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.
Where: M416, Marylebone Campus, University of Westminster, 35 Marylebone Road, NW1 5LS
As part of the BA Architecture undergraduate international studio DS3.7, Prof Che Fei will give a lecture on Monday, February 19 in M416.
Prof Fei is a founder of Beijing based architecture practice CU_Office and he teaches architecture as the Dean of the School of Design at Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology (BIFT). He will be discussing his practice, research, and teaching in Beijing.
Luz Navarro will present the next Architecture + Cities Research Seminar titled Agonistic Spaces: Investigating Narratives and Practices of Dissensus in El Cabanyal, 2015-2018. It will take place at 13.00 on Thursday 22 February online.
Yara Sharif, Nasser Golzari and François Girardin will present the next Architecture + Cities Research Seminar, titled A Foot on the Earth, a Hand in the Sky: Gaza Experimental Lab. It will take place at 13.00 on Monday 12 February online.
The first Architecture + Cities Research Seminar of the new semester will take place on Monday, January 29 from 13:00 to 14:00 (GMT), online. It will be given by Scott Batty on the construction as an essential component of architectural education.
According to Dr Rosa Schiano-Phan: “the report provides a toolkit for organisations to increase and improve the presence of women in construction, so it is set to have a high impact. However, it also highlights significant shortfalls in data on the presence and impact of Women In Construction in Europe and a slow progress compared to a similar study by Professor Linda Clarke 20 years ago. We are preparing a journal article on the study and will organise an event later in the semester to launch the report in the UK. We are also currently searching for appropriate research calls for possible bids.”
The report investigates women’s experience in the construction, wood and forestry industry based on a survey sent out by the EFBWW, the research partner on this project, to 77 Unions representing the industry across Europe. The survey focuses on the obstacles women in the field face and what solutions are needed to increase recruitment and retention. It is authored by Dr Guedes, a Research Associate at Westminster, and co-authored by ProBE’s co-directors Dr Rosa Schiano-Phan, Dr Maria Christina Georgiadou, Professor Linda Clarke and Dr Fernando Duran Palma.
The project began earlier in 2023 when the ProBE team successfully answered the call put out by the EFBWW and funded by the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES), to analyse the survey data and produce a report.
The presentation in Helsinki was split into three sections, first introducing the report, secondly offering practical recommendations based on the survey results and finally highlighting what stood out the most from what they found. […]
University of Westminster, News: “Dr Coralie Guedes presents report on women in construction at conference in Helsinki”
On Thursday, December 14, 2023, the School of Architecture + Cities’ First Year students organised a spectacular ‘food future’ event A Feast, which took place in Ambika P3.
On December 14, at the 2023 RIBA President’s Medal Ceremony, Kacper Sehnke from BA Architecture DS3.2 was announced as the winner of this year’s RIBA President’s Bronze Medal (awarded for the best undergraduate project).
Kacper’s outstanding project The Council for Ecosystem Restoration was chosen from 147 entires from across the world. In addition, Kacper’s project was awarded the prestigious RIBA Award for Sustainable Design at RIBA Part I.
In the words of Harry Charrinton, the Head of School of Architecture + Cities:
“Kacper’s two awards reflect his remarkable creativity and endeavour. They also embody the wit and care of his tutors, and as well as acclaiming Kacper’s work, congratulations are owed to the staff who helped him get there. Among others these include, most immediately, his Design Studio 3.2 tutors, Eric Guibert and Bruce Irwin who set the brief and tutored his project throughout. The outstanding Technical & Environmental Studies team led by Will McLean, Pete Silver and Scott Batty. The BArch Course Leader Paolo Zaide and Year Leaders Jane Tankard, Natalie Newey and Richa Mukhia, who have raised the bar, and, together with his personal tutors Nick Beech and Elantha Evans, nurtured Kacper’s talent and confidence throughout the course.”
The ongoing crisis in Gaza has generated intense debate worldwide and exposed a range of tensions – moral, legal, and political – that continue to beset the international system.
This crisis did not happen in a vacuum and its repercussions will likely define international politics for many years to come.
In this roundtable we will situate this crisis in context, analyse the key themes and issues that make it so controversial and emotive, and speculate on its long-term impact on the existing international order.
The final Architecture and Cities research seminar of the semester will be held next Monday, 11 December, 13.00 – 14.00.Shengkang Fu, one of our PhD researchers will present preliminary findings from her PhD in a seminar titled: ‘Creative placemaking in Heritage Cities: The Case of Wudadao, Tianjin, China.’
The Growing Space is a 68m2 Douglas fir lightweight timber structure which adds to the existing cluster of buildings making up Cody Dock’s community hub. It runs a programme to expand the charity’s reach, running gardening and workshops for local schools, as well as space for rent.
The architecture was developed as part of a collaborative process. It has a structure of frames with cross-bracing and dry construction with all elements pre-cut with 3D-printed pegs reducing the construction time to 10 days. The base has six pad foundations with paving slabs, wrapped in polycarbonate, allowing the activities within to permeate out.
