Archinect - Features

Cluster, create, devolve

2017-11-01T07:00:00-04:00

In 2010 Boris Johnson, when he was Mayor of London, famously stated that he would not accept “Kosovo-style social cleansing of London” as a result of the then Government’s proposals to cut housing benefit payments. Johnson’s comments highlighted the pressures of retaining the social mix of central city areas in the face of increasing inequality of income and rising land and property prices. It was, and is, an issue that not only affects social housing at the lower end of the scale but also the intermediate market where young professionals and entrepreneurs — the drivers of the city’s future economy — can no longer afford to live in the capital.

The Return of the Master Builder?

2017-08-21T05:30:00-04:00

Following the Grenfell Tower disaster, Marc Vlessing, CEO of London residential developer Pocket, was speaking at a NLA Sounding Board meeting. Dutch-born Vlessing stated that for an objective view of such issues he often turned to the European press. Newspapers in Germany and the Netherlands, he said, immediately suggested that the cause of the tragic fire lay in the tendency of the UK construction industry to continually sub-contract risk.

Why Not London?

2017-07-03T04:30:00-04:00

"Why not London?" I kept asking myself as I wandered round the spectacular opening reception of the spectacular HQ of the Norman Foster Foundation in Madrid. Housed in the former Turkish Embassy building designed by Joaquin Soldana in 1902 the foundation is a treasure trove of Normanalia - early drawings, models, sketches, huge renderings, personal artefacts, bicycle designs and cross country skis. Everything presented in museum-quality perfection. Each room overseen by a uniformed assistant who not only asked you politely not to take photos but also could provide a bi-lingual description of the works on show.

Globe Trotting Designers

2017-04-24T04:16:00-04:00

Following my last blog on the size of London's architectural economy, I was interviewed for a programme on BBC television about the impact of Brexit. Jack Pringle, UK head of Perkins and Will and ex President of the RIBA, was also on the programme and showed the presenter around his office and quizzed his staff about where they were from - "Italy", "Slovakia", "Spain" they responded.

London's Key Role as a Global Design and Construction Skills Hub

2017-03-29T01:00:00-04:00

"The analysis showed that London's architecture sector produced a massive £1.7 billion in gross value added (GVA)—38 per cent bigger than the product, graphic and fashion design sectors put together and greater than many observers expected."