My contribution to the collection of fantastic photographs by Lisa Barnard of the former Tory Party Headquarters. The book, Chateau Despair, is an extraordinary document of the tawdry environment that Margaret Thatcher and her cohorts conducted their business in. Though I say it myself, I like my writing here, spurred by Lisa's great work. Buy the book!
Originally commissioned by the RIBA, a piece on what might or might not constitute architectural research. Big in Spain.
Second of two, with some hints as to how to achieve flexible housing, much more developed in the book.
A lecture as part of the brilliant Architecture and Labour lecture series and symposium organised by Mel Dodd and the Spatial Practices team at Central Saint Martins, in association with Olly Wainwright. A properly writtten version of the lecture appears as a book chapter in The Competition Grid. I have pasted the raw text in the link, and this is the link to the video of the lecture. My lecture starts at 54.30, but it is very worth watching Peggy Deamer first.
Architecture Depends/Spatial Ethics. Video of the lecture is here.
The foreword to Arna Mathiesen's great book Scarcity In Excess, which investigates the effects of scarcity on the built environment in Iceland following the economic crisis of 2008. Other excerpts of the book are on Issuu
A large European funded research project for which I am the project leader. Looking at the way the production of the built environment is affected under conditions of scarcity. In partnership with TU Vienna and Oslo School of Architecture, and working with Deljana Iossifova and Jon Goodbun at the University of Westminster and the SEED Foundation. A range of books, exhibitions and events will come out of it; visit the website for early outcomes.
Edited with Peter Blundell Jones and Doina Petrescu. A collection of essays setting out the whys and hows of new approaches to participation. My chapter in the book appears to have ended up on this website. (under Biblioteca) Other chapters include work by Jon Broome, Giancarlo de Carlo, CHORA, and my two fellow editors.
My response as to why giving the official government website 2013 Design of the Year was not so cool.
This was a comment on the UK Government's White Paper on Higher Education from 2011. Corrects a few myths.
Early stuff on research and first ideas on contingency. Others like this more than I do. Big in China.
For Occupied Times, the journal of the occupation movement. On austerity contra scarcity
A further explanation of my 30% pledge, which seems to have raised debate (see comments) elsewhere on the very wonderful Parlour website.
A research project funded AHRC and done with Tatjana Schneider at the University of Sheffield, looking at the history and contemporary possibilities of housing that is designed for future change and adaptation. The project resulted in a book, website and a number of articles, two of which are apparently the most cited of ARQ articles. Winner 2007 RIBA President’s Award for Outstanding University-based Research.
A short think piece on the 2011 Occupation movement and its relevance to architecture.
Reforming.
As part of the series ?The Social Production of Architecture?. Didn't go too well because I asked the question: Is Design Activism bad design and bad activism? This started a debate.