El Croquis 232: Smiljan Radic surveys six years of work by the Chilean architect Smiljan Radic, tracing a practice that moves between temporary pavilions, rural rehabilitations, urban buildings, and international competition proposals with striking formal consistency.
About This Book
This monograph dedicates 325 pages to Smiljan Radic's studio output from 2019 to 2025, a period that spans geographies and building types without losing the architect's characteristically enigmatic sensibility. From the ephemeral Sky Bubble pavilion in London to the rural conversion of the Chanchera shed in Puerto Octay, and from Santiago's Petty Bourgeois [Building] to the winning Artifact proposal for the Montjuïc Fairground in Barcelona, the selection rewards close reading. A conversation between Radic and Christian Kerez — titled "How to Carry the World on One's Back" — anchors the theoretical register, while Enrique Walker's essay on the XXII Chilean Architecture and Urbanism Biennial pavilion adds critical depth. Essential reading for those tracking contemporary Latin American architecture and the broader discourse on material and landscape.
Key Features
- 325 pages of project documentation, drawings, and critical texts
- Edited by Fernando Marquez Cecilia and Richard Levene
- Featured projects include Sky Bubble (London), Chanchera (Puerto Octay), Rupanco House (Cochagua), Petty Bourgeois [Building] (Santiago), Solo Hotel (Matarraña, Spain), and Artifact (Barcelona)
- Published by El Croquis, 2025
What You'll Discover
- How Radic navigates the tension between temporality and permanence across projects as different as a London pavilion and a Spanish hotel
- The role of rural and vernacular structures — such as the repurposed agricultural shed Chanchera — in shaping Radic's approach to rehabilitation and site
- A candid intellectual exchange between Radic and Swiss architect Christian Kerez that addresses questions of weight, presence, and the burden of building
- Enrique Walker's critical framing of Radic's contribution to the XXII Chilean Architecture and Urbanism Biennial, situating the work within a national and continental context
About the Author
Fernando Marquez Cecilia and Richard Levene are the editors of El Croquis, the Madrid-based architectural journal renowned for its in-depth monographic issues on leading international practices. Their editorial framework has shaped how successive generations engage with contemporary architecture through built work, drawing, and critical writing.
Specifications
- Format: Softcover
- Pages: 325
- Dimensions: 340 x 245 mm
- Language: English
- ISBN: 978-8412823479
- Publisher: El Croquis
- Publication Date: 2025
Perfect For: Architects and students with an interest in contemporary Chilean and Latin American practice, those following El Croquis's critical monograph series, and readers engaged with questions of materiality, landscape, and architectural temporality.