DEGREES AND QUALIFICATIONS

Oct 2013 – Sept 2017 PhD in Architecture (award 10/01/2018) at TU of Cluj-N. – Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism (FAU), RO. Thesis: Form follows Situation. The Contemporary City as Anticipated by the Situationists. Supervisor: Prof. Dana Vais, Examined by Assistants Professors: Gabriel Troc (Faculty of Sociology and Social Work, Babeș-Bolyai University, Cluj-N.), Ștefan Ghenciulescu (Ion Mincu University of Architecture and Urbanism, Bucharest), Cristina Purcar (FAU TU Cluj-N.), including a PhD Student visit (February - March 2017) at SSoA - University of Sheffield, supervised by Prof. Doina Petrescu.

Oct 2003- July 2009 BA and MA in Architecture (award 26/07/2011) at FAU TU Cluj-N, RO, including an Erasmus exchange at Institut Supérieur d'Architecture Saint-Luc de Wallonie, Liège, Belgium

PUBLICATIONS OF RESEARCH

Peer reviewed articles:

Corelia Baibarac-Duignan, Silviu Medeşan (2023). ‘Gluing’ alternative imaginaries of sustainable urban futures: When commoning and design met in the post-socialist neighbourhood of Mănăștur, Romania in Futures, volume 153, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.futures.2023.103233.

Galoș, Diana, and Silviu Medeșan (2022). From Temporary Spatial Practices to Permanent Architectural Forms. The Case of “La Terenuri” from Mănăștur Neighborhood, Cluj-Napoca in studies in History and Theory of Architecture, no. 10, 169-178. https://sita.uauim.ro/article/10-12-galos-medesan-from-temporary-spatial-practices-to-permanent-architectural-forms

Ilovan, O.-R.; Medeșan, S.; Colcer, A.-M.; Adorean E.-C.; Dulamă, M.-E.; Cîineanu, M.-D.; Benedek, R. (2019). Raising civic awareness and involvement through urban regeneration: At the Playgrounds, Mănăștur in European Proceedings of Social and Behavioral Sciences - Education, Reflection, Development, DOI: 10.15405/epsbs.2020.06.27

Books and edited books:

Medeșan, S. (2020) Form follows Situation. Contemporary City as foreseen by the Situationists. Bucharest: Ozalid (based on PhD thesis) ISBN 978-606-93327-7-1,

Medeșan, S. and Panait L. (eds). (2016) cARTier. Peripheral Interventions Cluj-N.: IDEA Design & Print

Book chapters:

Panait, L.; Medeșan, S., and Kremer, E. (2017) Cluj-Napoca, Romania - Mănăștur Central - Cinema Dacia. in Schwegmann, M., Surwiłło-Hahn, A., and Kremer, E. (eds) Actors of Urban Change 2015-2017. Program Documentation, 44–49. Stuttgart: Robert Bosch Stiftung (Bosch).

Medeșan, S. (2016) «La Terenuri» - from the construction of situations to common spaces. In S. Medeșan & L. Panait (Eds.), cARTier. Peripheral Interventions (pp. 17–32). Cluj-N.: IDEA Design & Print.

Panait, L., and S. Medeșan. (2015) «La Terenuri» – Common Space in Mănăștur Neighborhood. A laboratory for participatory urbanism and community involvement. In Urban Space in Action. Community activation in Bucharest socialist neighborhoods, Tîrcă, M., Axinte, A., and Borcan, C., (eds) 206–13. București: tranzit.ro.

Peer-reviewed conference papers:

Medeșan, S. (forthcoming July 2021) The Situated Architect - how public space can be produced through the politics of splitting (accepted abstract) at Public Space: The Real and the Ideal- the 5th Biennial conference of The International Society for the Philosophy of Architecture (ISPA), Locarno.

Medeșan, S. and Pasăre, T. (forthcoming 2021) The Discursive Split. Architectural Statements on Housing in the Context of Urban Unevenness (accepted abstract) at Thirty Years of Capitalist Transformations in Central and Eastern Europe: Inequalities and Social Resistance conference, The Institute for Social Solidarity and the Department of Sociology from UBB, Cluj-N.

Medeșan, S. (November 2020) Commoning through house extensions into community gardens: The case of Mănăștur neighborhood in Cluj, RO, paper at Housing and the City - the 17th Annual International Conference of the Architectural Humanities Research Association (AHRA), University of Nottingham.

Medeșan, S. (November 2019) Situated Architect and the collective production of space - paper at Architecture & Collective Life - the 16th Annual International Conference of the AHRA, School of Social Sciences University of Dundee, Scotland, UK.

PRACTICE-BASED RESEARCH

Oct. 2012 – May 2018 - co-initiator of La Terenuri [At the Playgrounds]– Common Space in Mănăștur – local partner project of the Landscape Choreography: from wasted to shared land (2012-2014), funded by EU Culture Programme. The project supports collective practices of urban gardening and encourages an innovative European culture of common spaces through an interdisciplinary approach that integrates public art, landscape architecture, performing art, and socio-anthropological analysis. Partners: Taranto (Italy), Cottbus (Germany) and Cluj-N.

2015- 2017 - coordinator of Cinema-Dacia - Mănăștur Central - participatory project working on building-up a cultural programming for a center by integrating residents’ desires from a mass housing neighbourhood, Cluj. Co-funded by Bosch & The City of Cluj-N.

2016 - 2018 - coordinator of Cult.Trust – urban and social change through art project working on the role of art practice in two mass housing neighbourhoods in Cluj. Coordinated by Colectiv A and funded by Administration of Romanian National Cultural Fund (AFCN).

2014-2015 - coordinator of Close to Someș - socio-cultural activation of the Someș River, Cluj-N., Private funds.

Oct. 2017 - July 2018 - Our Stream from La Terenuri Area (Mănăștur) - sociological inquiry, co-designing and building a wooden bridge in a mass housing neighbourhood, funded by Cluj Cultural Centre - Urban Innovation Fund.

May 2017 - The Chair-Tables - mobile urban furniture for La Terenuri Area - design & build mobile urban furniture to sustain events, funded by Bosch.

2015 - Participatory Suprematism - co-design and co-building workshop using recycled materials for Recycled Art Festival in Krasnoyarsk, Siberia (Russia).

July 2014 - September 2019 - Participatory Model for La Terenuri Area – original co-producing method developed during PhD research consisting in working with residents to advocate for the need of a public park in mass housing neighbourhood. Tools: a 1:100 scale model of the area, sociological inquiry, integrating feedback in design, co-building the temporary installations, participation in public consultation with decision-makers. Funded by AFCN and Community Foundation Cluj.

May 2013, July 2014, April 2017 - Learning from Mănăștur - co-planning workshops coordinated by local architects and landscape designers.

2009 - Zorilor Belvedere - co-design, co-building and cultural intervention workshop coordinated by Nicolas Henninger and Dimitri Messu from EXYZT (Paris) during Architecture Days Biennale.

RESEARCH WORKSHOPS

November 2019 - Facilitation of Citizens and the City in ecological transition coordinated by AAA, studioBASAR and A.T.U., Bucharest,

May 2018 - Medeșan, S. The Situationists and the La Terenuri Project. International Workshop on Urban Regeneration, Faculty of Geography, UBB Cluj-N.

June 2017 - Medesan, S. and Panait, L. Can informal education create civic groups able to advocate for their right to build the city? workshop led at Learn to Act international workshop on alternative education at SSoA.

April 2017 - Medesan, S. Situationist psychogeography tour in Edinburgh workshop related to paper at Research as Open Work - the 14th AHRA Annual Research Student Symposium, University of Edinburgh.

Oct. 2018 - Action research projects from RO and the Republic of Moldova moderated by Andra-Mitia Dumitru. Panel discussants: Loredana Gaiță - În comunitate, Timișoara, S. Medeșan and Diana Galoș La Terenuri, Mănăștur, Cluj and Vladimir Us Apartamentul deschis, Oberliht, Chișinău, Moldavia. Part of Urban Education Live Symposium, UAIM Bucharest.

Oct. 2016 - The Neighbourhood Community moderated by Hristo Stankushev. Discussants: Jiří Sulženko, Marc Neelen & Ana Džokić, Laura Panait & S. Medesan, Anna-Laura Bourguignon, Meglena Zlatkova. Part of One Architecture Week Forum, Plovdiv.

Oct. 2013 - What are citizens and governments doing differently in the different sectors – selection of La Terenuri as case study for Borders to Cross - Conference on democratic innovation and civic driven change, Pakhuis de Zwijger, Amsterdam.

INVITED INTERNATIONAL EVENTS AND DISCUSSIONS

2014 - Urban Food Stories - RO’s Expo Stand at the International Union of Architects World Congress, La Terenuri Project was part of the exhibition, Durban, South Africa.

2010 - SUPERBIA - Romanian Pavilion for the Venice Biennale of Architecture. Participation with Foooam art project. New Gallery of the I.R.C.C.U., Venice.

INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITIONS PARTICIPATION

2019 - Nomination for the cultural project Our Stream awarded by Transylvania Architecture Biennale (BATRA), Cluj-N.

2017 - Best cultural project for La Terenuri and mention for Participatory Suprematism installation, awarded by BATRA, Cluj-N.

2017 - Prize for Civic Participation for La Terenuri at Public Participation Gala, organized by Centre of Resources for Public Participation, Bucharest

2009 - OAR prize for best diploma student-project

AWARDS

PROFESIONAL:

May 2019 - April 2020 - Adviser of MP Dohotaru Adrian, The Chamber of Deputies, Bucharest.

June 2018 – present - Architect (self-employed).

Sept. 2009–Oct. 2014 - Architect (employed) Dico și Țigănaș SRL, Cluj-N..

CIVIL SECTOR:

2019 - present - President of Sustainable Organized Society - S.O.S. - non-profit organization working on urban activism and direct action as a group of urban experts, politicians and citizens to foster public policies for an environmentally responsible urban life.

Oct 2012–2019 - Collaborator at Colectiv A Assoc., «La Terenuri» - Common Space in Mănăștur: concept of the project, projects proposals for grants, representing the project through presentations and publications, facilitating debates and participatory co-design workshops with residents and experts.

2007-2009 - President of Architectural Students Association at TU of Cluj-N.: coordinating and organizing Architectural Days Biennale - exhibitions, talks, workshops.

URBAN ACTIVISM:

2012 - present - La Terenuri Area - a common green space form Mănăștur – campaign advocating the need for cultural infrastructure and green areas inside a mass housing neighbourhood. As results, in 2015 the City of Cluj refurbished an old communist cinema, and in 2018 planned the area as a public park and a sports facility. Out of this process an informal civic group was formed and empowered to take action further.

2015 - present - S.O.S. Park East – campaign advocating for a natural protected urban area in the city: an international contest on planning the park is prepared for 2020-2021.

2015 - present - S.O.S. Someș River - campaign for green areas, pedestrian and cycling paths along the river. In 2015 S.O.S. forced authorities to give up their plan to extend the road on the riverbank, and in 2017 they organised an international contest for the river masterplan.

2019 - present - Community Gardening in the Cluj - campaign for creating public policies for gardening inside the city. SOS drafted the first local policy to protect and foster community gardening.

PRACTICE EXPERIENCE

ASSOCIATE ASSISTANT: 

Oct. 2016 – Febr. 2017, Oct. 2017–Sept. 2018 Architectural Design – III-rd year Studio and Computer Aided Design (I-st year students) FAU TU Cluj-N.

INVITED LECTURES AND SEMINARS:

2020 - Activism and local governance for Master of Planning and Regional Development, invited by Lecturer Havadi-Nagy, K.-X., Faculty of Geography, UBB Cluj-N.

2019 - Modernism and Postmodernism in Architecture for Master of Advanced Research in Sociology, invited by Associate Professor Troc, G., Faculty of Sociology and Social Work, UBB Cluj-N.

2018 - Reactions in public space seminar for Master of Curatorial Practices, invited by Professor Dana Vais, University of Art and Design Cluj-N.,

2015 - La Terenuri - Common Space in Mănăștur - Laboratory for participative urbanism and community engagement- invited by Svea Heinemann for CHORA - City & Energy at Sustainable Planning and Urban Design Department of Architecture Faculty VI, Planning Construction Environment, TU Berlin.

TEACHING EXPERIENCE

Community Advisory Board Member for The Territorial Identities and Development Research Centre (UBB), (http://itd.territorial-identity.ro/en/about-us/) (since 2020).

Member of OAR (since 2009) and of Registry of Romanian Urbanists - R.U.R. (since 2019).                                                                                         

Member of Bosch Alumni Network www.boschalumni.net (since 2017).

MEMBERSHIP OF PROFESSIONAL BODIES AND NETWORKS