DOSSIER 31

All disciplines involved in the creation and transformation of the habitable environment engage in some way with the manipulation of light and color. The implications of using light, colors, and materials in contemporary design activity, particularly in this era of advanced technological developments, deserve to be explored within the academic field in relation to techniques, design practices, architecture, and urban spaces. We invite the submission of original articles addressing these aspects. As a suggestion (not exclusively), we provide a list of possible topics:
a) Psychological aspects and influences of light and color stimuli in the habitat.
b) Meanings and preferences of color in spaces, objects, and designed media.
c) Historical evolution of concepts and theories of color and light in relation to the human environment.
d) Color systems and codes used in architecture and design.
e) History, archaeology, and practices of chromatic restoration in urban centers.
f) Meanings of chromatic materials in different design disciplines.
g) Methods, techniques, and procedures for using color in design activities.
Guest editorial team:
Dr. José Luis Caivano, University of Buenos Aires, Faculty of Architecture, Design, and Urbanism
Mg. Verena M. Schindler, International Association of Color (AIC),
Environmental Colour Design Study Group
Dr. Juan Serra, Technical School of Architecture at the Polytechnic University of Valencia
Deadline: May 31, 2025
Articles can be submitted via the following button, specifying in the subject line
“Article for evaluation, Dossier AREA 31“:
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DOSSIER 32

The 21st Century is rapidly advancing into an era defined by the effects of climate change, shaking the very foundations of human survival on the planet. This is evidenced by forced population displacements caused by various natural disasters, such as desertification, soil degradation, and flooding, as well as unforeseen cataclysms and rising sea levels submerging coastal cities and neighborhoods, causing immeasurable damage. In light of this tangible reality, the traditional paradigms of Architecture, Design, and Urbanism have transformed in their concepts and production methodologies of buildings, cities, and objects, addressing the emergency not as extraordinary responses but as part of a new normality to which countries and societies must adapt.
This shift, from anthropocentric approaches that built cities under the assumption that nature—and with it, other species—could be subjugated to meet human comfort needs and desires, to solutions based on integration with the natural environment, represents a significant ideological change. This change is beginning to firmly influence the decisions made by architects, designers, and urban planners within a shared conceptual framework. New design concepts and research methodologies are emerging, materializing in the forms and functions of buildings, project aesthetics, and political outcomes rooted in the ethics of resilience or the capacity to adapt to change.
This also implies acknowledging that the evidence around climate change already demonstrates the unviability of the sustainability paradigm as it was proposed in the 1990s. The radical change needed in lifestyle, production, and consumption in modern society points to the necessity of rethinking adaptation to the unpredictable world ahead.
The dossier explores these issues through projects and works, particularly in Latin America and more broadly around the world, that contribute to a deeper understanding of the conceptual framework of resilience and its influence on planning and design processes.
We seek articles that reflect the rapid transformations of recent decades in new forms of design and planning, fueled by a multiplicity of emerging digital technologies, including artificial intelligence. These articles should particularly address the effects of climate change and the necessity for cities and citizens to adapt in their lifestyles and infrastructures, while also exploring disciplinary alternatives essential for understanding and navigating the broader social and environmental changes that have occurred and are likely to arise.
The contextualization of cases and the details of specific circumstances in which various projects and works emerge are fundamental to this dossier. These elements help not only to explain the evolution of project paradigms but also to assess their outcomes, especially regarding their impact on the issue of social inequality. This issue is a key philosophical cornerstone for addressing resilience. A form of resilience aimed solely at maintaining the status quo by creating survival habitats, rather than contributing to a more equitable society, falls short of the expectations of this new paradigm. Instead, it must shed light on the construction of a global society capable of moving beyond a “save yourself if you can” mindset to genuinely organizing solutions for overcoming the global climate crisis, guided by the principle of “leaving no one behind.”
Guest Editorial Team:
Dr. Federico Colombo Speroni, Catholic University of Salta, Institute of Urban and Territorial Sustainability (ISUT)
Dr. Fernando Murillo, University of Buenos Aires (UBA), Faculty of Architecture, Design, and Urbanism (FADU)
Deadline: October 31, 2025.
Articles can be submitted via the following button, specifying in the subject line
“Article for evaluation, Dossier AREA 32“:
For questions of how to prepare the article:
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GENERAL TOPIC
We invite the community to send texts related to architecture, urban planning, graphic, industrial, product, clothing, textile and multimedia design.
PRESENTATION
The articles sent must meet the following basic conditions:
- Original, unpublished articles, that are not participating in another evaluation process.
- Word format or compatible, size A4, body type 12 with simple line spacing and respect for AREA’s general rules,
- The main language of the journal is Spanish, although original articles in Portuguese and English are also accepted. The articles must have a minimum of 4000 words and a maximum of 8,000 words.
- For the first instance, the file will be sent with the images included in low resolution. High resolution will be required only for publication.
- In all cases, the articles will be accompanied by a summary of no more than 100 words in the original language and its corresponding translation into English; if the original language is English or Portuguese, the summary must also be in Spanish.
- A list of 5 keywords based on the terminological use of the Vitruvian Network.
THE CALL FOR GENERAL TOPIC ARTICLES IS PERMANENTLY OPEN WITHOUT SUBMISSION DEADLINE.
Articles can be sent from the following button, indicating in the subject
“Article for evaluation – General topic“:
For questions of how to prepare the article:
Authors Information
For other questions:
Queries