Recently here in Copenhagen Denmark's leading design school, KADK, hosted an exhibition entitled New Architecture: Ireland, curated and designed by Irish/Danish/Dutch architecture practice AP+E. Showcasing the work of six Irish practices to have emerged during the recession, the exhibition included a range of projects of a non-commercial, social or community-based nature. Using custom-designed armatures which frame the work of the individual practices while unifying the exhibition as a whole, New Architecture: Ireland created a space to study a moment in Irish architecture, complemented by its surroundings in the school's library. Copenhagen was the second of four stops for the project in the Nordic region, having shown first in Tallinn, and most recently in Oslo. The show will finish its tour in Stockholm, opening there on 16 November.
The exhibition itself brings together some interesting projects by Irish architects both in Ireland and elsewhere, and shows the potential small practices have to work in new ways, in collaboration with end users, or outside of commercial constraints. But perhaps the best thing about the exhibition is the events programme it brings with it to these northern European cities. Recently in Oslo the exhibition was accompanied by a talk by Peter Carroll of A2 Architects, focussing on his work both in Ireland and in Norway. On 16 November it will open in Stockholm's Kungliga Tekniska Högskolan with a talk by Shelley McNamara of Grafton Architects, arguably one of Ireland's most influential practices. Here in Copenhagen, the focus was on young practices in Ireland and Denmark, with speakers from Urban Agency, Zeso Architects, JAJA Architects and EFFEKT. The discussion looked at the various ways a young practice can work to produce impactful work for residential, commercial and urban spaces, and the importance of collaboration in making large-scale projects successful. Chaired by former RIBA president Angela Brady, the panel made the most of the presence of Ireland's Minister of State for Business and Employment, Gerald Nash, to hammer home how the opportunities afforded to smaller architectural practices here in Denmark could translate to Ireland, questioning current procurement processes and architectural competitions, both in Ireland and elsewhere, and offering suggestions of ways to help small practices thrive. Let's see if some of those suggestions make their way first into policy and then out into the world...
New Architecture: Ireland, running in Stockholm's Kungliga Tekniska Högskolan from 16 to 30 November, features the work of AP+E, Urban Agency, Culturstruction, Donal Colfer Architects, VAV and Sult. The exhibition opens with a talk by Shelley McNamara on 16 November, which is free to attend.
Images courtesy of AP+E
The exhibition itself brings together some interesting projects by Irish architects both in Ireland and elsewhere, and shows the potential small practices have to work in new ways, in collaboration with end users, or outside of commercial constraints. But perhaps the best thing about the exhibition is the events programme it brings with it to these northern European cities. Recently in Oslo the exhibition was accompanied by a talk by Peter Carroll of A2 Architects, focussing on his work both in Ireland and in Norway. On 16 November it will open in Stockholm's Kungliga Tekniska Högskolan with a talk by Shelley McNamara of Grafton Architects, arguably one of Ireland's most influential practices. Here in Copenhagen, the focus was on young practices in Ireland and Denmark, with speakers from Urban Agency, Zeso Architects, JAJA Architects and EFFEKT. The discussion looked at the various ways a young practice can work to produce impactful work for residential, commercial and urban spaces, and the importance of collaboration in making large-scale projects successful. Chaired by former RIBA president Angela Brady, the panel made the most of the presence of Ireland's Minister of State for Business and Employment, Gerald Nash, to hammer home how the opportunities afforded to smaller architectural practices here in Denmark could translate to Ireland, questioning current procurement processes and architectural competitions, both in Ireland and elsewhere, and offering suggestions of ways to help small practices thrive. Let's see if some of those suggestions make their way first into policy and then out into the world...
New Architecture: Ireland, running in Stockholm's Kungliga Tekniska Högskolan from 16 to 30 November, features the work of AP+E, Urban Agency, Culturstruction, Donal Colfer Architects, VAV and Sult. The exhibition opens with a talk by Shelley McNamara on 16 November, which is free to attend.
Images courtesy of AP+E
