Archiporn – Is Social Media Killing Architecture?

Representation of architecture in social media is becoming more and more prevalent, as there is a trend where an architect or interior designer will design a space that will be more Instagrammble in the pursuit of getting likes. In this episode of Archimarathon, hosts Kevin Hui and Andrew Maynard both discuss how projects are now represented solely through the hero image rather than through architectural drawings in social media. 

Both Kevin and Andrew are Melbourne based architects; however, Kevin, who has an architectural background, is involved in running architectural tours (Archimarathon) and still practices architecture, while Andrew is running his architectural practice, Maynard Architects. I had the opportunity to meet both of them earlier this year on a cycling architecture tour that they mentioned in this episode as well and subsequently made a guest appearance too.

One of the examples that they refer to in the episode is MVRDV’s Tianjin Binhai Library. The design of the project was strictly for social media consumption. They further alluded that the actual library component of the project is rather bland. As they have pointed out, that if architecture is pursued in this light, it becomes rather one dimensional as the focus is on the hero image rather than the essence of great architecture which should be about the people. The topic of Instagrammable architectural moments is something I have discussed in detail in an upcoming interview with Dan Szwaj from Turner Studios (stay tuned).

Archimarathon’s Youtube Channel is filled with light-hearted humorous architectural related videos from the duo and you can also follow them on Instagram.