Mar 7 2007
A huge labyrinthine structure fabricated from timber and interwoven with plastic will fill the Florence Hall at the heart of the RIBA’s Art Deco HQ in London, in a major installation exploring the relationship between global urban poverty and place. Fragile Seams - Life on the Edge, curated by Architecture sans Frontières-UK, will also form the backdrop to a series of discussions on cities, sustainability and the role of the architect.
The installation comprises a series of slum sized spaces created using interconnected timber poles and recycled plastic bags, stitched together and entwined around the structure. The collection of small units aims to evoke the chaotic environment of slum-dwelling and highlight the innovative use of reused materials by people living in poverty.
Sound ‘pods’ will be located throughout the installation, so as the visitor moves through the poles, they can listen to the experiences of architects and academics working in marginalised communities around the world. Their dialogues are woven together to explore how society and the architectural profession can engage in development both respectfully and appropriately.
Text printed on the timber poles and some of the wall fabric forms another narrative which will explain the global role of the architect in development and issues of sustainability.
The exhibition will form the backdrop to the following three seminar discussions focusing on: cities, sustainability and the role of the architect:
Jo Beall - Professor of Development Studies, London School of Economics
‘On Cities’
Tuesday 13 March 2007, 6.30pm, Florence Hall, RIBA, London W1
Professor Jo Beall is a specialist on development policy and management, with expertise in urban social development and urban governance. Other interests include gender, social policy and international development, social exclusion and local responses to crisis and conflict. She has conducted extensive research in Southern Africa and South Asia and has advised and consulted for a range of international development agencies, national governments and non-governmental organisations.
Additional participants: Dennis Rodgers, Lecturer in Urban Development at the London School of Economics and Sean Fox, Tutorial Fellow in the Development Studies Institute at the London School of Economics.
David Satterthwaite - International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) - Human Settlements Programme
‘On Sustainability’
Tuesday 20 March 2007, 6.30pm, Florence Hall, RIBA, London W1
David Satterthwaite is a development planner specialising in integrating environmental health and resource management into urban plans and policies. He works with the Human Settlements Programme at the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED). In this lecture he will address the most significant initiatives taking shape in urban areas of Africa and Asia. He will also discuss the work of organisations and federations formed and run by the urban poor or homeless, which are contributing to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals.
David Satterthwaite advises many international agencies on urban policy; he is the editor of the international journal Environment and Urbanization and co-author of several Earthscan books including Environmental Problems in an Urbanizing World: Local Solutions for Cities in Africa, Asia and Latin America (with Jorge E. Hardoy & Diana Mitlin), Earthscan, 2000. In 2004, he was a recipient of the Volvo Environment Prize.
Accompanied by: Caren Levy, Director, Development Planning Unit, University College London; Professor Anne Power, London School of Economics and Kim Mullard, Homeless International.
Professor Nabeel Hamdi - Oxford Brookes University
‘The Role of the Architect’
Tuesday 24 April 2007, 6.30pm, Florence Hall, RIBA, London W1
This discussion will focus on the strategic role architects can play in humanitarian work, specifically in post-disaster and post-conflict situations. Professor Hamdi will explore how vital sustainable livelihoods are in relation to the practical agenda of building houses, services and utilities.
Professor Nabeel Hamdi was the architect for the award-winning community-based PSSHAK housing projects in London in the 1970s. He is one of the principal investigators on sponsored research into low-income housing in the UK, USA and in numerous developing countries. He is a consultant to governments, development agencies and banks in countries world-wide and has authored many articles, and four books. He won the UN Habitat's Scroll of Honour in 1997 for his contribution to community action planning in cities and is a former co-Director of CENDEP (Oxford Brookes University).
Accompanied by: Jane Handal, Agha Khan programme in Egypt; Rumana Kabi, UN in Pakistan and David Sanderson, CENDEP, Oxford Brookes University.
The Architecture sans Frontières exhibition and talks link with the RIBA Trust’s series of lectures ‘International Dialogues: Architecture and Climate Change’ on the connections between global warming and the ecology of places and spaces around the world.