Mixed Signal Podcast

Data Centers Are the Only Thing America’s Building, AI Influencers & Gen Z Cyberdecks | MXD News Ep. 41 Oct 9, 2026 00:33:15 We open with a striking construction stat: data centers are drawing around $725 billion in capital while home building and factory construction decline. We talk about what that means for architects and students entering the job market, whether “I won’t build data centers” is a meaningful ethical line, and why so much capital is now flowing into buildings almost nobody will experience.Then we get i

Gaza's Devastation In New Images, Amazon's Drone Chaos & SpaceX's Starship Breakthrough _ MXD News Oct 2, 2026 00:33:09 This week we start with a heavier topic: newly updated Google Earth satellite imagery exposing the scale of destruction in Gaza, paired with on-the-ground photos of a makeshift football pitch built where the main stadium once stood. We talk about the role images play in making distant devastation real, the practice of forensic architecture, and how communities rebuild function and daily life amid

Lexus x MISCHIEF's Viral Collab, Trump's Arch & a Deep Dive on AI News w/Casey Rehm | MXD News Ep.39 Sep 25, 2026 00:37:35 This week we start with the viral Lexus x MSCHF collaboration — two "twisted" concept cars that spark a bigger conversation about car-deformation art history, brand collaborations, and whether corporate partnerships can still produce legitimate fine art.Then we dig into the escalating saga of Trump's DC Arch, which has evolved from a monument concept into a proposed military complex

Universities Ban Tech, Space Force's Sci-Fi Uniforms & is Nike Collapsing? | MXD News Podcast Sep 18, 2026 00:32:13 This week we open with the University of Chicago pulling laptops and phones from its core social science classrooms — and New York City banning AI in elementary and middle schools. Is going analog the right call, or are blanket tech bans just fear of an unknown future? We get into how we handle it in our own studios and seminars.Then: the US Space Force unveiled new uniforms, and the sci-fi refere

First look inside the George Lucas Museum, 9/11 Toxic Air Cover-Up & Brad Pitt's Architecture Movie Sep 11, 2026 00:29:50 This week we get our first real look inside MAD Architects' long-awaited Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, opening September 22nd in LA after a wild history that started in Chicago. We compare the polished press photos to the more candid, "banal" behind-the-scenes shots making the rounds — and talk about what actually happens when hype meets reality on a capital-A architecture project.W

Academia in Crisis, AI "Takeover" Fears & the Death of the Starchitect Sep 7, 2026 00:28:50 We start with the shakeup happening across higher education — starting with The New School's mass faculty cuts and what it says about the future of architecture and design programs everywhere. We talk tenure, underenrolled humanities departments, and why architecture school recruitment is struggling.Then we shift to AI: the Hugging Face "rogue agent" incident that's got security experts calling it

The Drawings We Make for Ourselves | Narrative, Identity & Storytelling in Architecture Jun 4, 2026 01:22:25 What stories do architects tell themselves—and how do those stories shape the work they create?This week on Mixed Signals, the MXD crew is joined by Kristen Mimms Scavnicky and Adrienne Economos-Miller, educators, artists, and designers whose work explores the powerful relationship between narrative, identity, and representation in architecture.We begin with a round of Cold Crits featuring student

Ep. 34 Image and Storytelling in Architecture with Dr Rebecca McConnell. May 27, 2026 01:27:38 The MXD crew welcomes Dr. Rebecca McConnell to the podcast! We discuss the evolving role of the rendering in Architecture in light of new Artificial Intelligence image generation techniques.We then move into a special edition of Cold Crits, featuring speculative Architectural projects from Artist Ismail Seleit. We then discuss some of the differences between education and Academia in the United St

Ep. 33 Drawing New Worlds; with Gary Polk! May 20, 2026 01:13:21 The MXD crew talks with Gary Polk (BIG, Penn, Pratt) to break down the boundaries of Architectural representation and drawing.We start by diving into previous year's Archisource' Drawing of the Year Competition finalists—debating the line between a "drawing of architecture" vs. an "architectural drawing"—and discuss why standard diagrams might be ruining the discipline.

Ep. 32 Designing With Models! & Mysterious Architectural Objects with Ryosuke Imaeda! May 13, 2026 01:21:22 The MXD crew welcomes Ryosuke Imaeda to discuss models, materiality, craft, and mysterious architectural objects! We start off the episode with a model-focused edition of Cold-Crits. Ryo tells the MXD crew about his time at global design firms Zaha Hadid Architects and Reiser Umemoto Reiser. We also discuss his design-research through teaching and his perspective on materiality and craft in the pr

Ep. 31 Can we talk about Ye? And Fluffy Architecture with Brendan Ho! May 6, 2026 01:09:29 The MXD crew welcomes Brendan Ho from Kent State University's College of Architecture and Environmental Design to the studio. We talk about the artist formerly known as Kanye West (Ye), his impactful and controversial career, his stunning SoFi stage design, and his April Fools / possibly real bid to redesign the West wing of the White House? Matt springs a story on us of his IRL run in with Ka

Ep. 30 Artificial Intelligence, War, and Architecture with AI Expert: Casey Rehm! Apr 29, 2026 01:06:34 The MXD crew is joined by Casey Rehm, Coordinator of the Masters of Science in Architectural Intelligence program at SciArc (Southern California Institute of Architecture). He is an expert in computation and a specialist in Artificial Intelligence and specifically a leader in speculation on its impact on Architecture. He is the perfect person to help us catch up on the state of AI and its impact o

Ep. 29 Fashion Forward Design and Recycled Architecture! with Andy Bako of University of Texas Austin! Apr 22, 2026 01:14:45 Joined by Architect and educator Andy Bako, the MXD crew unpack the controversy surrounding the accessibility failures of the Hunter’s Point Library by Steven Holl—and the shocking lawsuit that it has resulted in. Is this a failure of ADA compliance, or a deeper failure of spatial design and architectural thinking? And how does something like this happen at the highest level of practice?We also to

Ep. 28 World-Making, Architecture, and Game Design in Marathon. With Art Director: Joseph Cross! Apr 15, 2026 01:21:37 The MXD crew dives deep into the World-making, Architecture, and game design of the viral Bungie video game Marathon with special guest Joseph Cross, art director behind the game’s bold and polarizing visual identity.We explore how Marathon’s aesthetic—what Cross calls “graphic realism”—blends architecture, product design, branding, and visual culture into a unified world. From construction-site g

Ep. 27 Architecture, Academia, and Practice. Talking "Puzzling Assemblies" with Oyler Wu Apr 8, 2026 01:08:40 Dwayne Oyler and Jenny Wu of Oyler Wu Collaborative join Mixed Signals to unpack a design approach that refuses to sit in one camp. From line-based experiments to volumetric assemblies, their work navigates between digital and physical, drawing and making, theory and play. Rather than choosing a singular architectural identity, they argue for operating across multiple “camps”—a position that refra

Ep. 26 The new "New Museum". Future Architectural Icon or OMA Flop? Apr 1, 2026 00:52:50 OMA’s new museum expansion becomes the focal point of this episode of Mixed Signals—not just as a project, but as a case study in how architecture is judged today. The crew unpacks the building’s spatial ambitions, formal logic, and urban presence before confronting a viral critique claiming that “OMA can’t detail.” What follows is a layered discussion on authorship, construction quality, and the

Ep. 25 How to become an Online Architect, with Cathal Crumley! Mar 25, 2026 01:12:34 In this episode of Mixed Signals, the crew is joined by Cathal Crumley for a wide-ranging conversation about the life of the "Online Architect", the rise of meme-based criticism, digital culture, and how architectural ideas are being communicated through new platforms. The episode moves from the “seven wonders of cyberspace” and virtual memory in games like Animal Crossing and Call of Duty: Warzon

Ep. 24 Eco-Blobs and Urban Piles: Is this the new International trend in Architecture? Mar 18, 2026 01:06:16 In this episode of Mixed Signals, we debate architecture school culture, spring break studio work, and the strange world of contemporary design competitions. From exceptional student models at UDK Berlin and UPenn Weitzman to the rise of “Eco-blob” and the "Urban Pile" climate architecture, we ask what today’s projects are really proposing—and whether any of them could become a true world wonder.W

Ep. 23 Realism and Fantasy in Photography and Architecture Mar 11, 2026 00:54:11 This week we unpack the NOMA/NOMAS Barbara G. Laurie Student Design Competition to debates about realism, anti-renders, architectural photography, and why certain images of cities feel more truthful than polished architectural visuals. The MXD crew unpacks student competition work, community-centered design, architectural representation, and the tension between formal design discourse and real-wor

Ep. 22 Fiction, entertainment, and Architecture with Nate Hume and Liam Young. Mar 4, 2026 01:28:13 Some architecture projects have nothing to do with buildings. What happens when architecture moves into film, video games, and speculative world-building?In this episode of Mixed Signals, the MXD crew are joined by Liam Young (Director of the Fiction and Entertainment program at SCI-Arc) and Nate Hume (recently appointed Graduate and Post-Graduate chair at SCI-Arc) to discuss how architecture is e

Ep. 21 Video Games and why Architecture failed? Feb 25, 2026 01:20:37 In this episode of Mixed Signals, we dive into architectural education, student work, and the future of the discipline with special guest Ryan Scavnicky. From a segment of 'cold crits' looking at recent University of Pennsylvania studio projects to debates about Peter Eisenman, post-digital aesthetics, and neo-brutalism, we ask: what is architecture prioritizing right now?The conversation expands

Ep. 20 Architecture's Labor Problem Feb 18, 2026 01:08:43 What happens when the “dream office” looks a lot more like the rest of the industry? In this Mix Signals segment, we get into the uncomfortable reality behind architecture’s prestige economy—where star firms are idolized, but pay, job security, and working conditions can still be fragile. We talk through the reported proposed redundancies at BIG’s London office and why architects protesting public

Ep.19 What is post-digital Architecture? Feb 11, 2026 00:58:03 The MXD crew discusses Digital and Post-Digital Architecture. What's the difference and does it matter? We also discuss student work from the Bartlett and the role of the animation in explaining the projects. Also, is the corporate glossy render done? We talk about the trend of the 'anti-render'.

Ep.18 Political or Powerless Feb 4, 2026 01:13:20 The MXD crew discusses Architecture and its agency in the political sphere, a feeling of powerlessness as Architecture is less critically impactful in the wider culture. We also review a new batch of student projects, this time from University of Texas at Austin as well as one more OSU project. We also look at architectural anomalies, "Smol vs Somol", and a round of Architecture DND?!Mak

Ep. 17 The new 'inner circle' of Architecture!? Jan 28, 2026 01:02:15 In this episode of Mixed Signals, we dive into a heated conversation on architecture, politics, authorship, and education—using The ATTN Podcast by the Architecture Exchange (Season 8) as a jumping-off point. We unpack what it means to talk about democracy, plurality, and politics in architecture without turning the discipline into a catch-all moral project. From post-critical theory and the legac

Ep. 16 Have we lost the plot? Jan 21, 2026 00:55:05 Season 2 kicks off with a debate: do architecture books still matter—or has the discourse moved to Instagram, TikTok, and the feed? We unpack “rough-around-the-edges” aesthetics, anti-tech vibes, and why “Architecture (Big A)” feels fragmented into niches—then shift to student work, skyscrapers, and the new digital-art/collage frontier.

Ep.15 Season 1 Finale Jan 7, 2026 00:52:06 The MXD crew is joined by Matt Lopez, Claire Moriarty, and Riley Studebaker to celebrate the Season 1 Finale. #architecturedesign #podcast #art #architecture #design

Ep.14 - Holiday Special Pt.2 - Frank Gehry Rewind Dec 31, 2025 00:47:28 Ep 14 - our part 2 of our holiday special where we have many guest to discuss the legacy of Frank Gehry, new leadership at Cooper Union architecture program, more AI realted conversations.

Ep.13 - Holiday Special Pt.1 - The New Architects - AI vs Rappers Dec 24, 2025 00:39:35 Ep 13 - our part 1 of our holiday special where we have many guest to speak changes in the architectural field from ai and rappers emerging into the architecture profession and we discuss contentious architectural education changes needed from retiring the design jury in design reviews; to closing down the studio space after hours.

Ep.12 Stadium Showdown Dec 17, 2025 00:56:15 Matt Lopez joins the crew to discuss the sometimes ugly world of sports architecture.

Ep.11 - NEW SKYLINE? Facades, Ornament & Postmodern Legacy Dec 10, 2025 00:50:07 The MXD crew discusses the legacy of Robert Stern and postmodernism, exploring how facades, ornament, and massing shape some of New York City’s most luxurious buildings. We discuss how architects turn design decisions into capital, why ornament matters even today, and the role of digital craft vs brutalism in modern architecture.

Ep.10 - Why Architecture Sucks in the Digital Age Dec 3, 2025 00:55:17 In this episode we unpack how architecture is struggling in the digital age — and video games are showing us exactly why. In this episode, we explore why virtual museums, Zaha Hadid’s PUBG buildings, and other digital architecture often feel sterile, abstract, or completely disconnected from what digital spaces can be.Meanwhile, games like Fortnite, Elder Scrolls, PUBG, and Cyberpunk create immers

Ep.9 Spheres, Six Seven, and Video Game Collaborations Nov 26, 2025 01:00:48 The MXD crew discusses the MVRDV competition winning spherical proposal in Albania, the history and cultural context of spherical buildings, as well as video game collaborations, and gen alpha slang terms.

Ep.8 - Robot Servants, Delivery Bots, and the End of Normal? Nov 19, 2025 00:53:37 Welcome to the mixed signal podcast . Every week we unpack the visual qualities in trending topics of design and pop culture. This week’s episode explores the rise of AI robots, from city dwellers to delivery drivers, and delves into various aspects of AI and AI robots. We discuss the new Neo Robot servant, AI-driven designs and drawings, and even consider whether fiction has encroached too deepl

Ep. 7 - Architecture Baby Names the & Architecture of Brands Nov 11, 2025 00:58:57 Welcome to the mixed signal podcast . Every week we unpack the visual qualities in trending topics of design and pop culture. We kick it off with a tick-tock trend - by coming up with decontextualized baby names… architecture edition.And we showcase a digital artist , Mathew Boudot, that remixes a famous Justice Cross album art, with that of the Pompidou Center really really cool.We also react to

Ep.6 - Barry Wark Nov 5, 2025 01:16:33 Welcome to the mixed signal podcast . Every week we unpack the visual qualities in trending topics of design and pop culture. Be sure to follow, like and share with a friend!This episode we are joined the talented and humor filled architect and designer and educator, Barry Wark . We talk about the wonderful world of voxels and its digital aesthetic from Minecraft to complex algorithmic volumes. Ev

Ep.5 - Obama Presidential Trash Can? Oct 29, 2025 01:05:56 In this episode:Our Fun topic of the week compares architecture school to Hogwarts and the magical education system in Harry Potter. And trending topics include: Does the Obama Presidential center look like a huge trash can? Additionally, we look at the proposed MAGA sizedArch de Trump. And we also broke down the Louver heist and how the thieves found their way into the museum.The Artist spotligh

Ep.4 - AI Slop: Take it or Leave it.. Oct 22, 2025 01:07:32 In this Episode MXD Signal questions the role AI have been playing in education and in the creative space. We are also joined by a guest: Designer, architect and educator, Benjamin Vanmuysen. We look through Vanmuysen's recent work and understand what drives the visual identity as well as the concepts of his projects. Other topics include Syracuse University sunsetting some of its humanities progr

Ep.3 - WTF is the MAGA Aesthetic Oct 15, 2025 00:59:22 In this episode we dive deep in the world of MAGA, specifically the aesthetic and spatial constructs of the MAGA world. Additional topics include What to look out for as a new graduate when applying to design firms for employment; discussion of this years Chicago Architectural Biennial; The worlds tallest skateboard ramp designed by Red Bull and Prada and how Tony Hawk Pro-Skater the video game in

Ep.2 - Brutalism, Boxing and Yes! Boomers Are Why We Buy Labubus Oct 8, 2025 00:40:29 This episode we unpack why brutalism is so disliked by most people, glass towers and the economy of efficiency. We also discuss how the boxing ring has become the new fashion runway for high design, and lastly the effects of the capital divide between boomers and everyone else.

MXD Ep.1 - Intro Sep 30, 2025 00:42:53 This is our first episode where we cover our motives for recording a podcast, what Mixed Signal and how we see contemporary visual culture evolving.

Episodes

Recommended