From Crisis to Crisis: Debates on why architecture criticism matters today

edited by Nasrine Seraji, Sony Devabhaktuni & Xiaoxuan Lu (Actar Publishers)

The result of an international public symposium hosted by the University of Hong Kong in 2017, this book draws together historical, theoretical and geographical aspects of the territory's transformation from a gateway between China and the world to a more regionally focused hub.

A roster of international thinkers is represented, and the work is part symposium report, part anthology. Four sections covering contemporary criticism, criticism in China and architectural education are each introduced with a short essay by a ‘moderator', followed by several essays on the subject and a transcript of a debate between the authors under the guidance of the initial moderator. Similarly, the final chapter is the closing debate between all authors represented, and their diversity of opinion makes for provocative and at times polemical reading. While the text can be dense, it is leavened by imagery that illustrates many of the concepts being discussed.