Decolonizing architecture

5 Questions for Native designer Joseph Kunkel

This is Joseph Kunkel, the quietest guy at the dinner party. You watch his gentle way of passing the salad down the length of the table. You wonder what he’s thinking. Every once in a blue moon he blesses you with the contents of his mind. His way of being demonstrates that gentle doesn’t belie radical. He’s reconfiguring the world in his head—culturally, spacially, spiritually. I got him to share a few words on that…

Courtney Martin: How did you first become interested in architecture and design?

Joseph Kunkel: Folks told my grandfather that if he wasn’t the Executive Director of the St. Labre Indian School, he would have been an architect. That planted the seed. And I continued exploring what that might look like.

You are now arguing for and practicing a decolonized architecture. What does that mean?

The first step is to acknowledge what we’re talking about when we say “decolonization.” At its core, decolonization means dismantling oppressive systems and reimagining them through the lens of Indigenous approaches and values. Colonial thought has a long, entrenched history within the practice of architecture—from the way architects are trained, to the language we use to talk about buildings and construction, and even for whom those buildings are intended.

Western thought has established what architecture is today. What’s the Indigenous perspective? Where’s the Indigenous voice? How are we teaching the next generation of architects and designers? These are all larger questions that lead to this idea of decolonizing architecture.

Of course, we can’t just throw out centuries of practice, how do we learn from the past, and integrate that into a more holistic practice.

What is one of the buildings or projects you've worked on that you think best exemplifies this different way of doing things?

I’d say that my Bridging Boundaries exhibit (Corcoran School of Design, George Washington University) starts to get at what I’m trying to do with my practice.

How can we bring these two spaces (Native and non-Native) together to recognize our common being? I attempt to do the same in our building projects, an example of that is the work we’re doing right now with the Santa Clara Pueblo, where we’re building homes that are responding to the COVID-19 pandemic—a pandemic that has highlighted the injustices that the built environment has done to Native peoples.

I love the way you call us to pay more attention to our language -- like “groundbreaking” as a violent term. Can you say more about that?

It’s just that—the term is inherently violent. We’re breaking the ground rather than celebrating it. Why not call it a ground celebration, and honor that land which we’re about to build on? Buildings should be artifacts that serve people, and to start it with a breaking of the ground is in itself a harmful act.

The language of architecture to based in western thought, there’s a whole lot there that needs to be considered when working with marginalized communities.

Too often, non-Indigenous Americans trying to learn about Indigenous culture only look to historic sources. Who are some of your favorite contemporary Indigenous activists, artists, writers etc.?

Tommy Orange, Dallas Goldtooth (and his father), Joy Harjo, just to name a few. There are so many who do this important work. And all are lifting up voices and perspectives that will further Indigenous rights.

We—as a crew—will be donating to the amazing MASS Design Group in honor of Joseph (thanks subscribers!).