A fourteen-point manifesto to bring architecture into the twenty-first century

Architecture, as we know it, is in crisis. The authority of architects is crumbling, their methods no longer tenable. In a highly critical introspection, architect and writer Reinier de Graaf explores the tough choices ahead and the course of action that must follow.

Architecture Against Architecture demands we rethink both how and why we build. With wit and insight, De Graaf lays out the future of the profession, challenging readers to question the fundamental assumptions of the discipline. How do we end the feudal veneration of starchitects? When will architects finally recognize that it is in their own best interest to unionize? Why aren't more practices collectively owned? Why do so many architects over sixty-seven refuse to retire? How do we stop buildings from being copy-righted? What will remain of architecture after AI? What can prevent iconic structures from being embroiled in money laundering? And the vital question: What projects should architects refuse on moral grounds?

"To be clear, Architecture Against Architecture is not a hopeful book.it is a lucid one. Its ambition lies not in charting a new future, but in insisting that the old one is no longer tenable. Whether the profession can endure the level of introspection the book demands remains an open question. What de Graaf makes clear is that the time for debunking myths has passed. What remains is the harder task of deciding what, if anything, architecture is willing to give up to persist at all. That this question is posed from within one of the world's most influential architectural practices only sharpens its force. The manifesto does not arrive from the margins. It comes from the center-and it is addressed, uncomfortably, to everyone still standing there. As such, Architecture Against Architecture stands as a must-read for architects willing to confront not just their image, but the costs of continuing to defend it." - Spacing Vancouver