For urban dwellers around the world, scaffolding is an omnipresent component of the built environment. In New York City, there are an estimated 280 miles of scaffolding on any given day. These fleeting structural systems, oft overlooked given their pervasiveness and disdained for their obstructiveness and crude aesthetic, are the focal point of a new exhibition at the Center for Architecture, aptly titled Scaffolding. The show, which opened on October 2, attempts to break with such negative associations by lending an architectural eye to scaffolding, highlighting the scope of its design potential.

Curated by independent researcher Greg Barton, the exhibit outlines a brief history of scaffolding and draws upon a cross-cultural consortium of case studies, roughly organized around themes of housing prototypes, temporary theatrical spaces, display structures, alternative access, and participatory self-build schemes.