Profile

Clarke is a designer, educator and theorist practicing at the intersection of culture, identity, and aesthetics. His office R A L X critiques mainstream practices and design methodologies within the discourse of architecture and design. The work of R A L X is an cultural investigation into identity and place that aims to undercover and explore novel methodologies that speculates how one could interject specific omitted histories and traditions into contemporary aesthetics, forms, and functions. Creating new languages from lost or neglected design vocabularies.    

Before joining the faculty at the University of Oregon, Clarke held posts as an visiting critic at New York City Tech and as an Research Fellow at New Lab under the supervision of Dr. Mitchell Joachim. He also worked for many years at architecture firms in Brooklyn , Austin, Shanghai and Los Angeles. Firms such as HOK, Terreform ONE, Gensler and Archi-Union.

Currently his office, in collaboration with Demar Mathews and Jack Travis, explores unearthing new aesthetics that are immensely specific to African American culture, experience, and identity. They have co-authored writings and works on experimental methodologies that are derived from African American histories, rituals, and traditions.