Architecture of the Apocalypse 2020

H&P Architects (HPA) was founded in 2009 and Doan Thanh Ha is the one having worked on social aspects of HPA and also led newly founded companies in undertaking challenging projects for poor and disadvantaged communities in Vietnam. In the spirit that Architects for the poor, HPA’s social projects have been formulated in the viewpoint of creating “Essential Spaces” in order to meet the most fundamental needs (physiological needs; safety needs; belonging needs) of the poor constrained by both conditions and opportunities. “Esssentialspaces” is made of “practical materials” (Proper: cheap, locally available, recycled materials) with appropriate construction technology (traditional craftsmanship combined with modern technology, subject to specific contexts) and participated by users from the commencement to the completion of projects. The approach is thereby expected to contribute to education, give inspiration and orient people to necessary actions - responsible for society and communities and friendly with culture and environment. Ha’s “Essential spaces” are diverse in sizes from meeting an individual’s fundamental needs to a household and more broadly a population segment. Places of construction range from vulnerable people in natural disaster-hit areas to poor ethnic minorities in mountainous areas and also disadvantaged communities in urban and rural areas. The projects fall in 3 categories: Modular house, Education – Health and Open community space.

Pieter J Mathews obtained his Architecture degrees at UP- 1991 and his Masters at UFS in 2019. He completed part of his practical training in London. He is principal of Mathews & Associates architects based in Pretoria South Africa. Numerous awards and publications can be viewed on maaa.co.za. In 2016 he was appointed by the Department of Arts and Culture as curator for the official S A Pavilion at the 15th Architecture Biennale Venice. In 2018 the SAAWK bestowed their medal of honour, Architecture on him. This award was only awarded to 20 Architects since their inception in 1909. He has published Detail Housed and Architexture and acts as external examiner for TUT, UP, UFS. Judging includes the merit awards program for the Namibia Institute of Architects 2012, Pretoria Institute for Architecture 2019 and SAIA Free State 2019. Judging various student competitions in the meantime. Public speaking included TEDx Pretoria 2016, as well as various student congresses. In 2014 the City of Tshwane appointed him to curate public artworks for the BRT bus stations. They won the BASA 2017 award for another art project- Saadjies. The firm recently completed the new Javett: UP Art Centre which is home to South Africa’s crown jewels, the Mapungubwe collection. He is currently part of the first intake for a new practice-based post graduate research Architecture program at the University of the Free State South Africa

Francesco Garofalo is an Italian Landscape Architect, born in France in 1983 and graduated cum Laude in “Genoa University” in 2009. He then moved to the Netherlands where he founded Openfabric in 2011. Openfabric is a Landscape Architecture and Urban Design practice based in Rotterdam and Milan, currently engaging in various countries such as Netherlands, Italy, Russia, China, Belgium, UAE, KSA, Georgia, Albania, Colombia and Peru. Since he founded Openfabric, Francesco has led various awarded competitions and some ongoing commissions, amongst others: a proposal for the new Tahrir square in Cairo, a vision for the post-expo in Milan, exhibited at Venice Biennale in 2014, “Central Park” in Kaliningrad; he has been in charge of a number of realized projects such as “Into the Wild” in the Hague, “Gridgrounds” in Amsterdam and “Into the Forest” installations in Mantova. Francesco is currently adjunct professor of Landscape Architecture and Urban Planning at “Politecnico di Milano” and he has been recently teaching in Amsterdam and Rotterdam Academy of Architecture. He’s lecturing internationally on a continuous base, including lecturing and guest critic at MIT (Cambridge MA), Cornell University (Ithaca, NY), Metropolitan University of London, RAoB (Rotterdam, the Netherlands), Genoa University of Architecture (Genoa, Italy), KU Leuven (Belgium).