Challenging the familiar binary of theory versus practice, this survey course explores how architectural theory activates new ways of imagining and making the built environment. Weekly lectures introduce an enduring theoretical subject (e.g., Form, Representation) and map the historical forces that have shaped that subject’s development across contexts. Course lectures and readings are paired with project presentations by design faculty, who will draw connections between theoretical speculation and applied practice. These dialogues will address the ever-changing contours of the present-day profession and its body of ideas, terms, and knowledge. Moreover, cognizant of the activating potential of theory, this course asks how architecture might engage urgent issues pertaining to climate change, social justice, and the legacies of colonialism.