The Paul L. Cejas Lecture Series. Weaving the Narrative A Conversation Between Thomas Coldefy & Adrien Gardère Thursday, November 13, 2025 · 2:00 PM · PCA 135
The Department of Architecture is proud to host Weaving the Narrative, a special conversation between two internationally acclaimed figures in contemporary architecture and design, Thomas Coldefy and Adrien Gardère.
Through their respective practices, both speakers explore the intersection of space, culture, and narrative. Their dialogue will illuminate the shared ground between architecture and museography — where design becomes a medium for storytelling, and built form engages memory, movement, and meaning.
Thomas Coldefy, founding partner and principal of Coldefy, leads an award-winning practice based in Lille, Paris, and Shanghai. His work is distinguished by its sensitivity to context, environmental consciousness, and conceptual rigor. From the Hong Kong Design Institute to the visionary Tropicalia Biome in northern France and the French Pavilion at the 2025 Osaka World Fair, Coldefy’s projects exemplify design as a synthesis of density, diversity, and poetic openness.
Adrien Gardère, founder of Studio Adrien Gardère, bridges the worlds of design, museography, and scenography. With over 80 international exhibitions and 13 major museums realized in collaboration with renowned architects, Gardère’s work defines a contemporary language of display that merges artifact, architecture, and narrative experience. A recipient of the Academy of Architecture Foundation Medal, he continues to redefine how space communicates culture and history. Together, Coldefy and Gardère will reflect on the creative and intellectual threads that connect architecture, exhibition design, and the act of cultural interpretation.
Join us for this remarkable exchange between two voices shaping today’s global design discourse. Lecture: Thursday, November 13, 2025, Time: 2:00 PM Location: PCA 135
