Architects Journal
May 2009

View all stories from this issue.

‘Other priorities’ stall Yorkshire pavilion contest

Yorkshire Forward has placed the high-profile competition to design its new £650,000 ‘flagship’ portable pavilion on hold.
‘Work for free’ poll provokes fierce debate

Architects and students divided on whether unpaid work placements amount to exploitation
AJ Special Report: What can be done for jobless students?

Only a third of this year’s Part 1 and Part 2 architecture students will find year-out work experience
AJ100 practices fail to bridge the gender gap

Lack of flexibility blamed for persistent inequality at Britain’s 100 largest practices
Atkins reaches AJ100 top spot

End of an era as Atkins replaces BDP as Britain’s biggest practice
Chipperfield museum in Alaska opens

David Chipperfield Architects’ 8,000m2 extension to Anchorage’s Museum in Alaska will open to the public tomorrow (30 May).
Farrell reinvents the past in Newcastle

These are the first images of the Terry Farrell-designed Great North Museum in Newcastle upon Tyne
Figures reveal growth in residential sector in April

Figures from construction industry tracker Emap Glenigan have revealed a surprise increase in the value of contracts awarded in the residential sector
Graduates face escalating RIBA prices

The RIBA launched its controversial new ‘associate’ class this week, replacing the ‘graduate’ membership – a move which could mean a rise of up to £166 a year for those who remain only Part 2 qualified
HCA pumps £635m into stalled housing

Architects have welcomed the new ‘cash bail-out’ funding package on offer from the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) to kickstart mothballed housing projects
Local authorities drop heritage specialists

EH warns that loss of heritage officers could affect regeneration schemes
Piercy Conner reveals Flanders courtyard scheme

London-based Piercy Conner Architects has released this image of its new Belgian scheme
Practices welcome ‘green shoots’

RIBA Future Trends Survey shows improved expectations of workload
RIBA hails minimum space plan

Minimum space standards in all new London housing could become mandatory as a result of guidelines being drawn up for Boris Johnson’s London Plan
Woods Bagot founder Stephan Reinke leaves

Stephan Reinke, the founding partner of Woods Bagot’s London practice, has stepped down from his post
£12 billion military base for South Wales

The largest PFI project in the UK, which will dwarf the scale of London’s 2012 Olympics programme, has been submitted for planning
3DReid unveils Manchester Co-op HQ

3DReid has unveiled its proposed new head office for the Co-operative Group in Manchester
A sneak peek at the Mack shortlist - the ex-student's verdict

Ninian Macqueen, a former student at the Mack, give his verdict on the shortlisted schemes
Address book: Dos Architects

Dos Architects (www.dosarchitects.com) is an award-winning company with a growing reputation for consistent innovation at the highest level of cutting-edge design. Here they reveal some of their key contacts…
Aedas walks away from Heart of Doha project

Global giants Aedas has quit a £3.5 billion masterplan to rebuild of Qatar’s capital city, Doha
AJ exclusive : Prince Charles to bury hatchet with architects

Prince Charles’s much-anticipated speech at the RIBA on Tuesday 12 May is expected to offer a conciliatory hand to the architect’s body, with which he fell out so spectacularly 25 years ago
AJ exclusive: Wilkinson Eyre scoops Worthing Pool contest

Wilkinson Eyre has seen off an impressive shortlist to win the RIBA-run competition to design the new Worthing swimming pool
AJ100 2010 Building of the Year: Kroon Hall by Hopkins Architects

Kroon Hall is the new building for the School of Forestry & Environmental Studies at Yale University by Hopkins Architects
AJ100 2010 Contribution to Architecture: Laura Lee

Practices entering the AJ100 were asked to vote on the person who had made the greatest contribution to the profession. Given a choice of seven names, Laura Lee emerged a clear winner, with 408 votes.
AJ100 2010 Employer of the Year: Architecture plb

Architecture plb did not avoid redundancies in the recession, but it dealt with them in a way that has kept the confidence of the staff.
AJ100 2010 Fastest-growing Practice: Devereux Architects

How do you grow a practice in the worst recession in living memory?
AJ100 2010 Highest first-time entrant: PLP Architecture

Of all the awards in this year’s AJ100 this one must be the least surprising
AJ100 2010 International Practice of the Year: Aedas

Aedas, which employs 482 architects overseas, doubled its international fee income last year
AJ100 2010 Practice of the Year: Austin-Smith:Lord

It has been a storming year for Austin-Smith:Lord (ASL), a practice in the process of reshaping itself while winning work and increasing its fees in the process
AJ100 2010 Sustainable Practice of the Year: Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios

The most important criterion for this category was the architectural quality of a sustainable project with pioneering environmental features
AJ100 2010: Regional Award Winners

This award, based chiefly on staff reports about how happy they are in their place of work, recognises the efforts, achievements and ambience of individual offices
AJ100 Analysis: Financial

One simple measure of the way that architectural work has shrunk in the past year is to look at the total fees that practices reported for 2009, compared to those reported for 2008.
AJ100 Analysis: Overseas

There are 14 practices in the AJ100 that have 100 or more architects working overseas
AJ100 Analysis: Sustainability

Sustainability as a concept seems to have crept up on many practices only relatively recently, so it is reassuring to discover that some, at least, have been thinking about it for some time
AJ100 Analysis: Technology

We asked practices responding to the AJ100 survey about their use of various technologies.
AJ100 Analysis: The regional picture

If ever there were any doubt over London’s dominance of British architecture, a glance at these figures would quickly dispel it
AJ100 Analysis: What you think

We asked architects - as we do every year - for their opinions on a range of subjects.
AJ100 Analysis: Who's winning what

The architectural profession is not averse to picking up the occasional rosette.
AJ100 Focus: Allies & Morrison

‘It’s what happens. It happened last year, and it will happen again.’ Graham Morrison, founding partner of Allies and Morrison is talking about - you guessed it - the economy going into recession
AJ100 Focus: BDP

When Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al-Nahyan bought Manchester City Football Club in 2008, the last thing on his mind would have been giving a boost to the Manchester office of BDP
AJ100 Focus: Foster + Partners

If Spencer de Grey gets his way, one of the next projects to emerge from the Foster + Partners stable may be an NHS hospital
AJ100 Focus: RMJM

Will Alsop may not be alone for long as a star designer with RMJM. Peter Morrison, the CEO of the rapidly growing practice, would love to see more great talent joining the RMJM world
AJ100 interview: Andy von Bradsky, PRP

‘Housing was the first sector into recession and it could be first out’
AJ100 interview: Chris Williamson, Weston Williamson

‘I can’t imagine anyone thinking this a great time to be an architect - though it is exciting’
AJ100 interview: Gregg Mitchell, Carey Jones

‘I’d be kidding if I said the crunch hasn’t had an impact - some projects have been shelved’
AJ100 interview: John Clemow, YRM

‘Architects have a tendency towards megalomania, but we are interested in the quality of our projects’
AJ100 interview: Keith Clarke, Atkins

‘We’re not trying to be all things to all people anymore’
AJ100 interview: Mark Goldspink, Purcell Miller Tritton

‘Booms and busts aren’t good, but you must come out the other end stronger’
AJ100 interview: Martin English, Keppie Design

‘There’s a lot of rumour and innuendo around concerning how people are doing’
AJ100 interview: Mouzhan Majidi, Foster & Partners

‘Things are not as bad as we thought’
AJ100 interview: Peter Drummond, BDP

‘We very much like India as a place’
AJ100 interview: Rob Firth, Capita

‘We have very good public sector projects in the pipeline’
AJ100 interview: Tim Hall, Lewis and Hickey

‘It’s a global recession, and we’ve had to retract to survive’
AJ100 sponsors

The AJ100 would not be possible without the kind support of our sponsors
AJ100 Top 20 analysis: How BDP came out on top

BDP has regained its place as the largest practice in the AJ100 list.
AJ100: How we’ll beat the crunch

The UK’s top 100 practices tell Damian Arnold how they are retooling their practices for an expected - and highly anticipated - economic upturn
AJ100: Reasons to be cheerful amid the gloom

The AJ’s industry survey reveals a profession resourceful enough to respond to challenging times, says Kieran Long
AJ100: Regional Awards

Winners from around the country based on staff satisfaction, benefits, salary and HR achievements
ALUCOBOND® What the best dressed buildings are wearing

ALUCOBOND(R) is a versatile composite material consisting of two 0.5mm aluminium cover skins and a 3mm plastic or mineral filled core. It is an economical synthesis of aesthetics and function and the ideal material for rainscreen facades, cladding for roof edges and fascias.
American 'big hitter' becomes new head for London 2012 legacy

Andrew Altman (pictured left) has been appointed as the chief executive of the 2012 legacy delivery company
An Astragal update: the real Mackintosh figures

Astragal may have got himself slighlty carried away recently with the numbers of entrants into the contest to design the new £50 million building opposite the Mackintosh
Architect graduates get benefit boost

Unemployed architecture graduates were handed a boost last week following an announcement by the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills, John Denham to relax benefit rules for graduates looking for practical work experience
Architects call for boycott of Prince of Wales RIBA lecture

A host of big names led by Peter Ahrends is calling on architects to boycott the Prince of Wales’s lecture at RIBA tomorrow (12 May), following his attempt to intervene with the Chelsea Barracks scheme
Architects must play greater role in retrofitting says RIBA

RIBA has called on architects to play a greater role in the government’s retrofitting programme
Architects named in human rights row

Abu Dhabi projects by Zaha Hadid and Jean Nouvel accused of ‘exploitation’ by human rights group
Architecture minister enters expenses row

The architecture minister Barbara Follett is the latest politician having to justify her expenses after it was announced she claimed £25,000 on security patrols outside her London house
Arthur Erickson (1924-2009)

Arthur Erickson, possibly Canada’s most important architect of the 20th century, has died aged 84
Average salaries fall for UK architects

Average salaries across Britain’s 100 largest architecture practices have fallen to pre-2007 levels, according to data compiled by the AJ
BAA denies Terminal 5 subsidence reports

BAA has denied media reports that the Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners-designed Terminal 5 at Heathrow airport is structurally unsound
Barack Obama lays the foundations

Astragal was proud to learn that US president Barack Obama’s latest catchphrase is architectural
Barge to the future: contest winners unveiled

Architects PCKO and Baca have been named joint winners in the contest to convert five old barges in London into new homes
Beach huts for disabled users, Boscombe

Professional artists, architects and designers are invited to submit bold and dramatic concepts to reinvent a row of beach huts specifically for disabled beach users.
Birmingham's Golden Square in for planning

Capita Lovejoy and Bryant Priest Newman have submitted plans for a £1.5 million public square in Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter
Bishop Edward King Chapel – New Design Competition

Architects with outstanding design skills are being sought to take part in a competition to design a new College Chapel in Oxfordshire
Brits miss out in Croydon urban design contest

Teams led by Edward Cullinan Architects and Hawkins\Brown have missed out in the international contest to design a major traffic route through Croydon, south London
Call for Entries-All Visual Artists- LICC (London International Creative Competition)

LICC invites passionate visual artists, regardless of experience or nationality, to submit their innovative artwork for inclusion in the LICC competition
Capita and Arup bag first Crossrail design contracts

Arup/Atkins and Capita Symonds have become the first teams to be handed projects under Crossrail’s design consultant framework
Cesar Pelli submits plans for Canary Wharf tower

Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects has submitted plans for a 194 metre tower in Canary Wharf, in London’s Docklands
Chapman Taylor: AJ100 Employer of the Year

When the AJ asked Chapman Taylor’s staff to compare the firm with previous employers, 80 per cent rated the firm favourably, while 20 per cent said it was the best place they’d ever worked
Charles at the RIBA: Speech could spur modernist planning approval

Approval for modernist planning applications could peak following Prince Charles’ speech at RIBA on 12 May, according to the RIBA president
Charles is right... but that doesn't mean the architects are wrong

Beyond the Prince Charles debate lie brave new ideologies, argues Sam Jacob
Chelsea Barracks faces major setback

The controversial Chelsea Barracks scheme in west London could face a major redesign, after the developer Qatari Diar, said it would continue to pursue a solution benefiting ‘all parties’
Chips, New Islington, Manchester, by Alsop Architects

Standing at the centre of Manchester’s almost empty New Islington site, Alsop Architects’ Chips carries a great weight of expectation, writes Rowan Moore. Photography by Christian Richters
Construction begins on Terry Pawson opera house

Work has finally started on Terry Pawson Architects’ 45,000m2 opera house and music theatre in Linz, Austria
Construction drops - but not as fast as before says RICS

Construction workloads are declining less rapidly, according to the latest figures from the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS)
Darling Associates: AJ100 Practice of the Year

Founded just six years ago with a staff of two, Darling Associates not only entered the AJ100 ranks for the first time this year, it also scooped the Practice of the Year award
David Medd (1917-2009)

David Medd, one of the leading school architects in post-war Britain, died on 7 April 2009, aged 91
Deadline looms for UK's largest student prize

Schools of architecture only have until June 12 to enter their ‘best of shows’ to 3DReid’s national student prize
Design Out Waste competition by WRAP and RIBA

WRAP (Waste & Resources Action Programme) and the RIBA Competitions Office are pleased to announce the launch of a new international open ideas competition to identify ways that construction waste can be reduced through design.
Design teams for social housing, Londonderry

Appointment of Architect-led Design Teams for the Social Housing Development Programme in Northern Ireland
Designing for London - Kieran Long and Colin Bloch on the Urban Design Scholarships

As the AJ/RPS Urban Design Scholarships programme draws to a close, Kieran Long and Colin Bloch explain the ideas behind it
Designing for London: Alicia Pivaro

London’s spaces have to be made to work harder
Designing For London: Fiona Scott

Reframing London’s arterial high road
Designing for London: Joe Morris

I’m as much a surgeon as an architect, scalpelling through terraces, cleaning out the arteries of canals
Dunbar new RIAS president

David Dunbar has succeeded Arnie Dunn as the new president of RIAS
East: Expressing interest

London-based practice East has published a monograph on its work
Ecophon Smart Solutions for Corridors

Corridors are often the busiest rooms in a building. Not only are they used as transitional spaces allowing people and goods to move between rooms, they are often spaces where people meet in passing and where conversations take place. These activities can result in high levels of noise.
EDAW keeps name - but not for long

Masterplanner EDAW has avoided having to change its name to that of its parent company AECOM – but only for the time being
Edinburgh must see off its 'albatross of excellence'

The city must plan for large-scale change says departing design champion, Terry Farrell
Emancipation by design

When Sam Jacob hears the word ‘culture’ he reaches for his candy dispenser gun
Energy efficiency in a time of recession? Keep it low tech

Aurore Julien, leader of Llewelyn Davies Yeang’s Eco System Design unit, urges architects to shun gadgets and rely on simple principles to achieve sustainability
English Heritage rescues Heritage Open Days

English Heritage has stepped in to save Heritage Open Days from the scrapheap
European survey reveals worrying unemployment trend

Latest results show ‘one in six architects in Europe are now unemployed’
Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios wins planning for Manchester student hub

Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios has received the go-ahead for this £65 million new business school and student hub in Manchester
Firms fear bureaucracy backlash over Olympic Village funding

The government announcement last week that the Olympic Village will go ahead as a publicly-funded scheme has caused concern amongst firms involved in the project
First look: Adjaye and others design new Kielder shelters

Kielder Water & Forest Park in Northumberland has asked five practices, including Adjaye Associates, to design a series of shelters as part of its arts and architecture programme
First look: Allies and Morrison's cliff-top Felixstowe apartments

Two new apartment buildings and the restoration of an Edwardian hotel will provide 55 new apartments in the Felixstowe Conservation area
First look: Arup goes for six in Coventry

Arup Associates has won planning permission for its hexagon-inspired Engineering and Computing Building for Coventry University
First look: Arup's new gallery welcomes Last Scattering

The AJ can reveal the first pictures of a new artwork designed by artist Matthew Ritchie and Daniel Bosia of Arup’s Advanced Geometry Unit
First look: Grimshaw's New York amphitheatre

Grimshaw Architects has released new images of its Asser Levy Park amphitheatre projects on Coney Island
First look: Halliday Clark Ecopods

Bradford-based Halliday Clark Architects has just completed two new Ecopods, made from recycled shipping containers
First look: Heatherwick unwraps foil-clad Aberystwyth artist centre

The AJ can reveal the first pictures of Heatherwick Studio’s Creative Development Units at Aberystwyth Arts Centre, which will be officially opened later today (21 May)
First look: HOK's Moscow hotel

HOK has released images of a new Mandarin Oriental hotel in Moscow, Russia
First look: MVRDV's UK debut

This is the first look at MVRDV’s contribution to the Living Architecture project in England, the first project for the firm in the UK
First look: Penson create UK's largest mural

These are the first pictures of Penson Architects’ £300,000 revamp of Poole’s 40-year-old bus station
First look: Trevor Horne's Birmingham tower

Birmingham City Council has granted planning permission for Trevor Horne Architects’ Beorma Quarter skyscraper
First look: Will Alsop's Blackfriars hotel

Proposals for a £250m luxury hotel development next to Blackfriars Station on the banks of the River Thames have been submitted for planning
First look: Zaha Hadid reveals Egyptian stone towers

Zaha Hadid has unveiled proposals for a 525,000 sq m office, shopping and hotel scheme in Cairo, Egypt
First signs of optimism, says RIBA survey

The first green shoots of recovery are being seen in the profession, with RIBA’s latest Future Trends Survey revealing an anticipated increase in work for the first time
Five things to do today: 1 June

Silent Giants - Study Ball - David Barringer - Cursebird - Totem 49
Five things to do today: 11 May

Extreme donuts - Boutique hostels - Turning the pages - Early computers - Affordable art
Five things to do today: 12 May

Big Active - Shed of the year - Wear it proudly - Literary tourism - Heal’s
Five things to do today: 13 May

Spaghetti bench - Recession survival - Twittervision 3D - Play with traffic - Brilliant bus stops
Five things to do today: 14 May

Rambot - David Kirkland - Facebank - Profile your clients - Pattern8
Five things to do today: 15 May

Statement sinks - Creases of wonder - Eurovision Food Contest - Luke Fowler - DVDs in disarray?
Five things to do today: 18 May

Transformer lunch box - Architecture Foundation rebrand - Luxury city vs middle class - Nicotine shower gel - Art Deco quiz
Five things to do today: 19 May

Organic plastic - Portable play - Binge cities - R.A.R.A - Story Hotel
Five things to do today: 2 June

Naked Chair - Guerilla marketing - Materiology - Cuddly E-Coli - Free texture tool
Five things to do today: 20 May

Ledger art - Wolfram Alpha - Pimp my tiny ride - Grimsby fishing - Creative CVs
Five things to do today: 21 May

Wooden Radio - Bubble wrap building - One at a Time - Bikefast - Shadow structures
Five things to do today: 22 May

Pencil Art - Funhouse - Silly knitting - Amethyst ShadowFX - Building blunders
Five things to do today: 26 May

Stephan Zirwes - Design Science - Sprouting cards - Wonderwall - Bumpbrella
Five things to do today: 27 May

Bizarre patents - Silver Footprint - Aerogel - Olympic posters - Tetris furniture
Five things to do today: 28 May

Transformer USBs - Vertiginous Moscow - Beautiful business cards - Cryptic Canvas - Nottingham Contemporary
Five things to do today: 29 May

Brock Davis - Glorious suburbia - Google Earth alphabet - RepRap - After dinner games
Five things to do today: 6 May

Real-life Twitter - Lincoln’s lines - Rocking horse - House of Vision - Communist war memorials
Five things to do today: 7 May

Google models - Watch what you snap - Ikea Hacking - Museum Vote - Say it with eggs
Five things to do today: 8 May

Marvellous moquette - House Gymnastics - Hats - Ribbon Stairs - Free wine and Kuniyoshi
Flashback: A reader responds to Prince Charles at the RIBA

A letter to the AJ from 1984 tackles Prince Charles’ ‘monstrous carbuncle’ speech to the RIBA. The prince returns to lecture the RIBA tonight (May 12)
Foster returns to Maclaren

Foster + Partners is to add to its Stirling shortlisted McLaren Technology Centre in Woking
Foster unveils Aurelis masterplan in Germany

Foster + Partners has unveiled its Aurelis masterplan for Duisburg in the Ruhr region of Germany
Freehand drawing now

The first in a series of freehand drawing tutorials for architects by Drawing at Work founder Trevor Flynn
Gareth Hoskins shortlisted for Fort York visitor centre

Gareth Hoskins Architects has been shortlisted with four other firms for the design of a new £15 million Fort York Visitor Centre project in Toronto, Canada
Gary Hustwit on Objectified - Full transcript of interview

Read the full transcript of an interview with director Gary Hustwit on his new film Objectified
GEZE UK

Limited space, maximum accessibility with the Slimdrive EMD-F. Designed for sites with limited space or a narrow framework, GEZE UK’s highly compact, electro-mechanical Slimdrive EMD-F provides barrier-free access, opening large, heavy internal and external swing doors effortlessly.
GKD Shimmering veil for the Magical Box

The glittering metallic, virtually seamless outer skin of the new tennis centre in Madrid integrates the gigantic stadium optically into the environment. The Escale spiral mesh, a special production by GKD - Gebr. Kufferath AG, seems to make the complex melt into its surroundings. The spectacular roof construction, which can be tilted or slid open, turns the Caja Magica, the Magic Box, into an impressive landmark.
Government rolls out design standards

New minimum design standards laid down for all public buildings in the UK
Gross Max to re-design Kew Gardens

Gross Max, the landscape architect has been contracted to develop proposals to revive Kew Gardens riverside in West London.
HCA funding fuels £450m Bblur scheme

Bblur Architects’ has landed crucial HCA funding for its Slough regeneration scheme, now on site
HCA invest £16m to ‘kick start’ regeneration projects

The Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) is to bail out two more cash-strapped development programmes.
HCA to bail out Holloway Road scheme

The Homes and Communities Agency is to provide funding for a £29 million mixed-use development on Holloway Road in Islington, North London
How should Part 3 change? Alastair Robertson

Alastair Robertson, Part 3 professional studies advisor, Architectural Association and examinations consultant
How should Part 3 change? Beatrice Fankael

Beatrice Fraenkel, chair of the ARB
How should Part 3 change? David Gloster

David Gloster, director of education at the RIBA
How should Part 3 change? Dominic Wilkinson

Dominic Wilkinson, chairman of education RIBA North West and senior architect, Austin-Smith: Lord
How should Part 3 change? Gordon MacLaren

Gordon McLaren, partner, Wyatt MacLaren
How should Part 3 change? John Neville-Jones

John Neville-Jones, director, KPF
How should Part 3 change? Pamela Cole

Pamela Cole, Part 3 course leader, University of Protmouth and chairwoman of APSAA
How should Part 3 change? Rachael Broadbent

Rachael Broadbent, Part 3 student, University of Westminster
How should Part 3 change? Stephen Brookhouse

Course leader, professional practice in architecture, University of Westminster
How to juggle ‘Mr X Al-X’, Rock Steady Eddie and Isis de Cambray

Ian Martin discovers what horrors lie beyond the outer limits of luxury
Icopal Limited Monarfloor's Tranquilt system

An innovative product which out-performs all other screed isolation systems has won a Robust Detail for the Monarfloor Acoustic Systems division of Icopal. Monarfloor Tranquilt (E-FC-11) is now the only Robust Detail resilient layer manufactured in the UK and the only one made from 95% recycled foam, to score as well in sustainability rankings as it does in performance.
In pictures: The AJ100 awards dinner

Images from the AJ100 dinner held on 27 May at the East Wintergarden in Canary Wharf
Infinity Bridge opening images

Now finally open, these photographs of the Infinity Bridge at Stockton-on-Tees were taken at the launch event last month
INVISTA’s Antron® carpet fibre

INVISTA’s Antron® carpet fibre and Burmatex’s creative style have come together in the vibrant stripes of Shift, the latest product to emerge from the evolve concept. Working in symbiosis with Scan and Axis, also from evolve, contemporary stripes and complementary underlying tones shift throughout the carpet tile creating the illusion of interference and making for visually powerful statement.
It's not old-fashioned to believe in the necessity of tradition

An abridged transcript of the address given last week to the RIBA by HRH the Prince of Wales
Kalzip covers Pendle Vale College

Over 7,700 sqm of Kalzip aluminium standing seam roofing sheets were specified by Capita Architecture for the striking new Pendle Vale College in Nelson, Lancs. Kalzip is an extremely versatile system and well able to meet the demands of this roof design which included achieving a U-value of 0.15 W/m²K.
Kalzip Ltd

CPD Seminars entitled ‘Discussing Standing Seam - 21st Century Design’ are being held at many locations around the UK. Provided by Kalzip, these forward thinking, practical seminars address the most common issues surrounding current trends and the future direction of standing seam design for the building envelope.
Kalzip Ltd

TitanSilver roof enhances dental centre. TitanSilver, an innovative, highly durable and malleable building material from Kalzip’s foldable aluminium range, was specified by architect, MPC Consultants for roofing the impressive new Warwick Lodge Dental Centre in Thorpe Bay, Essex.
Ken Livingstone: AJ100 Greatest Contribution to the Profession

Hundreds of architects cast their votes in a survey that elected the former Mayor of London as the living figure who has had the most significant impact on UK architecture
Key Garden, created by the homeless, wins silver at Chelsea Flower Show

The garden is a collaboration between the Eden Project, the Homes and Communities Agency, Communities and Local Government (CLG), Homeless Link, Architecture Sans Frontières-UK and the London Employer Accord
Landscape Architecture RIP – it’s time for some Magic Arborealism

Ian Martin goes back to his hippie roots
Latest look at Renzo Piano's sky-high Shard

The developers behind the 310m-tall Shard near London Bridge have released new images of a proposed viewing platform 70-storeys above the ground
Latest look: Hopkins' Olympic Velodrome

Foundation work has now completed on the Hopkins-desgined 6000-seater cycling venue for London’s 2012 Olympic Games
Laurie Chetwood bases Chelsea garden on perfume made by Elizabeth I

Architect Laurie Chetwood and landscape designer Patrick Collins have chosen a rosewater infused fragrance created by Elizabeth I as their inspiration for the Perfume Garden
Ledbury books Architype for library job

Sustainability architect Architype has won the competition to design the £2.9m St Katherine’s Library in Ledbury, Herefordshire.
Legal: advice for approved certifiers

Michael Gerard of Michael Gerard and Courges certifiers to take stock of their responsibilities andensure that they maintain vigilance in these difficult times
Lock Rennie named as Yorkshire Pavilion winners - at last

After a six-month wait, Lock Rennie has finally been named as the winner of the ‘Renaissance’ competition to design a portable pavilion for regional development agency Yorkshire Forward (YF)
London 'architect' exposed as fake - again

David Grant of Inspire Design, East London has again been fined for misusing the title ‘architect’
LSC debacle: Funding decision 'is 'kick in teeth' say firms

None of the further education colleges drawn up by the 20 architects on the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) framework will receive any government funding until 2011
LSE reveals shortlist for student centre

The London School of Economics has shortlisted six firms for a new £21.5 million students centre on the Aldwych campus in Central London
Mac and PC: the best of both worlds

Sophia Boulton of Jigsaw Systems Ltd investigates how architects can integrate Macs and PCs
McAslan plea for doomed Rudolph masterpiece

John McAslan has issued a plea to the board of Riverview High School, Sarasota, Florida not to demolish Paul Rudolph’s iconic building this summer
Mediawatch: Prince Charles at the RIBA

The Prince’s visit to the RIBA as seen on TV, on radio and online
Michael Sorkin: Building a philosophy

In his new book, architect Michael Sorkin strolls downtown New York - follow him and grow wiser
Mivan Modular

Interiors contractor Mivan has launched its own off-site solution, Mivan Modular. Mivan Modular is a panel-based wall solution for washroom and other commercial interiors. Prefabricated in a factory environment, Mivan Modular is delivered to site in full wall or smaller modular sections.
Multi-storey for animals wins Leeds urban wildlife contest

This hi-rise scheme by Garnett Netherwood Architects has been picked as the winner in the contest to design an inner city habitat for wildlife in Holbeck Urban Village, Leeds
My Olympic pitch in Sir Alan Sugar's fantasy bollocking suite

Ian Martin plans for the unthinkable with an emergency four-hour Olympic lunch
New 'living bridge' over the Thames contest launched

The RIBA has announced a design competition to mark the 800th anniversary of the opening of the first London Bridge in 1209
Nightingale Associates lands £5 million women's centre in Liverpool

Nightingale Associates has been appointed designer for the £5 million Women’s International Centre for Economic Development in Liverpool
Norman Foster joins Bob Dylan and Woody Allen in Spanish hall of fame

Norman Foster has been named as the 29th laureate of the Prince of Asturias award for the Arts - the prestigious Spanish accolade previously won by Oscar Niemeyer, Santiago Calatrava, Woody Allen and Bob Dylan
Objectified by Gary Hustwit

James Pallister speaks to Gary Hustwit, the director of Helvetica about his new film, Objectified
Pascall + Watson brought in to work on Louvre Abu Dhabi

Pascall + Watson Architects has been appointed by French architects Ateliers Jean Nouvel to work on the prestigious Louvre project in Abu Dhabi
PhD by design

Kaye Alexander looks into a new PhD progrmme offered this year by London Metropolitan University
Planning consent could extend to 5 years

The country’s chief planning officer has instructed councils to extend the planning consent period from the current three years to five
Prince Charles and the lone heckler

Despite the media storm whipping around Prince Charles’ visit to the RIBA last night, the audience at Portland Place was remarkably well behaved
Prince Charles apologises to architects, but is unrepentant on modernism

Prince Charles apolgised to the RIBA last night, but was critical of modernism and urged architects to respect history and scale
Prince Charles' RIBA speech: First reaction

Architects present at Prince Charles’ RIBA lecture give their opinion on his performance
Prince Charles' RIBA speech: Full text

An unabridged version of the speech Prince Charles delivered to the RIBA on Tuesday, 12 May 2009
Prince Charles to remind architects of 'critical role'

Prince Charles is to call on architects to remember the ‘critical role’ architects play in the world in his speech at RIBA this evening (12 May)
Prince Charles was right to speak out, now architects must listen

The Prince was sticking up for a general public denied a voice by an architectural closed shop dominated by modernists, says Alireza Sagharchi
Professor Regan's... misleading?

Last Thursday’s episode of Professor Regan’s… on BBC2 was fascinating as usual, but why was the professor doing her research into food products aimed at children in the RIBA library?
Public money to fund Olympic Village

The government has rejected a £375 million private sector bid from Lend Lease in favour of public sector cash to fund the construction and development of the 2012 Olympic Village in East London
Ray Lonsdale brings Seven Pounds of Hope and Five Ounces of Fear to Chelsea

This years Chelsea Flower shows will see sculptor Ray Lonsdale unveil Seven Pounds of Hope and Five Ounces of Fear - an attempt to relay the male side of becoming a parent for the first time
Red Ken: No mates rate for Arsenal FC

A footballing tale from Astragal’s little chat with Ken Livingstone over a nice cold beer
Revealed: Leaked images of Mackintosh shortlist

The AJ has obtained these drawings and images submitted by the six finalists in the competition to design a new £50 million building for the Glasgow School of Art
RIAI set to protest to European Commission over design contest

The Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland (RIAI) is considering a formal complaint to the EC over ‘exclusionary’ rules set by the Energy Supply Board (ESB) for a design competition
RIAS Convention 2009: Live blog

The antidote to the recession: hear all the gossip from the Scots enjoying a knees-ups at this year’s RIAS Convention
RIBA Award winners for 2009 revealed

The RIBA has today named all 97 of its 2009 RIBA Award winners and its six European Award winners, from which the eventual Stirling Prize victor will be chosen
RIBA launches chapel competition

RIBA has launched a design competition for a new College Chapel in Oxfordshire
RIBA Part 3 debate

Without experience students cannot qualify, so how can we avoid a ‘lost generation’?
RIBA President defends profession after Simon Jenkins attack

Sunand Prasad has hit back at comments from National Trust chairman Simon Jenkins, who launched a scathing attack on the profession last week claiming architects were anti-democratic and ‘interested only in icons and cash’
RIBA Stirling Prize judges unveiled

Designer Thomas Heatherwick (pictured) is among the judges for this year’s RIBA Stirling Prize
Ripon College Chapel, Oxfordshire

Architects with outstanding design skills are being sought to take part in a competition to design a new College Chapel in Oxfordshire
RMJM lands Chinese business campus contract

RMJM has won the contract to design a business campus in Suzhou, China
RMJM's University of Ireland building approved

RMJM’s £40 million engineering building for the National University of Ireland in Galway (NUIG) has been approved by the Minister for Education & Science Batt O’Keefe
Rockpanel Woods

Wood or stone exterior cladding? The new Rockpanel Woods boards for exterior cladding combine the workability and vibrant ambience of wood with all the desirable properties and advantages of stone
Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon by Bennetts Associates

Two ‘bold moves’ – a new viewing tower and an auditorium, designed to give the building a new identity - mark out Bennetts Associates’ remodelling the Royal Shakespeare Company’s home
Sarah Sze - Tilting Planet

Fragments of light, colour and object make up Sarah Sze’s dynamic show at the Baltic
SAS International

Energy-efficient Integrated Service Modules (ISMs) featuring both active chilled beams and Micro Prism Optic (MPO) luminaires were installed as part of a significant refurbishment project at Places for People’s headquarters in central London. SAS International worked closely with designers Pollard Thomas Edwards Architects on the 1,700 square metre project.
SAS International

Designed by HOK Architects, the recently developed O2 Arena has seen the legendary Point Theatre completely renovated with two new storeys added. SAS International provided the landmark Dublin arena with over 500 acoustic doors and acoustic wall paneling.
Sauerbruch Hutton’s Munich museum opens in a burst of colour

Berlin-based practice Sauerbruch Hutton’s £43 million Museum Brandhorst in Munich, Germany, opens to the public this week
Schmidt Hammer Lassen bags Barking thumbs up

Barking & Dagenham Council has approved a scheme by Danes Schmidt Hammer Lassen for a new Creative Industires Quarter in Barking, east London
Secretary of State rejects Robin Hood Gardens appeal

The culture secretary Andy Burnham has sealed the fate of Robin Hood Gardens after rejecting an appeal from the Twentieth Century Society against the government’s decision not to list the ‘Brutalist’ estate
Secretary of State throws lifeline for Lubetkin

Bertholt Lubetkin’s ‘ground-breaking’ 1938 Finsbury Health Centre may not have to be sold off, following a decision by Health Secretary Alan Johnson
Sheppard Robson: AJ100 Most Sustainable Practice

Sheppard Robson participated in beta-testing for CarbonBuzz and has measured its own carbon footprint since 2004
Sheppard Robson's Heart of Slough takes step forward

Slough Borough Council has granted outline planning consent for two office buildings designed by Sheppard Robson
Silent auction of student photos raises over £2,000

The silent auctioning of images from ADP student photography competition ‘Bricks and Mortals’ has raised over £2,000 for the built environment charity, Article 25
Site for Stonehenge visitor centre finally confirmed

The government has today finally confirmed the new Stonehenge visitor centre, designed by Denton Corker Marshall (DCM), will be built just inside the edge of the world heritage site
Skylon set for Battersea after Olympic return

You may have already read about plans to rebuild the Skylon at the Olympics. The proposals, which have been bubbling away for some time, now look increasingly likely.
Snøhetta's Turner Contemporary trial delayed due to complexity

The trial to settle the legal row between Norwegian architects Snøhetta and Kent County Council (KCC) over the doomed Turner Contemporary art centre in Margate has been put back until November
Southend on Sea Pier competition

Southend Council is holding an international landscape architecture competition to choose a design for the Pier Head
Sponsor encourages controversy ahead of Charles lecture

The sponsor of Prince Charles’ much-anticipated lecture at the RIBA says he should talk about the furore surrounding Chelsea Barracks when he speaks tomorrow night
Steven Holl unveils Glasgow School of Art Mackintosh designs

New York-based practice Steven Holl has submitted his competition-winning proposals for phase one of The Glasgow School of Art re-development
Student village design consultant, University of Chester

The University of Chester are planning to invest circa £30m in developing residential accommodation for 1 000 students on a site recently purchased north of the main campus on Parkgate Road, Chester
Students ready to work for free

‘Desperate’ students unable to gain a placement turn to unpaid work
Supported housing patternbook 1: Pantiles House, Archadia architects, London Borough of Merton

Pantiles House, London Borough of Merton by Archadia
Supported housing patternbook 2: Lime Tree House, BPTW Partnership, Peckham

Lime Tree House (Phase 2), Peckham, London, by the BTPW Partnership
Supported housing patternbook 3: Amy Woodgate House, ECD Architects, Chessington, Kingston upon Thames

Amy Woodgate House, Chessington, Kingston upon Thames, ECD Architects
Supported housing patternbook 4: Marionville Court Care Home, Gareth Hoskins Architects, Edinburgh

Marionville Court Care Home, Edinburgh, by Gareth Hoskins Architects
Supported housing patternbook 5: Ellesmere House Care Home, Pollard Thomas Edwards Architects, Fulham, London

Ellesmere House Care Home, Fulham, London, by Pollard Thomas Edwards Architects
Supported housing patternbook 6: Cambrian Drive Retirement Village, Quattro Design Architects, Yate, Bristol

Cambrian Drive Retirement Village, Yate, Bristol, by Quattro Design Architects
Supported housing patternbook 7: High Cross Road, Walter Menteth Architects, Haringey, London

High Cross Road, Haringey, London, by Walter Menteth Architects
Supported Housing Round table: Video 1, An inclusive care struture

Video:AJ Supported Housing Round Table: Video 1, An inclusive care struture
Supported housing: a neglected sector

Rory Olcayto brings a group of architects together to discuss the complexities of designing supported housing
Supported housing: designing for care

Is supported housing in the UK receiving the attention it should from designers? Rory Olcayto introduces a cross-section of projects in the sector
Take care (seriously)

Quality of life, not just ease of maintenance, should inform designs for supported housing, says Rory Olcayto
Taylor Young: AJ100 Fastest-Growing Practice

‘Our growth in 2008, although rapid, was carefully managed and based on work we had rather than speculation,’ says managing director Stephen Gleave
Techrete precast concrete factory

Sue Dawson enjoys a tour of Techrete’s new production facility
The BNP hates modernism – it's official

That’s right folks – the British National Party would like to flatten buildings such as the Hayward Gallery, the National Gallery and Trellick Tower
The pompous RIBA boycott gives architects a bad name

Boycotting the Prince’s speech on architecture didn’t deepen the debate about our cities, says Kieran Long
The practice of theory

Italian architect Vittorio Gregotti has launched a broadside against theory-free, post-modernist posturing. But theory, says Joseph Rykwert, must address architecture’s ‘thinginess’
The price of free labour

If students work for nothing, only the middle classes will become architects, says Kieran Long
Think big or die, Farrell tells Edinburgh

Terry Farrell has issued a warning to Edinburgh that it risks losing its position as one of Europe’s leading capital cities, unless it takes planning more seriously and shrugs off a ‘legacy of dangerous complacency’
Third RIBA Norman Foster travelling scholarship announced

RIBA has announced the third winner of the institute’s Norman Foster Travelling Scholarship
Totally amazing Frank Lloyd Wright Lego

Great news: the Guggenheim Museum and ‘Fallingwater’ will soon be available for architects of all ages
Urban Design Scholarships exhibition launches at LMU

London Metropolitan University welcomed more than 100 people on Wednesday, 13 May for the launch of a new exhibition dedicated to urban design
Video: Atkins' plans to redesign Mecca

A video revealing Atkins’ plans for the redevelopment of the Masjid al-Haram, the holiest site in Islam, has been leaked on the internet
Video: Fernando Torres in Studio Three's Liverpool One pavilion

Studio Three Architects’ Liverpool One pavilion is looking good as the back drop to this fashion shoot for a Spanish fashion house. And the girl modelling is quite hot too
Video: Hutchinson, Reed, Reinke and Evans at the AJ100 awards dinner

Ruth Reed, Maxwell Hutchinson, Stephen Reinke, Adrian Griffiths and Tim Evans look back on the past year
Video: Ken Livingstone on London architecture

The former London Mayor explains why London must rise to the challenge of Paris
Video: supported housing debate

Rory Olcayto brings a group of architects together to discuss the complexities of designing supported housing
Viñoly's revised Walkie Talkie tower granted planning permission

Planning permission has been granted for Rafael Viñoly’s controversial ‘Walkie Talkie’ tower at 20 Fenchurch Street, central London
'Volcanic' Chelsea garden for Canary Islands

The Canary Islands Spa Garden brings black volcanic rock and lush exotic plants to the Chelsea Flower Show
Wandsworth derails £400m Clapham Junction regeneration

Metro Shopping Fund, a joint venture between Delancey and Land Securities, has been forced to withdraw its planning application for a two 42-storey towers at Clapham Junction
Watkins Gray International: AJ100 Highest First-Time Entrant

Watkins Gray International entered the AJ100 for the first time this year with 44 architect employees and a ranking of 48
Welsh planners promised cash under ‘recovery ready’ review

The Welsh Assembly Government is to pump £1.75 million into the country’s planning system, Environment minister Jane Davidson will announce later today as she unveils a wider review of the planning application process
Why we said 'no' to bullying Tesco

Tesco’s move to make professionals cut their fees appears to be blatant profiteering, argues Don McLean
Wilkinson Eyre axed from Blackfriars twin tower project

Wilkinson Eyre Architects has been dropped by the developer behind its project on Blackfriars Road - ending a seven-year involvement with the site
Will biomass-powered district heating work in the UK?

Sustainability editor Hattie Hartman considers the potential for locally sourced heating systems
William Smith Building, Keyworth, Nottinghamshire, by Pick Everard

Pick Everard’s design for the British Geological Survey busts BREEAM’s ‘Excellent’ standard using natural materials and the UK’s first timber-supported TermoDeck system, writes Sutherland Lyall
Willson & Bell unveil radically revised Sierra Leone project

London-based Willson & Bell has revealed the latest images of its Equiano community learning centre in Sierra Leone
Wood pellet biomass boilers for domestic use

Hattie Hartman compares commercially available wood pellet biomass boilers for domestic use
Woods Bagot lands approval for Trinity Square project

The City of London Corporation has granted planning consent for the Woods Bagot-designed 10 Trinity Square
Woods Bagot: AJ100 International Practice of the Year

The practice has 150 qualified architects in cities such as Abu Dhabi, Adelaide, Bahrain, Bangkok, Beijing, San Francisco and New York
Word cloud of Prince Charles' speeches: 1984 and 2009

Visualisation firm Hayes Davidson has created this word cloud of Prince Charles’ two speeches at the RIBA.
Zaha Hadid collaborates with Lacoste

Lacoste will launch a new range of Zaha Hadid-designed footwear in September
Zaha Hadid says 'no end to iconic architecture'

Zaha Hadid has scoffed claims, made by Prince Charles at the RIBA last week, that the ‘iconic’ era was at an end
Zaha Hadid's Guangzhou Opera House goes up in flames

Dramatic scenes in China as construction site for high-profile theatre burns

Architects JournalMay 2009

Architects Journal
May 2009