Exhibition Talk: Manager & Monkeys

In January 2026, the exhibit Managers & Monkeys will be on display at Plaza Vertigo, TU/e. This will again be combined with a special Exhibition Talk on Thursday, February 5, 5:00 PM (doors open at 4:30 PM). Special guest is Galo Canizares, curator of the exhibition and researcher affiliated with the TU/e Department of the Built Environment. The exhibition examines the profound impact of CAD on architecture and design, leading to the computerization of architectural labor.

Before the arrival of desktop computers, every architectural plan was hand-drawn. Architects and designers relied on precision tools, a steady hand, and a team of draftsmen to bring ideas to life. A subtle revolution began in 1963, when Ivan Sutherland introduced Sketchpad, the world’s first CAD graphics program. However, it wasn’t until the 1980s and 1990s that companies like Autodesk consolidated CAD and transformed the way architects design. Suddenly, where once precision and patience ruled, drawings could now be updated in minutes, errors could be minimized, and the pace of creative exploration took off.

Managers & Monkeys invites you to experience this transformation in architectural labor and explores the decades when digital tools entered studios in the design world and fundamentally redefined the architectural trade. This exhibit isn’t just a story about computing machines; it’s a celebration of human creativity and adaptability, and how computers expanded the boundaries of design, opening the doors to a new era in architecture.