2nd A+DEN Conference

A+DEN 2008 Conference Recap

The 2008 A+DEN Conference was an overwhelming success! The two-day event, hosted by the Chicago Architecture Foundation, featured a variety of workshops, panel discussions, and keynote speakers. Graphic designer, author and educator Ellen Lupton set the tone for the conference with an amusing keynote about the ways that design permeates our everyday life.

On the Friday of the conference, there was a special version of the popular event night, Pecha Kucha. The "design educator version" of PK was clearly one of the highlights of the conference. Ten presenters, including the Center for Architecture Foundation New York, the Westcott House in Springfield, OH and the Boston Society of Architects, did quick, lively presentations of their work. To keep interest level up and presentations concise, each presenter gets 20 images that are displayed for 20 seconds each. The pace of the presentations worked wonderfully for the conference and ended the first day with a bang! Thank you to everyone who shared their work during this event!

Attendee feedback from the conference was fantastic:

"The hosts were so welcoming and authentic, great conversations, interesting experiences. A+DEN is the only conference where I don’t 'skip out'."

On Pecha Kucha and host Peter Exley of Architectureisfun

"Pecha Kucha was incredible! Repeat this format!"

"Pecha Kucha is an excellent format for engaging its audience! Speakers were able to provide content in a concise fun way. Peter [Exley] was a great host/moderator and the individual presenters were very inspiring."

On the workshop by Jean Linsner and Jennifer Masengarb of the Chicago Architecture Foundation on "how to host a professional development workshop"

"I have been doing this for 30 years…and I was engaged."

"Very helpful - thank you for the great ideas about how to structure effective workshops. Kudos on your great work!"

"Great opportunity to start thinking about general design! Loved it!"

On the workshop by Mark and Linda Keane on "Connecting the Dots: Environmentally and Digitally across K-12 Curriculum"

"Great resource. I appreciate being introduced to one website in depth. Too often we are given an over abundance of resources without learning the great features of one! Good choice."

Overall, the positive feedback was overwhelming. The information we collected from the 2008 conference is going to inform the planning for the next event in 2009.

SAVE THE DATE! A+DEN CONFERENCE 2009

We’re happy to announce the dates for the 2009 A+DEN conference! Next year’s gathering will be held in conjunction with the first gathering of the Association of Architecture Organizations. The AAO gathering will be November 5 – 6, 2009, and the A+DEN gathering will be November 6 – 7, 2009. There will be overlap programming on November 6, which will provide a valuable networking opportunity for both groups.