Manfredo Tafuri

Manfredo Tafuri (1935–1994) was an Italian architectural historian, critic, and leading figure of the Venice School. In Architecture and Utopia (1973), he argued that modernism’s socially oriented ambitions were bound to fail because architecture cannot resolve systemic contradictions of capitalism. Instead, architecture inevitably serves broader ideological structures. His class critique dismantled illusions of architecture’s autonomy and helped pave the way for postmodernist discourse. Tafuri remains a central reference in architectural historiography and theory.

Reports of global warming, biodiversity loss, rising anti-democratic states, heatwaves, wars, and sea-level rise are enough to make anyone discouraged. In these times, hope is crucial—it’s the difference between envisioning a positive future and resigning to the present. Hope drives action, while hopelessness paralyzes. It rejects the status quo and aspires for change, making it vital for progress. Hope can grow and strengthen, but it can also fade.

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