The London Festival of Architecture takes place throughout June and is a city-wide celebration of architectural experimentation, thinking, learning and practice. It is a time for speculation, debate and new ideas. An open call is inviting proposals for Associated Projects and Open Studios to address the theme ‘Work in Progress’.
Work has shaped our city and informs our lives. It connects us socially and globally; it is the means by which we share and test ideas, and often where we have our greatest successes and challenges. London exists because of its commercial roots, as a place of production, the exchange of goods and services.
Yet how we work – and how we think about work and the workplace – has changed dramatically in recent years. Technology, alongside other cultural and economic forces, has enabled work to seep out from offices to permeate our entire city, influencing its landscape and impacting on our experience of daily life.
Landscapes have changed, too, due to the decline of traditional industry and manufacturing, while many of the remaining sites are now under pressure for much needed homes. Yet now we are seeing a resurgence of manufacture, and a return to artisan and making.
London itself is a work in progress, and its architecture, and its architects, both respond to, and lead, the process of change. This year’s theme ‘Work in Progress’ presents a chance to explore the changing nature of work, and workspace, as well as its impact on, and role in, the continued evolution of our city.
The Building Centre is a London Festival of Architecture partner.
