Architects vent dismay at planned British Council cuts

A host of the industry's top names have signed an open letter to register their dismay at plans to disband the British Council's design and architecture departments.

Zaha Hadid, Thomas Heatherwick, David Chipperfield, Alex de Rijke, Stuart Lipton and Peter Bishop are among those who have signed up.

The move is a follow on from a letter that appeared in the Guardian last week condemning the proposed closure of the British Council visual arts department.

The new letter, which concentrates on the potential loss of the 'expertise within the Architecture and Design Unit and the apparent wholesale shift to the notions and language of the creative industries rather than the arts', will appear in the Guardian tomorrow (Saturday 19 January).

The British Council helps fund a range of architectural events and exhibitions including the British pavilion at the Venice Biennale and the recent Space Invaders touring exhibition, which it curated with Lucy Bullivant and Pedro Gadanho.