Forms of Energy between Abstraction and Narrative

Energy powers modern life, yet its sources, systems, and structures often remain invisible. Architecture and design are uniquely positioned to make energy visible, widening how it is imagined—moving beyond quick fixes toward legibility, richer narratives, and new forms of collective value.

Held in conjunction with the exhibition Making Energy Visible, this panel brings together four participants—Karen Bausman, Lawrence Blough, Jose Sanchez and Jonathan Scelsa—who will present their works in the exhibition, followed by a conversation about the relationship between architecture and energy moderated David Salomon.

Speakers:
Karen Bausman, AIA, Direcotr, Wind Power NYC
Jennifer Birkeland, ASLA, FAAR, Partner of op.Architecture Landscape; Associate Professor of Landscape Spitzer School of Architecture, City College of New York
Lawrence Blough, Professor, Pratt Institute School of Architecture
Jose Sanchez, Director, Plethora Project; Associate Professor, Cornell Architecture, Art, Planning
Jonathan A. Scelsa, AIA, FAAR, Partner of op.Architecture Landscape; Professor of Architectural Design and Technology, Pratt Institute
David Salomon, Associate Professor, Chair of Art, Art History and Architecture, Ithaca College

About the Speakers: 
Karen Bausman, AIA, FAAR, is an educator and licensed architect registered to practice in New York. She leads Wind Power NYC, a Pratt research consortium she co-founded to study how energy source issues impact built environments and how new technologies can be integrated into urban design.

Lawrence Blough is Professor with Tenure at Pratt Institute School of Architecture, Principal of GRAFTWORKS Design Research and Co-Director of Pratt SoA’s Housing Futures Research Lab. 

Jose Sanchez is an architect, game designer, and media artist practicing in New York City. He is the director of the Plethora Project, and the creator of the video games Block'hood and Common'hood, digital social platforms that aid in authoring architectural and ecological thinking to non-expert audiences.

Jonathan Scelsa is an Architect, Urbanist, Educator and a founding partner of the New York based practice, OP – Architecture Landscape, which operates in between the oppositions of Architecture and Landscape.

David Salomon is an Associate Professor and the Chair of Art, Art History and Architecture at Ithaca College. He is the co-editor of Ambiguous Territory: Architecture, Landscape, and the Postnatural (Actar, 2022).