This week, the focus is on the hard stuff: concrete. Whether that is exploring the Barbican Centre's towering volumes, listening to the author of Concretopia, or learning about two award-winning projects who use concrete in an elegant way, there's plenty of ways to fall in love with the material.

Check back regularly to keep up to date with London's latest happenings and our weekly recommendations!

Barbican Open Fest | 8 October

Image: Barbican Open Fest

Theatre, yoga, dance, art markets and workshops all combine to make Barbican Open Fest. Organised to give the public a chance to gain an understanding of the range of creative things the Barbican Centre does, the festival will include both free and ticketed events. Visit this iconic development to see screenings of films, live music, and dance alongside other workshops and activities.

Wandsworth Annual Artist Open House | 8-9 October

Image: Wandsworth Artist Open House

Throughout the Wandsworth area, artists will be opening their studio doors to the public, in this annual event. Homes, studios, and exhibition spaces will all be open to visitors to talk to artists and view works created in the area. Ranging from painting to jewellery, the crafts and artworks available from amateurs and professionals alike, will suit all budgets, allowing everyone to be able to get a piece of art for their home. 

Construction Rocks | 5-6 October

Image: Construction Rocks

Be sure to grab yourself a ticket to attend 'Construction Rocks' this week. The annual event is now a world wide event, and raises vital funds for charities. The competition, now in it's 10th year, is a Battle of the Construction Industry Bands, with the winners announced on the night.

Entry for bands is still open, so perhaps grab the rest of your team for a rehearsal this evening…

Ladybird Books and Constructing the Future Past of Modern Britain | 10 October

Image: Conway Hall

The designs of their covers are iconic, and the subjects covered throughout the 1950s to 1980s include so much around the post war era and the aspirations of such. The changing attitudes of this era are reflected in the non-fiction and fiction of the Ladybird Books. John Grindrod, well known for his passion for, and writing on, postwar modernism, will be talking about the dreams and reality surrounding the era these books were written in. 

Tour of RIBA HQ | 8 October

Image: RIBA

66 Portland Place, the home of the RIBA, will be opening its doors for a tour of the Grade II* listed, George Grey Wornum designed, building. The Portland Stone façade has been the headquarters of the Royal Institute of British Architects since the building's completion in 1934. The RIBA have been championing the betterment of building, communities and the environment throughout its events, competitions, and schemes since 1834.

Concrete Elegance: Concrete inside and out | 4 October

Outhouse by Loyn & Co Architects. Image: Charles Horsea

This talk will cover two award winning projects, which are known for their creative and considered reaction to their respective, and very different, contexts.

Speakers include Chris Loyn, of Loyn & Co Architects, whose project, Outhouse, was shortlisted this year for the RIBA Stirling Prize. The remote Welsh house is the first private home to be included on the shortlist for 15 years, and is innovative in its use of concrete. 

X and X of X will be speaking of their project, New Academic Wing, Wolfson College, which opened earlier this year. The use of concrete in this building focuses on texture and colour, inspired by the original buildings designed by Powell and Moya Architects. These include smooth insitu concrete and its iconic Cornish blue granite faced precast cladding. 

Also keep track of our weekly event picks for New York City and Los Angeles.

Have an event you want to submit? Send it to Bustler for review here.