Thursday, 22nd February 2018, 6 students from Sheffield Hallam MArch course attended the Central Saint Martins Megacrit: THE WAY WE LEARN, hosted in collaboration with @architecturefoundation. It was an exciting and very engaging experience for all of us taking part in this event and we were very proud to represent our course alongside some of the greatest schools in the country.
The day-long event brought together students from different schools with shared interests in order to challenge institutional boundaries. Hosted by the MArch Architecture at Central Saint Martins, the students taking part in this event came from LSE Cities, The Global Free Unit, ADS2 and ADS6 at the RCA, Diploma 10 at the AA, Situated Practice at the Bartlett and MArch at Sheffield Hallam University.
Organised around six key themes: Experimental Practice, Urban Economies, Self-generated Projects, Architecture as Civic Action, Embedding Heritage and Diversity, and Making is Connecting, all students and guests took part in a series of round table discussions.
(Photo by Alice Kaiser)
It was really great to see Architecture Foundation Deputy Director, Phineas Harper’s post later on that day:
As over in Bedford Square, the AA considers its future, I’ve been spending the day at an inter-school architecture megacrit hosted and organised by CSM students but including groups from Brighton, Sheffield Hallam, the Royal College of Art, the Bartlett and LSE also.
The sessions are student-led round tables where projects are presented in clusters of three followed by self-chairing discussions. Tutors and guests take a back seat.
Comments and questions between peers are consistently astute, focused and highly pertinent to each other’s work. The conversations move between macro economic and political issues to detailed community engagement tactics. The aesthetics both of buildings and of processes are carefully considered.
The mood of the day is egalitarian, calm and purposeful. The crowd is diverse, engaged and generous. There’s no gender bias in sight.
When I was a student, this kind of architectural education was considered radical, experimental and a bit hippy. Today doesn’t feel that way. It feels pragmatic and natural.
I’m realising that the fringe pedagogy of yesteryear is now leading educational culture. And it’s fantastic. (Phineas Harper, Architecture Foundation)
(Photo by Phineas Harper)
The open to all event, continued in the second part of the day with a zine workshop that aimed to consolidate the topics discussed and develop a collective agenda of the crit.
(Photo by Alice Kaiser)
The day ended with a Fundamentals:Build discussion hosted by @ollywainwright. The debate featured Claire Bennie of Municipal, RCKa’s Russell Curtis, Kay Hughes of Khaa and competition organiser Malcom Reading.
The discussion focused heavily on the culture of architectural competitions, many of which are unpaid and require considerable design work. This debate has gained great popularity on the AJ last Thursday where many professionals expressed their views on the subject. For more details see: Wasteful architect competitions come under fire by Will Hurst.
The day has been an incredible experience for all of us taking place in the event – it was insightful, engaging and a great opportunity to make friends and contacts.
(Photo by Alice Kaiser)
Infrastructures of Autonomy 