Outputs (23)

On the visual aesthetics of lethal weapons (2018)
Presentation / Conference
Shayya, F. (2018, May). On the visual aesthetics of lethal weapons. Presented at Pictures of War: The Still Image in Conflict since 1945, Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, England

We look at them with an odd sense of sympathy. Forensic traces of violence nudge our feelings, but their objectfullness (after Latour) keeps us distant from any empathetic connection. Essential as they may be to the social construction of war, they o... Read More about On the visual aesthetics of lethal weapons.

Inscribing the urban in technical objects (2018)
Presentation / Conference
Shayya, F. (2018, May). Inscribing the urban in technical objects. Presented at School of Environment, Education and Development PGR Conference, University of Manchester

How does military vehicular technology capture urban space? What kinds of associations hold armored vehicles, soldiers, and the urban together? And, how are the concerns of the military mediated through technology? This short talk attempts to answer... Read More about Inscribing the urban in technical objects.

What can an MRAP do? (2017)
Presentation / Conference
Shayya, F. (2017, June). What can an MRAP do?. Poster presented at Doing Architectural Research: Socio-political Perspectives on Theories, Methodologies & Praxis, Cambridge, United Kingdom

My research traces the U.S. military’s interest in and definition of “the urban” in terms of survivability (of soldiers, force, and system of systems) from military action and natural phenomena. I follow MRAP (Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected) vehicle... Read More about What can an MRAP do?.

This is the age of the architectural, not architecture (2017)
Presentation / Conference
Shayya, F. (2017, June). This is the age of the architectural, not architecture. Presented at Doing Architectural Research: Socio-political Perspectives on Theories, Methodologies & Praxis, Cambridge, United Kingdom

This is the age of the architectural, not architecture. The architectural is a praxis for making the social by covering and uncovering black boxes of flows and intensities. Architecture is ideology! The architectural in “architectural research” is no... Read More about This is the age of the architectural, not architecture.

The becoming-military of technology & the becoming-urban of the military: MRAP sociotechnical relations (2017)
Presentation / Conference
Shayya, F. (2017, May). The becoming-military of technology & the becoming-urban of the military: MRAP sociotechnical relations. Poster presented at 4th Annual SEED PGR Conference, Manchester, United Kingdom

The first aim is investigating connections between how military sociotechnical inscriptions serve as actualizations of military strategy in/through urban contexts. And, the second aim is exploring the extent of the demilitarization gap within the tra... Read More about The becoming-military of technology & the becoming-urban of the military: MRAP sociotechnical relations.

Strangely familiar! Or, what the smell of grease revealed about my curious self (2017)
Presentation / Conference
Shayya, F. (2017, April). Strangely familiar! Or, what the smell of grease revealed about my curious self. Presented at PhD By Design Conference, Sheffield, United Kingdom

It’s a windy, cold February Saturday at The Imperial War Museum in Manchester. I stand next to a 1979 Leopard patrol vehicle and a WWII T34 tank when a strong, thick, nauseating smell takes me 23 years back to a boyish childhood memory. I recall clim... Read More about Strangely familiar! Or, what the smell of grease revealed about my curious self.

Geographies of delegation, militarization and urbanism in the U.S. (2016)
Presentation / Conference
Shayya, F. (2016, March). Geographies of delegation, militarization and urbanism in the U.S. Presented at The American Association of Geographers 2016 Annual Meeting, San Francisco, United States

With the U.S. recalling about 27,000 MRAP vehicles (Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected) from the military Theater of Operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, news circulated about the domestic redeployment of 13,000 MRAPs to different local police and securi... Read More about Geographies of delegation, militarization and urbanism in the U.S..

Speculations and questions on Dubaization (2013)
Book Chapter
Shayya, F. (2013). Speculations and questions on Dubaization. In The State Vol IV: Dubai (100-104). The State

So, can we think of Dubai with a fresh perspective, perhaps through Baudrillard’s assertion that “it is the empty space that should increase the symbolism in architecture?” Can we perceive Dubai as an object in empty space, a something that is not po... Read More about Speculations and questions on Dubaization.

Recognizing the invisible monument: on the politics of memorilization and public space in post-war Beirut (2012)
Book Chapter
Shayya, F. (2012). Recognizing the invisible monument: on the politics of memorilization and public space in post-war Beirut. In Critical Cities: Ideas, Knowledge and Agitation from Emerging Urbanists. Myrdle Court Press

Revisiting open space provision in Beirut (2012)
Journal Article
Shayya, F. (2012). Revisiting open space provision in Beirut. Urban design (London), 124,

In a country like Lebanon with a notorious reputation of being chaotic and hectic, it might be hard to believe that the professions which promote organisation and structure, such as urban design, have considerable impact on shaping urban settings. Ye... Read More about Revisiting open space provision in Beirut.