Nezar AlSayyad
Professor of Architecture, City Planning, Urban Design, and
Urban History
Chair, Center for Middle Eastern Studies
University of California at Berkeley
Director and President, International Association for the Study of Traditional Environments (IASTE)
Lecture Title: Consuming Heritage and the End of Tradition
Monday, October 4, 2010
5:00 P.M. - Lawrence J. Plym Auditorium
Temple Hoyne Buell Hall
Sponsored by: CHAMP (Collaborative for Cultural Heritage and
Museum Practices)
CHAMP gratefully acknowledges the support received for this event from:
Department
of Anthropology, School of Architecture, Department of Geography,
Center for Global Studies (Prisms of Globalization lecture series),
Center for South Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, International
Programs and Studies, Department of Landscape Architecture,
Department of Recreation, Sport and Tourism, Department of
Sociology, Department of Urban and Regional Planning
Prof. AlSayyad addresses humanity’s fascination with the idea of endings -- the end of lives, the end of history, the end of the world. He also examines the idea that destruction is a necessary condition for construction and reconstruction, at least where the built environment is concerned. The argument presented suggests that the end of tradition does not entail death or rebirth but only the demise of its conceptual utility as a harbinger of authenticity or as a container of cultural meanings that upholds an authoritative valuable legacy. The talk is based on Professor AlSayyad’s recent volume, The End of Tradition?, and a forthcoming book.
Nezar
AlSayyad