Brandon Clifford is a time-traveler who develops creative approaches to the world’s most pressing problems. He identifies contemporary blind-spots by mining ancient knowledge that holds resonance with topics of today. He is best known for bringing megalithic sculptures to life to perform tasks. Brandon is the director and co-founder of Matter Design and an associate professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Brandon received his Master of Architecture from Princeton University and his Bachelor of Science in Architecture from Georgia Tech. He has also served as the LeFevre Fellow at The Ohio State University and the John G. Williams Distinguished Visiting Professor at the University of Arkansas. Brandon is a designer and researcher who has received recognition with prizes such as the American Academy in Rome Prize, a TED Fellowship, the SOM Prize, the Design Biennial Boston Award, and the Architectural League Prize for Young Architects & Designers. His most recent authored work ‘The Cannibal’s Cookbook’ demonstrates his dedication to bringing ancient knowledge into contemporary practice with theatrical captivation. His work at Matter Design is focused on re-directing architectural research through spectacle and mysticism by re-posing a series of ancient, but hauntingly relevant questions. For instance, could walking massive statues help us design for transportation and assembly? Is the key to recycling our building materials locked inside the cryptic walls suspected of being built by primordial giants? These ancient ways of thinking compound cultural significance, ceremony, and mythology with technical and methodological procedures that have the potential to resolve our contemporary problems. His speculative built works continue to disrupt common practices and challenge default solutions.
“With each technical advancement society makes, a previous solution is abandoned. How many of us can determine the date by looking to the stars? I’m fascinated by these blind-spots because they identify possible solutions to the most pressing problems we face today. As an architect, I mine ancient knowledge to chart smarter futures; to challenge us to think differently. What could we learn from neo-lithic civilizations about energy use? The answers will surprise you.”