Professor Maximilian Sternberg
- Professor of History and Theory of Architecture
- Fellow of Pembroke College
- Director of Studies for Architecture in Pembroke and St Catharine's Colleges
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About
I am Professor of History and Theory of Architecture and a Fellow of Pembroke College. I received my B.A. in History from King’s College London (2000) and my MPhil and PhD in History and Philosophy of Architecture from Cambridge (2002 and 2007). After post-docs in the German Historical Institute in Paris and the British School at Rome I returned to Cambridge as a Research Associate of the ESRC-funded project ‘Conflict in Cities’ in 2007. I started lecturing in Cambridge in 2009, and have been in a tenured role since 2012. My research and teaching stand at the intersection of architectural history, architectural theory and urban history. Over the past two decades I have worked on the social functions of medieval architecture; the politics of heritage in contested cities, and particularly in Jerusalem; and the role of memory in public space in European border towns. Most recently, I have been working on the Munich-based architect Hans Döllgast, completing the first monograph that offers a synthesis of designs, drawings and writings. I have co-edited a half dozen edited volumes and special journal issues on a wide range of topics from the influence of phenomenology in architectural theory, over the spectral in contemporary cities, to the role of the secular sacred in modern architecture. I am currently working on two book projects. First, my next monograph explores appropriations of medieval architecture in twentieth century architecture, ranging from urban design to film architecture. Second, a collection of essays co-edited with Henriette Steiner from the University of Copenhagen investigates the role of collaboration in the postwar building boom in Europe. In my Department I have served as Head of Teaching (2023-25), Head of Graduate Studies (2019-23) and Director of History and Theory Teaching (2019-23). In Pembroke I have acted as Tutorial Bursar (2019-22) and Tutor for Graduate Affairs (2022-25). I served as Honorary Secretary (Chief Executive Officer) of the Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain from 2020 to 2022, and am series editor of Routledge Studies for Architectural History (2026-). I have received funding for research projects from the British Academy, the DAAD German Hub, and the Newton Trust, and have been a visiting scholar in ETH – Zurich (2011).
My articles have appeared in journals including The Journal of Architecture, The Art Bulletin, Architectural History, City, Space and Polity, Planning Perspectives, Architecture Research Quarterly, Artium Quaestiones, and Thresholds.
For a full list of publications see: https://cambridge.academia.edu/MaxSternberg
Research
My primary research interests span the history of modern European architecture, modern architectural and urban history, and the history of architectural theory. More specifically, I have worked on the following topics: • twentieth-century German architecture; • medievalism in modern European architecture; • modern religious architecture; • politics of heritage and public space; • history of modern architectural theory; • museum architecture; • collaboration in postwar architecture.
Publications
Selected publications
Teaching and supervision
I teach in all three years of the undergraduate History and Theory programme. I cover the History of Ancient and Medieval Architecture in First Year and offer optional courses on ‘Gardens and Landscape’ and ‘Medievalism in Modernism’ in Second and Third Year. In the Architecture and Urban Studies MPhil, I contribute seminars to the core course on the socio-politics and culture of architecture and the city. I also offer an elective seminar on twentieth century modern architecture. I supervise MPhil and PhD students on a range topics in modern and early modern architectural history, history of architectural and intellectual theory, urban history, and urban studies. I am Director of Studies in Architecture at Pembroke College.