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Claying Architecture: Book Talk

November 4, 2026 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM

Center for Architecture, 536 LaGuardia Pl, New York, NY 10012

A black book with orange lettering with the book's title

SoA faculty member Jonathan A. Scelsa, along with Co-authors Shelby Doyle, Frank Melendez, and Kelley Van Dyck Murphy, published Claying Architecture Making Machine and Material Kin with Applied Research and Design / Oro Editions. This publication presents a curated collection of essays, interviews, and projects from leading architects, designers, and researchers who are analyzing the role of clay 3D printing in contemporary architecture. The book blends research, theory, and practice to highlight how this ancient material is being reimagined through 3D printing, robotic fabrication, and innovative construction techniques.

The group will host a book Launch and roundtable event at the Center for Architecture, sponsored by the Pratt School of Architecture, that will bring together the voices of the editors, several of the book’s 30 guest contributors, and respondent Lola Ben-Alon to discuss why clay has become a protagonist in contemporary architecture as an agent capable of binding new kinships between processes, environments, and culture.