Ladies and gentlemen, congratulations on the completion of another milestone in your life. This ending inevitably means the unfolding of another beginning. How exciting!
In the past two years, you have endured several disruptions at the scale comparable to great wars and plagues. Certainly unprecedented in the history of architecture education. Your resilience through these challenges makes you stronger. This accomplishment is to be celebrated. Now that you have acquired a degree in Master of Architecture, it means you have mastered the art of architecture.
Or is it? Epictetus is noted to have said It is impossible for a man to begin to learn that which she thinks she knows. Just when you think you have crossed the threshold of knowing architecture, perhaps you need to be reminded of the power of ‘Unlearning’.
One of my favorite critics at RISD has written a chapter on “Unlearning” in her book The Storm of Creativity. In which she said: “Unlearning is like the storm’s disturbing and agitating characteristics. It disturbs our sense of what we know. We are agitated when we discover we don’t know, and that compels us to go forward in search of knowing.”
She goes on to say, “Unlearning is about questioning what you thought you knew” which involves “thwarting your own preconceived plans, abilities, and assumptions.” Unlearning allows for a fresh perspective, like a forensic scientist throwing out everything she thinks she knows and says.
Let’s take a fresh look at this.