Young architects who are just building up their own practices find themselves in the midst of urgent issues — climate crisis, rising construction costs and higher rents, buildings as objects for speculation — and with limited room for manoeuvre. What form does architecture take on when architects consistently engage with social and environmental issues? What does this architecture of the future look like? How do young architects find worthwhile commissions? How do they initiate projects themselves? How can more equitable living spaces and working structures be designed in collaboration, and maintained together?

Concerns of and positions held by young architects were collected in a series of interviews by and with those concerned, and then condensed further collectively in a series of workshops held throughout Austria.

60 young architects practising in Austria and the surrounding area were part of the interview series held by Ella Felber and Silvester Kreil in 2022 for 'Junge Architekt*innen verorten sich' at nextroom. These young architects are currently building up their own practices, campaigning for fairer architectural work, seeking exchange and building networks. 34 of them came together for the workshops in Linz, Dornbirn and Graz in spring 2023. 8 of them form the zkmb core team and ensured that the series of workshops could take place and that the exhibition could come about. The concerns frequently mentioned in the workshops and interviews are now the content of the exhibition "Back and Forth Cost Estimates, Breastfeeding and Turnaround Strategies – Positions of our Generation" at Architekturzentrum Wien.

Natascha Peinsipp and Felix Steinhoff from asphalt kollektiv are part of the core team and were responsible for the organisation of the workshop in Graz and Vienna, the design concept and construction of the exhibition, were part of the team for funding and part of the team for collecting, mapping and curating the content.

Status
completed

Year
2022-2023

Location
Linz, Dornbirn, Graz, Vienna

TYPE
cooperative process

category
research

Tags
ideas / workshop

client
diskurs – Verein für künstlerische Forschung, Raumpolitik und Designstrategien

Team
Natascha Peinsipp / Felix Steinhoff mit Solveig Furu Almo, Ella Felber, Anna Firak, Silvester Kreil, Lukas Pankraz Mähr, Theresa Reisenhofer 

workshop participants
Adna Babahmetovic; Ajna Babahmetovic; Alexander Topf; Angelika Hinterbrandner; Anna Firak° und Judith Kinzl° / JUAN kollektiv; Anna Jäger und Jomo Ruderer / wohnlabor; Bianca Anna Boeckle° / BothAnd; Clara Hamann; Dennis Stratmann° und Patrick Pazdzior° / G-A-N-G Atelier; Eva M. Hierzer° und Stephan Brugger / NOW Architektur; Felix Steinhoff° und Natascha Peinsipp° / asphalt kollektiv; Felix Zankel° und Jakub Dvorak° / joyjoy studio; Franziska Möhrle / Atelier Auf´Strich; Jamie Wagner; Lisa Marie Hafner; Lukas Pankraz Mähr° und Solveig Furu Almo° / Studio SAAL; Max Hohenfellner; Maximilian Meindl und Paul Eis / mais.kollektiv; Nikolaus Gartner°; Nina Kuess° / KUESS Architektur; Özgül Coban und Stijn Nagels° / stijn nagels | architecture atelier; Silvester Kreil; Theresa Reisenhofer° / supertomorrowarchitecture; Wolfgang Gruber / LOCI.
(Personen mit ° wurden vorab interviewt)
Thanks to Jana Entenmann, Nina Kugler, Pia Mähr and Lia Bauer for the childcare.

photo credits
zkmb

Links
www.zkmb.at