London Festival of Architecture Preview
Nothing should make us spring into action more than the climate emergency, so it’s little wonder that so many events at this year’s festival spotlight what those in the built environment industry could – and should – be doing to protect the health of our planet.
The materials we choose are fundamental to the sustainability of our buildings, and Webb Yates Engineers has long advocated for natural options. ‘From The Town of Bedrock’ will explore how materials like timber and stone can be combined, with composites tested live by renowned academic Dr Wendel Sebastian. Beyond buildings, HTA and the London Wildlife Trust’s ‘Act Now: Biodiversity in London’ will highlight the importance of landscape-led design to protect habitats and species, through a panel discussion and tour a nature reserve in the heart of Camden. To showcase the circular economy in action, visitors to ‘Waste Not, Want Not’ will hear the team behind Marlborough Sports Garden explain how steering away from a ‘take, make, waste culture’ is creating a free community amenity for Londoners.
Image: Cullinan Studio
Next up, what role do our public spaces play in our society, and how public are they? The ‘Bloomsbury Public Space Crawl’ will tour various examples of privatised public spaces, from garden squares to local pubs, to discuss how they could be opened up and used by all. At the other end of the spectrum, the subversive exhibition ‘Uncivic Space’ will look at how architecture can in fact exclude and oppress communities. ING’s own event, ‘People, Place, Planet: how to create communities that last’ will dig into this further, with an expert panel discussing how to make places and spaces genuinely work for the people that use them.
For those looking for a creative outlet, ‘Act-ivate!’ will explore how we will live, move and play in cities of the future by creating a colourful vision for an alternative world at Hackney Bridge. Putting such ideas into practice, ‘Action!’ A creative celebration of the act of community making’ will invite visitors to help transform a Finsbury Park mews into a new public space, whilst learning skills and sharing experiences along the way. Or if your creative juices flow best in the kitchen, ‘Cooking up a better future’ is a community cookery class that will also discuss how architecture can strengthen communities around food.
And finally, for something completely different, ‘Steam on Film’ – a specially curated screening of film, documentaries and TV episodes – will explore the Finnish practice of communal bathing in the beautiful Old Baths building in Hackney Wick. Don’t forget your swimmers.
Image: James Tye