Site Visit No. 9: Airtime with Anya Sirota

Site Visit

Ashley and Erik visit Airtime with Anya Sirota, Professor of Architecture at the University of Michigan Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning, and principal of Akoaki.

August 1, 2019

AIRTIME WITH ANYA SIROTA

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Anya Sirota is an architectural designer, researcher and educator. With her partner, Jean Louis Farges, Anya directs the Detroit based studio Akoaki. Through a distinct synthesis of aesthetics, social enterprise and cultural programming, the practice has established a reputation for innovation in the urban realm. The work, grounded in an affection for collective, unrestricted and inclusive experiences, has recently been featured in exhibitions at the Vitra Design Museum, the Saint Etienne International Design Biennial and the Detroit Institute of Art. Anya currently teaches at the University of Michigan Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning, where she directs the Michigan Preparatory Program in Detroit.

On Today’s Site Visit, we discuss a recent trip we took to Airtime in Ann Arbor, Michigan - an interior trampoline park popular for kids birthday parties, gymnastics training or simply exerting some pent up energy. We began by asking Anya to explain why she chose Airtime for today’s Site Visit, and how the building has come to represent a new medium through which she has been able to understand architecture, program and its cultural implications.