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LFA Walking Tour: “Impact of urban form on microclimate, air quality and human health” with Mehrdad Borna_ Saturday, June 22nd, 10:30-12:00, Canary Wharf

Posted on by Mirna Pedalo

Led by doctoral researcher in architecture at the School of Architecture + Cities, Mehrdad Borna, this walk will focus on air quality in our cities. If you care about creating a better future for our cities, then this tour is for you!

Join us for a hands-on experience and an insightful walking tour of Canary Wharf. On this walking tour, you will be working with Environmental Monitoring Instruments to monitor and capture data related to Air Quality, Temperature, Air flow velocity, and Relative Humidity. We will then interpret these data to understand if there is an association between urban form and urban air quality. By the end of this tour, you will have a better understanding of the urban form and its significant influence on the formation of undesirable microclimate which increases the concentration of air pollution in outdoor spaces and respectively triggers adverse impact on human health.

This walking tour will highlight some of the above issues and is a very enjoyable way to learn about Sustainable Development, Climate Change, Urban Microclimate, Urban Heat Island, air pollution and its impact on human health. We will also explore potential mitigation strategies to reduce our impact on the environment and discuss our present state of effort and achievement in order to secure production of a satisfactory quality of life for our future generations.

Itinerary​

We will meet you at Canary Wharf which is the newly developed area of retailing and restaurants of London’s latest financial centre operating as Europe’s hub. From here we will have few stops before arriving at the Crossrail Place Roof Garden designed by Foster + Partners.

  • Meet at Canary Wharf Underground station
  • Guided visit to Canary Wharf district
  • Guided visit to Crossrail Place Roof Garden

The event is free!

To book tickets and for more information please visit here.

Part 1 or Part 2 Architectural Research Assistant position at Grimshaw + Fabrication Lab Co-Lab

Posted on by Mirna Pedalo

We are delighted to announce a new collaboration between Grimshaw Architects and the Fabrication Lab. The project is launching in the next few weeks and will have a vacancy for a Part 1 or Part 2 Architectural Research Assistant. We will be looking for a creative, pro-active graduate, interested in working on a cutting-edge, practice-led research project. The position will be open to graduates from this or last year from our BA, BSc and MArch degrees.

The paid role will be based part-time in Grimshaw’s London Practice and part-time at Westminster in the Fabrication Lab. You’ll work on a project-based research agenda within Grimshaw‘s Computational Design Group, drawing on the resources and expertise in the Lab including CNC machining, robotics, 3D scanning and XR technologies. This role will be complemented by working in the Fabrication Lab assisting with the further development of our research-informed teaching.

You’ll need to be highly organised, have strong communication skills and have both an appreciation of the Grimshaw design ethos, as well as the teaching and research ambitions of the Fabrication Lab.

If you are interested in finding out more about this opportunity, please write an expression of interest to D.Scott@westminster.ac.uk, including a few sentences about what attracts you to the position. We expect to hold interviews within the next few weeks and for the position to begin soon after.

London Festival of Architecture Symposium: “Thresholds or barriers? Perspectives on boundaries and architecture” _ June 14, 13:00-19:30, Royal Academy

Posted on by Mirna Pedalo

When: Friday, 14th of June, 13:00 – 19:30

Where:  The Benjamin West Lecture Theatre, Burlington Gardens, Royal Academy of Arts, Piccadilly

This year’s LFA symposium organised in collaboration with the Royal Academy offers a rich exploration of the role and application of boundaries in architecture and placemaking. This day long symposium brings together a rich mix of speakers to explore the architecture of both tangible and intangible boundaries. The symposium will conclude with a keynote in-conversation-with between Farshid Moussavi RA (Director of Farshid Moussavi Architecture and Professor in Practice of Architecture at Harvard Graduate School of Design) and Eyal Weizman (Director of Forensic Architecture and Professor of Spatial and Visual Cultures at Goldsmiths, University of London) discussing the boundaries that both have faced in their work, both past and present, drawing upon their experiences in practice. The conversation will also touch upon questions around the agency of architecture in bridging spatial and social boundaries, as the discussion dives into the notion of boundaries as something to explore and challenge.

For more information and full list of speakers please visit the RA website via the following link:
https://www.royalacademy.org.uk/event/thresholds-barriers-perspectives-boundaries-london-festival-architecture-symposium

LFA has kindly reserved 5 free tickets for the School of Architecture + Cities students and members of staff. The tickets will be distributed on “first come-first served” basis. Those who are interested should email Rosa Rogina rosa@londonfestivalofarchitecture.org

Otherwise, to book tickets please visit here.

Conference: “Spiritual, Sacred, Secular: the architecture of faith in modern Britain” _ Thursday, June 20, 9:00 – Friday, June 21, 19:00,

Posted on by Mirna Pedalo

When: From Thursday 20th of June, 9:00 to Friday, 21st of June, 19:00

Where: School of Architecture + Cities, University of Westminster, 35 Marylebone Road, NW1 5LS

The University of Westminster in partnership with the Royal Institute of British Architects is hosting a groundbreaking two-day conference to explore the boundaries between the sacred, spiritual and secular in modern British architecture. By bringing together some of the most significant and interesting design practices in the country today, the event will explore contemporary approaches to the design, use, stewardship and conservation of buildings across diverse faiths, and will feature presentations from leading architects, academics, heritage professionals, commissioners and clients.

The conference will include panel discussions and presentations, with contributions from key figures including Niall McLaughlin; John McAslan and Partners; Peter Clegg; Julia Barfield; Roz Barr, Patrick Lynch, Biba Dow, Andy Groarke and Waugh Thistleton.

The conference will conclude with two days of architectural tours in collaboration with the Twentieth Century Society which will look at contemporary approaches to faith buildings. You can book the 22nd and 23rd June tours here. The first day, led by the architectural writer Kenneth Powell, will explore recent examples of repurposing, restoration and renewal of churches in London. The second day will look at new faith architecture in and around the capital.

For full programme and to book tickets please visit here.

​RIBA Research Fund _ Deadline: Thursday, June 27, 17:00

Posted on by Mirna Pedalo

The RIBA Research Fund awards annual grants to individuals conducting independent architectural research at any stage of their careers in practice or academia. The aim is to support critical investigation into a wide range of subject matters relevant to the advancement of architecture, and connected arts and sciences, in the United Kingdom.

Payments of grants from the RIBA Research Fund are made directly to individuals (practitioners and academics) and not to commercial businesses or to higher education institutions. The Fund does not support course fees, expenses, and subsistence costs for those enrolled in PhD/MPhil or Masters programmes.

The 2019 application cycle is now open.

For more information and to apply please visit here, where you can download and complete the application form, and submit to Gillian.Harrison@riba.org

The deadline for receipt of applications is 5pm Thursday 27 June 2019.

Please note, applications received after this time will not be considered.

If you have any questions regarding this funding scheme, please email Gillian.Harrison@riba.org

RIBA Boyd Auger Scholarship _ Deadline: Thursday, June 27, 17:00

Posted on by Mirna Pedalo

In 2007, Mrs Margot Auger donated a sum of money to the RIBA in memory of her late husband, the architect and civil engineer Boyd Auger, to create a funding scheme that would support and reward architecture students and graduates.

This became the RIBA Boyd Auger Scholarship; a £5,000 scholarship which aims to assist with closely defined research proposals by architecture students and graduates lasting between 6 and 12 months, which involve carefully planned and budgeted periods of international travel. The scholarship can also support graduates in a period of international work experience, but the emphasis should be on the opportunity to travel in the chosen location.

We are pleased to confirm that in 2019, the RIBA Boyd Auger Scholarship has been increased to £6,000.

To be eligible, applicants must:

  • be enrolled in a RIBA Part 1, 2 or 3 course in the UK or overseas, or
  • have been granted a place of study in a RIBA Part 2 course by the beginning of the period covered by the scholarship, or
  • have graduated from a RIBA Part 1 or 2 course within the past 5 years

Applications for 2019 are now open. For more information please visit here, where you can  download and complete the application form and submit to Gillian.Harrison@riba.org

The deadline for receipt of applications is 5pm Thursday 27 June 2019.

Please note, applications received after this time will not be accepted.

If you have any questions regarding this scholarship which are not answered in the downloadable application form, please email Gillian.Harrison@riba.org

Featured image courtesy of Jo Ashbridge, RIBA Boyd Auger Scholar 2012

2019 RIBA Wren Insurance Association Scholarships – DEADLINE EXTENDED to Monday, June 10, 9am

Posted on by Mirna Pedalo

To be eligible to apply for the RIBA Wren Insurance Association Scholarships, applicants must:

  • have graduated from a RIBA Part 1 professional qualification course in Architecture in a higher education institution in the UK, and
  • at the time of application, be enrolled in a RIBA Part 2 professional qualification course in Architecture in a higher education institution in the UK and be starting the final year in September 2019

There are five Wren scholarships worth £6,000 each available in the 2019 application cycle.

For more details about this scholarship and to download an application form, please visit here.

OPEN2019 – Preview: Thursday 13th of June, 18:00 – 21:00, Marylebone Studios, 35 Marylebone Road, NW1 5LS

Posted on by Mirna Pedalo

THE SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE AND CITIES INVITES YOU TO OPEN 2019

An exhibition of the work of Architecture BA, Interior Architecture BA, Architecture and Environmental Design BSc, Architectural Technology BSc, Designing Cities BA and MArch

PREVIEW

THURSDAY 13 JUNE, 6 – 9pm
To be opened by Angela Brady OBE PRIBA
Click here to register

STUDENTS AWARDS EVENING AND ALUMNI RECEPTION

FRIDAY 14 JUNE, 6.30 – 8.30pm (Registration from 5.30pm)
RSVP to DCDI-Events@westminster.ac.uk

EXHIBITION CONTINUES DAILY
FRIDAY 14 – SUNDAY 30 JUNE, 10am – 6pm (Weekends 10am – 2pm)

GOOD FENCES, BAD FENCES

3 JUNE 7PM
An interdisciplinary approach to the theme of boundaries, as understood by architects, planners, tourism and property students and experts.
For more information click here.

BLURRING BOUNDARIES BETWEEN INHABITING, DESIGNING, AND MAKING

6 JUNE 6:30 – 9.15PM
Five practices in the fields of architecture, landscape, and art, discuss co-design and co-making processes through the presentations of five case studies.
For more information click here.

AIR GRID: ARISTIPPIAN STRUCTURES

3 – 30 JUNE
A family of four, new AIR Grid structures. The work process will be open for public viewing and participation across the duration of the festival.
For more information click here.

WOVEN PAVILION

13 JUNE – 13 JULY
The Woven Pavilion has been developed on the Rear Podium and built by DS 3(2) using advanced parametric software and CNC cutting at the FabLab. Funded by the Quentin Hogg Trust.
For more information click here.

SPIRITUAL, SACRED, SECULAR: THE ARCHITECTURE OF FAITH IN MODERN BRITAIN

20 – 21 JUNE
This ground-breaking conference, organised in partnership with the RIBA, examines the boundaries between the sacred, spiritual and secular in modern British architecture.
For more information click here.

All exhibitions take place at:

University of Westminster,
35 Marylebone Road, London NW1 5LS

T: 020 3506 7003
westminster.ac.uk/events

Image: Adam Todhunter