ABSTRACT
After delivering a keynote at the AHRA 2019 conference, Reiner de Graaf talked to Penny Lewis about his work and the conference themes. His keynote was part of a larger critique he is developing of some of the more fashionable terms that have enveloped the world of architecture during past two decades. De Graaf is particularly scathing of idea of ‘placemaking,’ a term used by the media and policymakers to describe urban design and judge the quality of a place and life. The arrival of this term has coincided with a shift in the commissioning of urban spaces and buildings, driven by the creation of profit rather than the public needs. In Dundee, he provoked a debate about the negative consequences of Jane Jacobs’ work on urban theory.
