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Lecturer.
 Tel: +44(0)161 275 6900
Fax: +44(0)161 275 6893 .
Email: albena.yaneva@manchester.ac.uk.
Room Number: 1.7 (PAB).

Research interests

I have been trained as a sociologist at the Centre of Sociology of Innovation in Ecole des Mines in Paris, and I am witnessing the challenges of interdisciplinarity from the very beginning of my teaching and research carrier. My first experiences included small-scale investigations of design practices of contemporary artists exhibiting at the Museum of Modern Art in Paris, craftsmen in Southern France, and industrial designers of household appliances at the French company SEB. My approach consisted of applying the method of social studies of science and technology (called Actor-Network-Theory) at these fields, meaning to literary follow artists, designers and engineers in their practices and explore their own “native” definitions of the social.

Used primarily to describe scientific practices, this approach can open new perspectives for Architectural Studies. Applying this method I observed architects at work in the office of Rem Koolhaas, focusing especially on the processes of visualization and the role of physical models as a cognitive tool in design. This project aimed at opening the “black box” of architectural creation relying on the visual character of the thinking of architects, presuming that design process is transparent and can be witnessed and even recorded. In this two-year ethnographical survey of practitioners at work I gained access to architects’ own definitions of what it means to design. Following the myriad of actors and “relevant social groups” that partake in design (clients, investors, city planners, developers, proto-users, along with materials, zoning restrictions, structure and programmatic requirements) I witnessed its controversial nature and social and political impact.

I have initiated workshops that gathered theoreticians and practitioners in architecture and launched interdisciplinary discussions on architectural practices (“The Artistry of Thinking Like an Architect: Stories from the Architectural Office”, May 2005, Akademie Schloss Solitude, Stuttgart, Germany; “Doing Architecture, Accounting Society: Social Studies of Architecture Practices”, EASST 2002 conference session, York, UK).

I continue pursuing research in the field of “social studies of architecture” tackling its methodological dilemmas, analysing research findings and discussing main theoretical strands of this “not-yet-defined” field. Besides this major research task, I also deal with specific topics in the field such as: anthropology of “failed” architectural projects, methodological problems in design ethnography, and specific cases of museum architecture.

Professional Positions

2004-2006: founding director of THE GALLERY OF RESEARCH I GALERIE DER FORSCHUNG, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna

2005 (Spring-Fall): visiting Lecturer in Anthropology of Art, Institut d’Ethnologie, Université de Neuchâtel, Switzerland

2004: postdoctoral research fellow at Harvard University, Department of History of Science (department sponsor: Professor Peter Galison)

2001-2003: postdoctoral research fellow at the Max-Planck Institute for the History of Science in Berlin, member of the group "The Common Languages of Art and Science" of Professor Lorraine Daston

1999-2001: tutor at Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Paris, course “Sociology of Science”

1998-1999: Assistant Professor in Sociology, Department of Sociology, St. Kliment Ohridski University of Sofia

Educational Background

2001: PhD in Socio-economy of Innovation, Centre of Sociology of Innovation (CSI), Ecole Nationale Supérieure des mines de Paris (ENSMP); Supervisors: Bruno Latour and Antoine Hennion

1997: DEA (Diplôme d’études approfondies), Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales (EHESS) Paris; Supervisor: Dominique Pestre

1996: MA in Sociology, University of Sofia

Country Experience

France, USA, Bulgaria, The Netherlands, Austria, Germany, Switzerland

Selected Publications

Books and Book Chapters
  • 2006 'An Ethnography Note on Emergency in Architectural Design', in Y. Milev (ed.) Emergency Design, Springer Wien.
  • 2006 'Shaped by Constraints: Composite Models in Architecture', in Inge Hinterwaldner and Markus Buschhaus (eds.) The Picture’s Image. Wissenschaftliche Visualisierung als Komposit, München, pp.68-84.
  • 2005 'A Building is a Multiverse', in B. Latour & P. Weibel (eds), Making Things Public, MIT Press, 530-535.
  • 2004 'Birds Make Traps for Humans. Hanimann’s Techniques of Artistic Entrapment', in Birdwatching, Neue Kunsthalle St.Gallen, Edition Fink, Zürich, Switzerland: 65-76.
  • 2002 'Challenging the visitor to get the image', in B. Latour & P. Weibel (eds.), Iconoclash, Beyond the Image War in Art, Science and Religion, MIT Press, 421-422.
  • 2001 'L’affluence des objets: pragmatique comparée de l’art contemporain et de l’artisanat d’art', PhD dissertation, ENSMP, Paris, 519p. (The ‘affluence’ of objects: comparative pragmatics of contemporary art and art craftsmanship).
  • 2001 'Walking on Brueghel? New Approaches in Sociology of Art', In: Sociological Dimensions of Art, anthology of texts, vol. II, Askoni, Sofia.
  • 2000 'Savoirs rares, objets de qualité, artisans d’exception : définir la qualité pour la maintenir et la produire', CSI, ENSMP, Paris, 2000. Conseil des métiers d’art, DAP/DAPA-Ministère de la culture, 123p. (with Hennion, A.)
  • 2000 'When the Object Convolutions Fit Together: Objects’ Creation in Art, Design and Art Craftsmanship', In: Proceedings of the International Summer Academy on Technology Studies, Strategies of Sustainable Product Policy, ed. Ursula Pretterhofer, published by IFF/ IFZ, 2000, Graz, Austria, 287-294.
  • 1997 'Microanalyse de la forme sociale des objets techniques: le mode d’emploi des robots, mémoire de DEA de Sociologie', EHESS, Paris, 1997, 99 p. (Microanalysis of the social form of technical objects: on the case of the instruction for use of robots)
Edited Books
  • 2001 Sociological Dimensions of Art, anthology of texts, 2 volumes, Askoni, Sofia. (with Stefanov, I., published in Bulgarian)
Refereed Articles
  • 2005 “Scaling Up and Down: Extraction Trials in Architectural Design,” in Social Studies of Science, 35(6): 867-894.
  • 2003 “When a Bus Met a Museum. To Follow Artists, Curators and Workers in Art Installation”, in Museum and Society, 1 (3): 116-131.
  • 2003 “Chalk Steps on the Museum Floor: The ‘Pulses’ of Objects in Art Installation”, in Journal of Material Culture, 8 (2): 169-188.

Recent Lectures

  • “Quand concevoir c'est continuer: sur les modes d'obtention de savoirs en architecture”, Journée d'étude “Le savoir architectural”, Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales, 1 December 2006 – Paris.
  • “How to Make a Building Talk”, November 16-17 - keynote speaker at the 3rd annual Architectural Humanities Research Association [AHRA] international conference, St Catherine's College, Oxford.
  • 26 -27 October - Valencia, Annual Conference of Valencia School of Architecture (Spain)
  • “Compelling Objects: on Models, Foam, and Agency in Architectural Design”, 16 October, Department of Material Culture, UCL
  • Surprises d'écran - surprises de mousse:  sur le caractère hétéroclite des supports matériels de la conception en architecture”, 5-6 October, Atelier Pixel – Pratiques infographiques, logiciels de conception et anthropologie, CNRS & Musée du quai Branly, Paris
  • “Clashes in the Office: an Ethnography Note on Emergency Design”, International Symposium “Emergency Design”, 15-16 February, HGKZ, Zurich, 2006.
  • “What Failure Means in Architecture”, Speaker at the Architectural Congress “[oriental HOT:KEY] - Dubai and other booming regions,” Vienna, Museum of Applied Arts, 24 October 2005.
  • “Sociology and the Public: Hybrid Forums in Architecture,” keynote lecture at the Congress of the Austrian Sociological Society, 22 September 2005.
  • Invited speaker at the European Commission Forum “Science in Society”, Brussels, 9-11 March 2005.
  • “Scale Models as Composite Images in Architecture”, talk at the “The Picture's Image. Scientific Visualisation as a Composite, ZKM, Karlsruhe, 7-8 May 2005.
  • Talk at the “Call for Witnesses: Transparency,” A workshop sponsored by Cornell Law School Clarke Program in East Asian Law and Culture, and hosted by the Centre de Sociologie de l’Innovation Ecole des Mines de Paris, 22 April, 2005.

Research Grants

2004 - 2006 development and supervision of four research projects at THE GALLERY OF RESEARCH | GALERIE DER FORSCHUNG in Vienna: ‘Sites of Science: city dynamics and research practices in early XX century Vienna’; ‘How the Cosmos probes the Space: film ethnography of space research’. ‘The Gallery of Research building: social history and ethnography of renovation’, ‘The Visual Language of Otto Neurath: applications in science communication and media philosophy’. Blending the perspective of studies of science and technology together with art and museum studies, the projects deal with history and anthropology of science, film ethnography, urban studies and visual anthropology. Supervision of 5 postdocs and 2 post-graduate students. (Annual budget: 1.5mil. EUR)

2001 - 2004 Scaling Up and Down: Models and Publics in Architecture. The Extensions of the Whitney Museum for American Art, research project started at the MPI (2001) and finalized at Harvard University (2004). (Sole Investigator, total project grant: 86400 DM + 10000USD)

1999 – 2000 Savoirs rares, objets de qualité, artisans d’exception: définir la qualité pour la maintenir et la produire (with Hennion, A). Project commissioned by the Ministry of Culture of France. (Principal investigator; total project grant: 110 000 FFR)

1996 - 1998 Modes of Diversification in Bulgarian Higher Education: Case Studies in Four Disciplines (with Dimitrov, G, Georgieva, P, Hristov, I). Research grant from the Central European University, RSS (Research Support Scheme) Programme. (Co-Investigator, Total project grant: 20 000 USD)

Prizes & Awards

June 2004 - August 2004: book writing fellowship at the Akademie Schloss Solitude, Stuttgart, Program Art, Science & Business (3000 Euro).

2003: grant award of The Board of Trustees of Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts for the project ‘Scaling Up and Down: Models and Publics in Architecture – The Extensions of the Whitney Museum of American Art.’ (10000 USD)

2000: travel award from the European Association for Social Studies of Sciences and Technologies (EASST) for participation in the International Summer Academy on Technology Studies, July, Graz, Austria (500 USD)

1999: travel award from the organizing committee of the Society for Social Studies of Sciences (4S) for the participation in the Annual Meeting of the Society for Social Studies of Sciences, October 1999, San Diego, USA (500 USD)

October 1998: French Government 3-year grant for Ph.D. studies at Ecole des mines de Paris (45000 FFR).

October 1996: French Government 1-year grant for D.E.A. studies at Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales, Paris, France (45000 FFR)

1994-1996: 2-year student research grant from Soros foundation (2000 USD)

September 1995  - awarded for scientific merit by the National Academic Foundation in Sofia

November 1995 - awarded “Student of the Year” title of “St. Kliment Ochridki” University of Sofia.

Memberships

Since 1999 - member of the Society for Social Studies of Sciences (4S)

Since 1998 - member of the European Association for Social Studies of Sciences and Technologies (EASST)

Since 1998 - corresponding member of the European Society for the Sociology of Art and Design (ESSAD)

Since 1995 - member of the European Sociological Association

Architecture fieldwork and consultancy

  • The Office for Metropolitan Architecture, Rotterdam
  • Moshe Safdie Associates, Boston