Throughout the history of Asian modernity, various forms of translation have been employed in acts of cultural production as well as moments of political, economic, as well as social engagement. These modes of translation have played particularly significant roles in the development of urban and architectural forms throughout the 19th and 20th centuries amid interactions between the so-called “East” and “West”, the Global South and North, as well as between different societal groups within the region.

This conference is organized around the theme of translation and the various disciplinary questions it inspires: how can we historicize and theorize acts of translation in relation to Asia’s built environments? How have different modes of architectural representation been incorporated into acts of cultural translation? How can we envision the future of translation given the rise of digital technologies in architectural production and discursive exchange?

Graduate students from relevant disciplines are invited to submit paper abstracts on the subject of translation in relation to any aspect of architecture and urbanism in modern Asia. Suggested topics include, but are not limited to:

  • Translations of texts, forms, practices, as well as typologies
  • Methods of representation
  • Material histories
  • Digital production and information technology

Accepted papers will be organized into themed panels. Each invited participant will give a 20-minute presentation. Paper discussants will include Esra Akcan (Associate Professor, AAP Architecture Art Planning, Cornell University) and Ken Tadashi Oshima (Professor, Department of Architecture, University of Washington), who will both be the keynote speakers of the conference, as well as established scholars within the discipline of architecture, including faculty members of the Faculty of Architecture at the University of Hong Kong and other prominent scholars in the region.

Please send your paper proposal abstract (not more than 250 words) and your CV (1 page) to translations.conference2016[at]gmail.com. All presentations should be written and delivered in English. Accepted papers will be considered for inclusion in a potential edited volume.

The conference is being funded by the Postgraduate Students Conference/Seminar Grant of the Research Grants Council, Hong Kong, and supported by the Faculty of Architecture in the University of Hong Kong.

There is no registration fee. Discounted housing on campus may be provided, subject to availability. Participants are expected to cover their own travel expenses.