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: Monday, 19th of May 2025, 1pm-2pm (BST)
Where: Online
The final A+C research seminar of the year will take place on Monday, 19 May online here.
It will be given by Krystallia Kamvasinou and Lorenzo Iannizzotto on the subject of Reimagining Terrain Vague: A Socio-ecological Approach for Vacant Urban Land.
All are welcome.
When: Thursday, 19th of June 2025 at 6pm (BST)
Where: Marylebone Campus, University of Westminster, 35 Marylebone Rd, NW1 5LS
THE UNIVERSITY OF WESTMINSTER’S SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE AND CITIES INVITES YOU TO OPEN 2025
Head of School Kate Cheyne cordially invites you to attend the opening of the graduating students’ degree show, OPEN 2025, featuring work from:
· Architecture BA
· Architecture and Design Foundation
· Architecture and Environmental Design BSc
· Architectural Technology BSc
· Urban Planning and Design BA
· Interior Architecture BA
· MArch
Preview
Thursday 19 June, 6 – 9pm
Book to attend the launch via Eventbrite
Exhibition continues (open access)
Friday 14 June – Sunday 6 July
Marylebone | University of Westminster, London
You can also RSVP to DCDI-Events@westminster.ac.uk
Image credit: Emma Wilkinson, MArch
Archisource presents the Drawing of the Year Awards 2025, the sixth annual, creative imagery Awards – free to enter and open to all! The Awards are the ultimate accolade in visual representation across architecture, art and design in collaboration with D5 Render and HP. There is over £125,000 GBP ($150,000 USD) in prizes to be won, with the top 250 entries receiving Affinity V2 Universal Licences and D5 Render 180 Day PRO Licences! Top works will also be showcased at the major London Exhibition in July 2025.
The aspirational Awards recognise and celebrate excellence in visual representation, drawing and creative imagery supported by Affinity creative software. Submissions must convey: architecture, design or the built environment, but are open to all disciplines and recognise diverse visual creations across all styles, typologies and functions each year. Submit your works by 20th April 2025 at 23:59 GMT at archisource.org to be recognised for your creative talent.
Top works from the Awards will be showcased at the iconic Truman Brewery in Shoreditch from the 10th to 19th July 2025 as part of the major London Exhibition 2025. The Exhibition will be a major celebration of creativity and a unique collection of the best creative minds and future thinkers including top architecture studios showcasing their design process, alongside the top works that are pushing boundaries in visual representation and creative imagery.
With over £125,000 GBP ($150,000 USD) worth of prizes to be won this is one of the biggest prize collections out there! The six Award winners will receive the ultimate studio set up including a high-performance workstation from HP—either a HP ZBook Firefly 16” G11 Mobile Workstation with Intel® Core™ Ultra 7 processor or a HP Z2 G9 Mini Workstation with Intel® Core™ i7 processor, paired with an OMEN by HP 27” QHD Gaming Monitor or Poly accessory. Winners will also receive software licences from D5 Render, Affinity, SketchUp and MicroStation, giant stationery bundles from LEUCHTTURM1917 and Winsor & Newton, timeless furniture from Vitra, lighting from Tala and more!
Archisource is proud to be collaborating with D5 Render, HP and Affinity for the Drawing of the Year Awards 2025. D5 Render and HP Z Workstations inspire creatives to keep evolving, providing industry-leading tools and technology that help advance creative processes. D5 offers Education Licences to students, educators and educational institutions for free; unleash the powerful capabilities of D5 and transform your architectural projects. Affinity creative suite is the award-winning vector graphic design, image editing and page layout software used by architects and designers around the world.
The widely recognised prestigious Awards celebrate those that have truly excelled in creating standout drawings and imagery. There are six major award categories, focusing on the array of creative processes: Beyond Visualisation Award supported by Hayes Davidson, Digital Drafting Award supported by Bentley’s MicroStation, Digital Media Award, Hand Drawn Award supported by LEUCHTTURM1917 and Winsor & Newton, Mixed Media Award and Visualisation Award supported by Trimble SketchUp. New for 2025, standout works will also be recognised for specific skills and attributes through the Medal Categories including the Affinity Award.
Celebrating the diverse talents of creatives around the world, Archisource welcomes creatives from all backgrounds and drawings of all types. Whether it be hand-drawn or painted, rendered or collaged, detailed linework or diagrammatic – the expert judging panel wants to see your creations.
Archisource believes creativity incites creativity and the Drawing of the Year aims to recognise, celebrate and give a platform to the very best talents across the world and to inspire so many more in that process.
Submit your works to be recognised amongst top architects, designers, artists and creatives globally by 20th April 2025 at 23:59 GMT at archisource.org
Why Choose HP Education:
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
