Open Studio is an interactive project run by the School of Architecture + Cities at the University of Westminster to make its design, research and practice-based work available online while it is happening. The site acts as a real time teaching and learning environment in which the work of both students and staff is curated and documented – the work of its design studios, or its other teaching and research groups and workshops. Read more in Blog, follow us on Twitter and like us on Instagram.
WHEN: Thursday, 3rd of April 2025 at 6pm
WHERE: M416 (Robin Evans Room), Marylebone Campus, University of Westminster, 35 Marylebone Road, NW1 5LS
“Until it is built, all architecture is speculative fiction. As we contemplate the built worlds we will bring into being through our design work, this talk invites us to use methods of collective writing and making to learn from the speculative fiction authors who imagine alongside us.”
WHEN: Thursday, 27th of March 2025 at 6pm
WHERE: M416 (Robin Evans Room), Marylebone Campus, University of Westminster, 35 Marylebone Road, NW1 5LS
Based on research conducted for her book, No Compromise: the work of Florence Knoll (Princeton Architectural Press, 2021), this presentation will look at the work of this iconic American designer. Florence Knoll was one of the minds behind the iconic Knoll enterprise: a company which became well-known for the licensing and distribution of some of the most seminal furniture pieces of the twentieth century – including the Barcelona collection, by Mies van der Rohe; the Tulip Collection, by Eero Saarinen; and the Diamond Collection, by Harry Bertoia.
“My research looks at the role Knoll had in commissioning and overviewing the production of these pieces (alongside many other classics issued by the company during her tenure), while also looking at her other activities in the company: her contribution to the development of the company’s unique marketing profile, the creation of a highly innovative textile department, and, most importantly, the establishment of the Knoll Planning Unit, the interior design division that she ran, and through which she invented the infamous ‘Knoll look’.”
Dr Ana Araujo was trained as an architect and currently works in the fields of art curating, research and education. Her interests range across the fields of design, the visual arts, psychology, anthropology and gender studies. Ana also runs an online art gallery which is focused on the investigation of the feminine in art and culture. She is currently course director of the MA Interior Architecture and Design course at Birmingham City University.
When: Monday, 17th of March 2025 at 6pm
Where: M416 (Robin Evans Room), Marylebone Campus, University of Westminster, 35 Marylebone Road, NW1 5LS
In this lecture Professor Harry Charrington advocates for a more engaged history of architecture and place-making. He discusses some remarkable work in Helsinki and Kumasi, and introduces individuals with their own distinctive agency, showing that how they did things became what they achieved. He argues we need to share more stories like these if we are to develop a praxis capable of addressing the complexity of the living world. This is largely a task of recovery; these stories already exist as tacit knowledge in our day-to-day practices. Reflecting on over thirty years of practice, teaching, and research, and utilising archival material and oral histories, Charrington suggests how we might restore them to history – i.e. to humanity.
The event will be followed by a drinks reception – to close at 20:30.
When: Monday, 24th of March 2025 at 4pm
Where: M416 (Robin Evans Room), Marylebone Campus, University of Westminster, 35 Marylebone Road, NW1 5LS
Prof Jim Coleman is head of Economic Advisory at WSP and also a professor of professional practice in the School of Architecture and Cities at the University of Westminster. For many years Jim has advised both public and private sector organisations – in the UK and internationally – on the economics of large-scale spatial planning and real estate projects. This includes developing strategies to maximise both economic and social impacts of development and to adjust development programmes and phasing to better reflect a balance of commercial, financial and wider social interests. Jim will draw upon his professional experience to provide insights into how spatial and real estate plans can be shaped to address multiple priorities, as well as reflecting on emerging approaches to creating and measuring social value through development.
ALL ARE WELCOME
WHEN: Thursday, 13th of March 2025 at 6pm
WHERE: M416 (Robin Evans Room), Marylebone Campus, University of Westminster, 35 Marylebone Road, NW1 5LS
CJ Lim and Luke Angers lecture will be based on their recent book, Dreams + Disillusions:
“Dreams + Disillusions explores the plethora of ideas and ideologies that have shaped and reshaped architecture and cities. Its research fluctuates between the world of concrete reality and the multiple universes that exist in lucid prose, poetic visions, and the outrageous imaginations of history’s (in)famous minds. The six chapters reveal architectural stories of urban lives, gender equality, spatial and social justice; exploring how dreams, whether shaped by circumstance, manipulation, or planned perfection, dreams can sometimes be left disillusioned. With 18 illustrated speculative case studies and over 150 drawings, the book presents an abundance of curious imaginings, diverse provocations and satirical criticism.”
Copies of the book will be available for purchase after the lecture at a discounted price of £20 each (cash only).
CJ Lim is the Professor of Architecture & Urbanism at the Bartlett, UCL. Continuing his passion for architectural storytelling, Dreams + Disillusions is his 12th authored book, and has claimed the number one spot on Routledge’s 2024 Annual Bestsellers List, making it his 6th book to achieve this distinction.
Luke Angers is an architect and author. He has a long-standing interest in the spatial narratives of urbanism and landscape.
When: Thursday, 27th of February 2025, 1pm-2pm (GMT)
Where: Online
The next Architecture + Cities Research Seminar will take place on 27 February, 13.00 – 14.00. Guy Sinclair will present aspects of his PhD research in a seminar titled Climate Assemblages: Siting Climate Knowledge Production.
The link to the seminar is here.
All are welcome.
When: Friday, 31st of January 2025 at 1pm (GMT)
Where: M416 (Robin Evans Room), Marylebone Campus, University of Westminster, 35 Marylebone Road, NW1 5LS
Recommended for those interested in interiors and the technologies of prefabrication but everybody welcome.
Deborah Schneiderman, RA, LEED-AP, is Professor of Interior Design at Pratt Institute and principal/founder of deSc: architecture/design/research. Schneiderman’s scholarship and praxis explore the emerging fabricated interior environment and its materiality. Schneiderman’s publications include the books Inside Prefab: The Ready-Made Interior, The Prefab Bathroom, Textile, Technology and Design: From Interior Space to Outer Space, Interiors Beyond Architecture, Interior Provocations: History, Theory, and Practice of Autonomous Interiors, and Appropriated Interiors. She has published multiple journal articles and chapters in edited volumes including The Interior Architecture Theory Reader (Routledge) and The Handbook of Design for Sustainability (Bloomsbury). Schneiderman has exhibited work and lectured internationally for peer-reviewed conferences and invited venues including the Storefront for Art and Architecture, The Center for Architecture, and Van Alen Institute Books. Schneiderman earned her Bachelor of Science in Design and Environmental Analysis from Cornell University and MArch from the Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc).
When: From Tuesday, 3rd of September 2024 to Saturday, 25th of January 2025 from 1pm to 5pm
Where: Grant Museum of Zoology, Rockefeller Building, 21 University St, London WC1E 6DE
Free, no booking required.
Based on fieldwork by UCL marine biologists Ben Williams and Jason Lynch, and made in collaboration with Datascape Realities, Virtual Worlds: Corals at the Grant Museum reconstructs real-world coral habitats virtually in a location-specific experience. The VR activity is presented alongside the Grant Museum’s own collection of coral specimens, augmented reality digital models and 3D prints, and is supported by a public events programme.
Coral reefs sustain 30% of all ocean species, and their degradation represents a stark reminder of the climate crisis. The study and preservation of coral reef habitats are vitally important to planetary health, and humanity in general. The data gathered from corals today is complex and multi-sensory, but corals are often still presented in conventional ways, including in museum settings. Coral specimens in museums can sometimes reinforce the misconception of corals as static and colonised objects, rather than as animals that form the foundation of marine ecosystems.
Virtual Worlds transforms climate data into a mixed reality experience for everyone, where the vital work of coral restoration is visceral and emotive. Experience it for yourself and join us in re-imagining the museum as a space for climate action.
For more information please visit here.
![Exhibition: “Virtual Worlds: Corals at the Grant Museum” by John Zhang [Datascape Realities] | September 3, 2024 – January 25, 2025, 13:00–17:00 in the Grant Museum of Zoology, UCL](http://www.openstudiowestminster.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/virtualworlds-corals-grantmuseum-2024-768x480-1.png)