Welcome to Architectonic, the newsletter that cuts a clean section through the noise, revealing the messy insulation details hidden inside!
This is what I've got for you this week
The Blueprint
Sarawak: The "Islands of Influence"
We often hear the depressing narrative that traditional vernacular architecture is slowly vanishing in the face of modernization. However, a new lecture series launched in Kuching this week is flipping the script.
Presented by local architects on February 8, the "Islands of Influence" research argues that Sarawak Malay architectural typologies are not being erased at all. Instead, they are actively evolving into modern hybrid forms. This suggests that what looks like a "loss" of tradition is actually just a morphological shift, where the core logic of the vernacular survives within concrete and brick shells. This research is critical because it reframes the local builder not as a victim of gentrification, but as an active participant in defining a new regional modernism.
MIT Prints Trusses from "Dirty" Plastic
The dream of a circular construction economy just took a great leap forward. A team at MIT has successfully 3D-printed construction-grade floor trusses using shredded, recycled PET polymers and glass fibers.
The game-changing part? The process works with unwashed or "dirty" plastic, eliminating the costly cleaning stage that usually makes recycling commercially unviable. In structural testing, the trusses held over 4,000 pounds, exceeding HUD standards for residential loading. This breakthrough proves that municipal waste can be converted directly into structural, modular housing frames without degrading performance.
Foster + Partners' Green Loop in Angola
Working with Angola's Ministry of Transport, Foster + Partners has revealed an enormous 13,480-hectare masterplan for the Icolo e Bengo Aerotropolis in Luanda.
Designed as a new distinct urban district anchored by the airport, the project features a "green loop" that integrates passive design strategies with renewable infrastructure. The plan includes nearly 3 square kilometers of photovoltaic panels, intending to power the high-rise business district entirely through on-site solar generation. This project envisions a self-sustaining, high-tech city built from scratch around transit infrastructure in one of Africa's fastest-growing regions.
The Weekly Deep Dive
This weeks deep dive builds on the flipped narrative where indigenous builders are awarded the intellectual agency they deserve. We dive deeper into colonial history and some sides of it you might not know, embodied into the architecture around us.
The Hackers of History: How Indigenous Builders Co-opted the Colonizers
We are usually taught that Colonialism arrived like a steamroller, crushing fragile Indigenous traditions under the weight of bricks and surveying tools. But the historical record tells a different story.
From the Iban forts of Borneo to the earthquake-proof walls of Peru, the evidence suggests that Indigenous builders were not passive victims. They were active hackers. When faced with new technologies, they dismantled them, stripped them for parts, and reassembled them to ensure their own survival.
In this week's Deep Dive, we explore four historical cases of "Subversive Adaptation" and ask what the modern architect can learn from the builders who ate the machine.
Read the full analysis here: The Hackers of History
The Studio
Notes from the desk - the long haul
I’ll be honest: this week’s Deep Dive was a beast. It is the most extensively researched piece I have written so far, digging into corners of architectural theory and history that rarely get the spotlight.
It reminded me why we do this. It’s easy to get caught up in the "new"; the latest render, the newest software. But sometimes, the most radical innovation comes from looking backward and asking: "What happens if I break this?"
I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed wrestling with it.
-Johan