Dearq

Dearq | eISSN 2215-969X

Speculative Futures: Beyond the Site Plan. An Interview with Liam Young

No. 43 (2025-10-07)
https://doi.org/10.18389/dearq43.2025.08

Abstract

In this interview, Liam Young reflects on speculative futures as a practice of imagining and testing possible worlds through a critical lens on the present. Moving beyond the building as a physical object and the site plan as a tool of representation, Young engages with concepts such as worldbuilding, planetary scale, and geological time to broaden the scope of architectural practice in an era marked by technological transformation and global crisis. The conversation further examines how interdisciplinary collaboration and narrative strategies serve as resources to intervene in the present, anticipate the implications of emerging technologies, and construct more inclusive imaginaries.

Keywords: speculative futures, worldbuilding, planetary scale, geological time, emerging technologies, science fiction, architectural representation

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