Working Collaboratively: A Conversation about Contemporary Praxis

Working collaboratively is arguably an essential skill in architectural practice as the complexity of contemporary projects involves multiple agents in the conception, construction and use of architecture. This has been emphasised by recent government rhetoric. Mass collaboration has been identified as a transformative global force of the last decade, most notably in knowledge and information publishing, communication and creation.

This paper presents a structured conversation on changing understandings of collaboration, and the realities of collaborative methodology in architectural work. Ideas of the platforms and structures necessary to support ‘creative’ collaborations are advanced and tested, and a vocabulary of key terms is developed. The conversation extends to reflect on the role of the architecture profession in supporting or enabling collaboration in architectural works.