardship of the existing. The central question is one of relevance: are we ready to let go?
There is simply too much architecture!
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