THEORY of ARCHITECTURE

Dr Timothy Brittain-Catlin is Course Leader for the MSt Architecture Apprenticeship at the University of Cambridge. He has also just published a new book, 'The Edwardians and their Houses', the first radical appraisal of the subject for 40 years.

Towards a Holistic Architecture: What is a holistic architecture and how might we best investigate how to achieve it?

The New Sympathy: An Exploration of How Emerging Theories in Scientific, Mathematical and Psychological Understanding of the Natural World are Affecting the State of Ornament in Architecture.

Dr Eleanor Ratcliffe is a Lecturer in Environmental Psychology at the University of Surrey, specialising in restorative environments, place attachment, soundscapes, connectedness to nature, aesthetics, consumer behaviour, user experience and designing for wellbeing.

Dame Laura Lee is CEO of Maggie's, a charity providing drop-in support centres for cancer patients, each designed by a different architect.

Dr Rosemary Hill is a writer, historian, independent scholar and author of 'God’s Architect', a biography of the Gothic Revival architect, A.W.N. Pugin and 'Stonehenge', a history of one of Britain’s greatest and least understood monuments. In this episode we cover Pugin, Stonehenge and clothes.

This is an article all about beauty entitled 'What do people like about old architectural styles and how can they be incorporated into contemporary designs?'

Phineas Harper is Director of Open City, the organisation which runs the annual Open House weekend. He also curated the 2019 Oslo Architecture Triennale and has previously worked for the Architecture Foundation and the Architectural Review.

In this article I talk about why the planning system needs to undergo radical digitisation and suggest some policies that might help in that process.

This is an article I wrote back in 2016 entitled 'Public Engagement in Architectural Awards' which is still very relevant.

Nicholas Ray is co-author of the book 'Philosophy of Architecture' and is an architect in practice in Cambridge where he taught before joining the University of Liverpool. His theoretical pre-occupations over a period of more than 40 years have resulted in publications on Alvar Aalto, Rafael Moneo, Cambridge contemporary architecture and architecture's ethical dilemmas.

My third architectural book recommendation is 'The Sympathy of Things' by Lars Spuybroek. Here I talk in more detail about this book and what makes it essential reading for all architects and architecture students.

My second architectural book recommendation is 'A Pattern Language' by Christopher Alexander. Here I talk about how this book is useful to architects and why you should read it.​​​​​​​

In the first of a series of short episodes I talk about the first book that should be on your architecture reading list, 'A Theory of Architecture' by Nikos Salingaros, and why it is so important and useful for architects and architecture students.

Dr Karamia Muller is a lecturer in architecture at the University of Auckland and is the first Samoan woman to get a PhD in architecture.

Patrik Schumacher is Principal of Zaha Hadid Architects and has written and lectured extensively on architectural theory, most notably in his book 'The Autopoiesis of Architecture'.

Piers Taylor is an architect, former television presenter, and Director of Invisible Studio.

Richard Beckett is a Lecturer at the Bartlett School of Architecture, where he is Co-Director of BiotA Lab on the MArch AD course. He is currently part of a team of five undertaking an 18 month EPSRC research project and is also a cross disciplinary PhD candidate (Bartlett/Engineering).

Jack Airey is a Research Fellow at the think tank Policy Exchange and leads the work on housing and the Building Beautiful campaign.

Paul Finch is Programme Director of the World Architecture Festival, writes regularly for the Architects' Journal, and was formerly Head of CABE (the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment).

Dr Timothy Brittain-Catlin is an architect and a Reader in Architecture at the University of Kent. He is also Director for the Centre for Research in European Architecture (CREAte) and author of 'Bleak Houses: Disappointment and Failure in Architecture'.