Research and Publications

Research
Publications

Perpetual Peace Project The Perpetual Peace Project is a two-year research initiative, in partnership with the European Union National Institutes of Culture's "Series in New European Manifestos," which re-revisits and re-writes European political texts that have profoundly shaped our modern world. The Perpetual Peace Project brings various communities and disciplines together to revisit Immanuel Kant's provocative essay with reference to 21st century international priorities: non-state actors on the international scene, new concepts of asymmetric warfare and complex battlefields, post-9/11 security concerns, the fate of international norms governing war and peace, and the prospects for international community and world governance to reduce geopolitical conflict.

Architecture on Display Architecture on Display is a research initiative that consists of interviews with each of the living directors of the Venice Biennale for Architecture, including Vittorio Gregotti, Paolo Portoghesi, Francesco Dal Co, Kurt Foster, and Kazuyo Sejima, among others. The origins of the Venice Biennale for Architecture are generally traced to the 1970s and yet, even today, the details surrounding its informal origins remain relatively unexplored and no English-language publications exist on this rich history. These conversations do not seek to recapitulate the exhibitions themselves but rather explore the questions that these exhibitions raise, with the hope of offering a model for future curatorial endeavors. This initiative builds upon Slought Foundation's Into the Open project (2008-9), and will feature the publication of the conducted interviews.

Conflicts of Interests Conflicts of Interests is a research initiative that explores questions of complicity. These questions have frequently been explored by scholars in business ethics, anthropology, history, sociology, and literary studies, although always briefly and in passing, rather than as a structuring concept in their work. Departing from this tendency, this initiative instead explores this theme as a central concern both to institutions and to cultural actors. The initiative builds upon Slought Foundation's Evasions of Power project (2007), and will feature conducted interviews and commissioned papers.

Culture is Collaborative Culture is Collaborative is a research initiative that explores cultural participation among under-served communities. Studies such as Research into Action suggest that current approaches to cultural programming are not reaching and retaining diverse populations in Philadelphia. This situation is exacerbated by challenges facing neighborhoods such as Mantua, which include declining housing prices, low graduation rates, and marked digital divides. This initiative investigates ways to renew neighborhood trust and participation in social institutions through ongoing research, participation, and conversation. It builds upon existing organizational models that integrate cultural and social services to strengthen community identity, and featured practices in Slought Foundation's Into the Open project (2008-9). It engages key partners including community development corporations and respected architect Teddy Cruz.

The Culture of Currency The Culture of Currency is a research initiative that documents and analyzes the aesthetics of money. Its working hypothesis is that making money is, in the most literal sense, an artistic and cultural act. People design notes and coins, and formal economies would not exist were it not for the representations that accompany them - materials, words, and images, signs, symbols, and systems of communication. The Culture of Currency brings together communities and disciplines to examine these ignored economies, and to present alternative understandings of money that make more visible the "invisible hands" of the market. The project will feature interviews, symposia, and commissioned papers. Special attention will be given to the controversial euro banknotes, which were issued in 2002. The project, directed by Nader Vossoughian, will culminate with a project at Slought that will then travel to financial centers in Europe.