Swiss architect Franz Oswald to present 2002 Werner Seligmann lecture at Syracuse University

Swiss architect Franz Oswald to present 2002 Werner Seligmann lecture at Syracuse UniversityOctober 30, 2002Judy Holmesjlholmes@syr.edu

Franz Oswald, chair of architecture and urban design at ETH in Zurich, will present the 2002 Werner Seligmann Lecture at 7 p.m. Nov. 6 in Syracuse University’s Slocum Hall, Room 108. The lecture is presented by the School of Architecture.

Oswald will present “NETCITY and New Urbanity-a European Model.” Oswald studied philosophy, literature and the history of art at the universities of Bern and Zurich and studied architecture at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology. He spent several years in Cologne, Germany, and at Cornell University, where he finished postgraduate studies in architecture and urban design. Oswald has held visiting professorships at Cornell University, Columbia University and SU. In 1976, he founded his own architectural firm in Bern. He has completed housing and urban projects in Switzerland, Germany and Israel, as well as palace restoration projects in Iran, and has received various awards for his work.

Oswald began his teaching career at ETH in 1972, was elected chairman of the architectural division in 1986, and three years later, dean of the Department of Architecture. In 1995, with colleague Peter Baccini, Oswald initiated a trans-disciplinary research project that focuses on three interrelated questions-high standards of city form, sustainable management of resources and scenarios for restructuring urban regions.

Seligmann, dean of the School of Architecture from 1976 to 1990, died in 1998. The Seligmann Lecture Series was established in his memory by alumni, professional associates, friends and family to continue the tradition he established of inviting notable architects and educators to the school.