SHIFT: Architecture in Times of Radical Change is the sixth edition of the Chicago Architecture Biennial and marks the celebration of its tenth anniversary. Led by artistic director Florencia Rodriguez, SHIFT signals the opportunity and need to change direction—an invitation to think with others and to set new grounds for the interpretation and design of our built environments. This edition explores how architecture engages with the profound cultural, social, and environmental transformations shaping our world today and explores the possibility of envisioning alternate paths forward. Featuring over 100 projects by architects, artists, and designers from 30 countries, SHIFT convenes voices from around the world, in a citywide constellation of exhibitions and public programs. Together, they address urgent questions shaping the spaces we inhabit, such as housing, ecology, and material innovation, to demonstrate architecture’s role in shaping our collective future.

Florencia Rodriguez is founding principal of -NESS, an international cultural platform for architecture. As an editor, writer, and educator, she creates and leads initiatives related to architecture and design that span publishing, exhibitions, and consultancy, and her work is grounded in the belief that architecture is a vital cultural practice. Rodriguez is also associate professor at the University of Illinois Chicago School of Architecture (UIC/SoArch), where she was director between 2022 and 2025. Before coming to UlC, Rodriguez was a lecturer in architecture at the Harvard Graduate School of Design. In 2010, in Buenos Aires, Rodriguez founded PLOT, a publication focused on global architecture and contemporary discourse. She directed PLOT until 2017, when she cofounded -NESS with Pablo Gerson. From that platform, she has edited books and organized events committed to the dissemination of new narratives, the exploration of alternative forms of design criticism, and discussions about the contemporary role of design. Rodriguez has received awards for her editorial work and published several articles in books and specialized media such as Domus, Oris, summa+, Arquine, A+U, and Uncube. In 2020, together with Mark Lee, she guest-edited America, the 48th issue of the Harvard Design Magazine. Her most recent book, MCHAP 2 Territory & Expeditions was published in 2022, by IITAC, Actar, and -NESS. Rodriguez is editing the book Machado Silvetti / Drawings 1975-1999, to be published by Harvard Design Press, and working on a collection of her writings to be published by Park Books.

The Chicago Architecture Biennial (CAB) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to convening the world to explore innovative ideas and bring people together to collectively imagine and shape the future of design. CAB’s programs are committed to producing opportunities to explore and address timely global issues through the lens of architecture and design, emphasizing community input, sustainability, and equity. Free and open to the public, CAB stands as North America’s largest international survey of contemporary architecture and design. CAB’s signature program takes place every two years at the Chicago Cultural Center and sites across the city. Since its founding in 2015, CAB has hosted five editions: This is a Rehearsal (2023); The Available City (2021); …and other such stories (2019); Make New History (2017); and The State of the Art of Architecture (2015). CAB programming throughout the year engages global audiences in conversations exploring critical ideas and questions facing the field, and beyond. Over the course of its internationally heralded editions, CAB has presented projects created by more than 400 architects, designers, and artists from over 40 countries.