The NUS M.Arch Show 2021 showcases the thesis projects of the graduating Master of Architecture students from the National University of Singapore; a collection of bold questions and propositions displaying the expertise obtained in architectural education. A year-long undertaking, the thesis is an arduous yet joyful journey, where conversations, critiques and references gently nudge students towards certain contemporary and relevant trajectories, organically converging into communities of practice where the works collectively resonate with one another. Convergence occurs along five discursive threads, which form the five clusters of the show: “Critical Architecture”, “History & Heritage”, “Sociopolitics & Geopolitics”, “Technologies” and “Urbanism & Environments”. Each cluster is uniquely positioned to probe the limits of the discipline, and to respond to the demands of wider society.
“Critical Architecture” interrogates the discipline itself. The thesis work in this cluster seeks to identify and challenge architectural convention, forming propositions of design that provoke, satirize, or gently disturb the expectations of architecture and what the field encompasses.
