Transgression suggests operating beyond accepted norms andradically reinterpreting practice by pushing at the boundaries ofboth what architecture is, and what it could or even should be. Thecurrent economic crisis and accompanying political/social unresthas exacerbated the difficulty into which architecture has longbeen sliding: challenged by other professions and a culture ofconservatism, architecture is in danger of losing its prized statusas one of the pre-eminent visual arts. Transgression opens up newpossibilities for practice. It highlights the positive impact thatworking on the architectural periphery can make on the mainstream,as transgressive practices have the potential to reinvent andreposition the architectural profession: whether they aresubverting notions of progress; questioning roles and mechanisms ofproduction; aligning with political activism; pioneering urbaninterventions; advocating informal or incomplete development;actively destabilising environments or breaking barriers of taste.In this new dispersed and expanded field of operation, the balanceof architectural endeavour is shifted from object to process, fromservice to speculation, and from formal to informal in a way thatprovides both critical and political impetus to proactively affectchange. Contributors: Can Altay, Edward Denison and Guangyu Ren, KimDovey, Chris Jenks, David Littlefield, Silvia Loeffler, AlistairParvin, Louis Rice, Patrik Schumacher and Robin Wilson Featured architects: atelier d’architectureautogérée, Lina Bo Bardi, Construire/La Machine, EXYZT,Didier Faustino/Bureau des Mésarchitectures, Lacaton &Vassal, N55, Catie Newell/*Alibi Studio, Wang Shu, Superflex andBernard Tschumi

Transgression suggests operating beyond accepted norms and radically reinterpreting practice by pushing at the boundaries of both what architecture is, and what it could or even should be. The current economic crisis and accompanying political/social unrest has exacerbated the difficulty into which architecture has long been sliding: challenged by other professions and a culture of conservatism, architecture is in danger of losing its prized status as one of the pre-eminent visual arts. Transgression opens up new possibilities for practice. It highlights the positive impact that working on the architectural periphery can make on the mainstream, as transgressive practices have the potential to reinvent and reposition the architectural profession: whether they are subverting notions of progress; questioning roles and mechanisms of production; aligning with political activism; pioneering urban interventions; advocating informal or incomplete development; actively destabilising environments or breaking barriers of taste. In this new dispersed and expanded field of operation, the balance of architectural endeavour is shifted from object to process, from service to speculation, and from formal to informal in a way that provides both critical and political impetus to proactively affect change. Contributors: Can Altay, Edward Denison and Guangyu Ren, Kim Dovey, Chris Jenks, David Littlefield, Silvia Loeffler, Alistair Parvin, Louis Rice, Patrik Schumacher and Robin Wilson Featured architects: atelier d’architecture autogérée, Lina Bo Bardi, Construire/La Machine, EXYZT, Didier Faustino/Bureau des Mésarchitectures, Lacaton & Vassal, N55, Catie Newell/*Alibi Studio, Wang Shu, Superflex and Bernard Tschumi

Transgression means to 'cross over': borders, disciplines, practices, professions, and legislation. This book explores how the transgression of boundaries produces new forms of architecture, education, built environments, and praxis. Based on material from the 10th International Conference of the AHRA, this volume presents contributions from academics, practicing architects and artists/activists from around the world to provide perspectives on emerging and transgressive architecture. Divided into four key themes – boundaries, violations, place and art practice - it explores global processes, transformative praxis and emerging trends in architectural production, examining alternative and radical ways of practicing architecture and reimagining the profession. The wide range of international contributors are drawn from subject areas such as architecture, cultural geography, urban studies, sociology, fine art, film-making, photography, and environmentalism, and feature examples from regions such as the United States, Europe and Asia. At the forefront of exploring inter-disciplinary and trans-disciplinary research and practice, Transgression will be key reading for students, researchers and professionals with an interest in the changing nature of architectural and spatial disciplines.

Is the pícaro, the roguish hero of early modern Spanish adventure fiction, a 'real man'? What position does he hold in the gender hierarchy of his fictional social context? Why is the pícara so 'non-female'? What effect has her gender constitution on her fictional social context? In terms of a gendered subject, the picaresque figure has hardly been analyzed so far. Although scholars have recognized it as a transgressive and subversive model, the 'queer' effect of the figure is yet to be examined. With regard to the categories of class, generation, topography, and gender, the contributions assembled in this volume explore Spanish, French, English, and German novels narratologically from the perspective of culture and gender theories.

Sexuality within mainstream Hollywood cinema features primarily in comedy or rom-com genres, where lightness of tone permits audience engagement with what would otherwise be difficult affective terrain. Focusing on marginal productions in Anglo-American contexts, this collection explores the gendered dynamics of sex and the body, particularly embodied deviations from normative cultural scripts. It explores transgressions acted through and written on the body, and the ways in which corporeality inscribes gender discourse and reflects cultural and institutional power. Films analyzed include Mysterious Skin (2004), Shame (2011), Nymphomaniac (2013), and Dallas Buyers Club (2013). Navigating queer politics, taboo fantasy, body modification, fetishism, sex addiction, and underage sex, essays problematize understandings of adult agency, childhood innocence, and healthy desire, locating sex and gender as sites of oppression, liberation, and resistance.

Avant-garde theorist and architect Bernard Tschumi is equally well known for his writing and his practice. Architecture and Disjunction, which brings together Tschumi's essays from 1975 to 1990, is a lucid and provocative analysis of many of the key issues that have engaged architectural discourse over the past two decades—from deconstructive theory to recent concerns with the notions of event and program. The essays develop different themes in contemporary theory as they relate to the actual making of architecture, attempting to realign the discipline with a new world culture characterized by both discontinuity and heterogeneity. Included are a number of seminal essays that incited broad attention when they first appeared in magazines and journals, as well as more recent and topical texts.Tschumi's discourse has always been considered radical and disturbing. He opposes modernist ideology and postmodern nostalgia since both impose restrictive criteria on what may be deemed "legitimate" cultural conditions. He argues for focusing on our immediate cultural situation, which is distinguished by a new postindustrial "unhomeliness" reflected in the ad hoc erection of buildings with multipurpose programs. The condition of New York and the chaos of Tokyo are thus perceived as legitimate urban forms.

The City in Transgression explores the unacknowledged, neglected, and ill-defined spaces of the built environment and their transition into places of resistance and residence by refugees, asylum seekers, migrants, the homeless, and the disadvantaged. The book draws on urban and spatial theory, socio-economic factors, public space, and architecture to offer an intimate look at how urban sites and infrastructure are transformed into spaces for occupation. Anderson proposes that the varied innovations and adaptations of urban spaces enacted by such marginalized figures – for whom there are no other options – herald a radical new spatial programming of cities. The book explores cities and sites such as Mexico City and London, the Mexican/US border, the Calais Jungle, and Palestinian camps in Beirut and utilizes concepts associated with ‘mobility’ – such as anarchy, vagrancy, and transgression – alongside photography, 3D modelling, and 2D imagery. From this constellation of materials and analysis, a radical spatial picture of the city in transgression emerges. By focusing on the ‘underside of urbanism’, The City in Transgression reveals the potential for new spatial networks that can cultivate the potential for self-organization so as to counter the existing dominant urban models of capital and property and to confront some of the major issues facing cities amid an age of global human mobility. This book is valuable reading for those interested in architectural theory, modern history, human geography and mobility, climate change, urban design, and transformation.