Organized by the Natural Materials Lab and the Building Technology sequence at GSAPP, the Cataloguing / Variance series is five off-campus excursions that examine practices of material collection, classification, mapping, and experimentation across diverse origins, scales, industries, and modes of making, and brings students into direct contact through in-person tours at research facilities and design practices where material knowledge is actively produced.

The series interrogates how material variability is registered or excluded within dominant systems of cataloging, and seeks whether variance becomes a liability, a resource, or a site of knowledge. Five excursions are planned from January until April 2026, as follows:

• 01/28/2026, 9:30 AM — The Material Lab, Pratt Institute — ENG 005, 200 Willoughby Ave, Brooklyn

• 02/11/2026, 9:30 AM — Studio Sofield — 65 Bleecker St

• 03/11/2026, 9:30 AM — LOT-EK Architecture & Design — 616 E 9th St

• 03/25/2026, 9:30 AM — Technology Lab, Preservation (GSAPP Preservation Technology Lab) — Schermerhorn 655

• 04/08/2026, 9:30 AM — Donghia Healthier Materials Library (Parsons School of Design) — 25 E 13th St

The series is generously supported by the Climate School’s Fieldwork and Course Support.