External Examiner's visit

19 June 2013: We had the visit of our External Examiner, Christian Male, from Ian Simpson Architects. The exhibition is up and looking good, and we had all our STB students present, plus a few from the M.Arch Design course who had good stuff on the wall that needed explaining.




Jiajing and Putri explain their designs to Christian.




Christian sits with the MArch STB students and goes through portfolios. Douglas is showing his.



Now, Vivek's portfolio.



Now, Adri's portfolio.

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This is Christian's last year in the role of External Examiner - he has done it for four years, very conscientiously, and has provided us with some good ideas, support and stability. We have interviewed someone for the position for the next 4 years who we hope will be as good. 

Panorama of Exhibition 2013

19 June 2013: Here's a panorama of the exhibition and we await the arrival of our external examiner, Christian Male from Ian Simpson Architects. This is his fourth year of visiting.

On the left is our first semester work, and Phil has made a single A0 poster for each project. On the right, we have every scheme on display, and every student has been given a space to fill to the edge with good stuff! Models are everywhere, on the desks and on the upper shelves.

Summer Exhibition ready!

18 June 2013: The Tall Buildings Summer Exhibition is ready and we await the External Examiner on 19th June.



First semester work, with the model of Tanjong Pagar, Singapore. On the near left, Rotterdam tower by Douglas Saraiva, then the triple tower of Vivek, Weiqi and Song, then the Vertical farm of Matt Humphreys, and the Abu Dhabi tower by Adri and Amna in the corner. Facing us is the vertical campus of Michael Photiou.



Second semester work with the Elephant and Castle model in the foreground, Big Blend over the fireplace, Learning Tree on the left, and U-Cube on the right.



On the long wall, we have Jay, ATA, Zzyzx and Goal!



Elephant and Castle model with Big Blend on the site



Singapore model with the Parks in the Sky triple tower on the site

Portfolio completion and Studio boarding

5th June 2013: It's getting closer to Portfolio submission date, and there's a buzz in the studio of people getting models finally finished, and artwork improved.

Goal! group are adding fine details to their model of the Folding Tower.




There is an exhibition next week, and we have Tony and Callum working hard to put new pinboard on the walls, making it easier and smoother to pin everything up. It'll be a much better workplace next session. We are finally getting rid of the complex wood mouldings that decorated the walls, but made pinning impossible. (If the building ever needs to be restored, they are available from B&Q)

Tall Building Studio dinner at Nosh 30 May'13

30 May 2013: The entire Tall Building Studio went for an End-of-Semester celebration at Nosh in Beeston. This is a Chinese restaurant for Chinese, very very authentic, and we ate as much as we could for less than ten pounds a head!



It's great to celebrate with students who have worked with such dedication all semester!



At the end of the evening, Amna's husband arrived with her two small children.

Facade technology models emerging 29 May'13

29 May 2013: The designs have been critted and the Design and Technology reports handed in so there is frantic activity to finish some models for the Facade Technology report.

Group Goal! photographing their model that demonstrates the double skin facade to floorplate junction.



Group ATA are working on the ETFE facade for their vertical farming proposal.

People and action at the Crit of 22 may '13

22 May 2013: For the Crit day, we had John Prevc (of Make) and John Ramsay (of UoN) joining DNC and Phil.First we had some videos on show, then we gave each group twice times 40 minutes with parallel panels of crit-tutors.

Big Blend presenting to John Prevc and DNC

Phil and John R with group U-Cube

DNC and John P with group ATA

DNC and John P with group ATA


Phil and John R with Jayanth

Overhead view of the whole crit-space


John P and DNC with group Goal!

A lot of sound on the East wall, but nobody is wailing, we are enjoying the day's work, celebrating the achievements of the semester. Now, another 2 weeks to round off the portfolio, a design and materials report to do, a facade technology report to do. All along, they are thinking about dissertation subjects.


Group Learning Tree explaining to Noura, Phil and John


It's been a tough few weeks and days, and everybody is entitled to take a little rest!


John R and Phil look at group ATA's twin tower

DNC, John P and Noura listening to Jayanth


John Prevc listening to group Zzyzx!


Phil and John Ramsay listening to group Goal!


Close up of the Zzyzx! vertical farm proposal


Zzyzx! celebrating the end of the Crit with DNC hiding behind the farm




We have a talk back to the students at the end (sorry that this is slightly blurred)

It's sad to take the work down so quickly, but the room is needed by others for the following two days. 

Photos of pinned up projects 22 May 2013

22 May 2013: We've had the crit, and there are another 2 weeks to complete these to the personal portfolios. Here are some iPhone captured images of the pin-ups on the wall, I hope to replace these with sharper posters when these are available.

Jayanth working individually produced a hotel and residential tower with a highly visible megabraced frame.


Group Learning Tree have a Vertical Campus. Although the ideal campus probably is horizontal, the point of this research is to work on a way to make a campus work happily when space is really tight in a major city centre location.


Group Goal! (also now calling themselves Folding Tower) have linked twin towers.


Group U-Cube delighted us with an ambitious video and and excellent model of their megastructure with large outriggers as public sky leisure spaces and parks supporting compositions of cubic housing forms.


Group ATA have linked twin towers with offices and residential, topped with a tall vertical farm and a wind farm at the very crown.


Group Big Blend completed their Algae facade mixed use complex with great professionalism and elan - a tall twin-tower with a linking core and algae filled facade panels, and a mini-tall podium block of education and research.


Group Zzyzx! have a twin tower with university, student accommodation, residential, and two vertical farms in half dome shapes.

Two days before crit - days of completion

20 May 2013: It's good to see the students using the studio intensively in the days leading up to their big presentation.

Group ATA finalising their model.


Groups Goal! and U-Cube are finalising their poster designs and video.

Joana Gonzalez visits Tall Building Gonzalez

9 May 2013: Prof Joana Gonzalez used to be a frequent tutor in 2007, 2008 and 2009, and since then has been working with BDSP, the AA School and writing two books. She made a very welcome return in 2013, spending a day with us, looking at every scheme and delivering a lecture. Her specialism is environmental strategy, and the special focus today was the design of facades.

Joana delivered a lecture on facades, particularly the double skin facade. A few years ago she was favourable to it, but since writing her book, she has developed a healthy skepticism about it, particularly in the British climate. As Ken Shuttleworth frequently points out, there is a benefit in returning to 'more Wall than Glass'. This idea can produce more thermally stable buildings and reduce the need for double facades (which are more necessary for fully glazed buildings).


Joana and Noura look at the Learning Tree


Joana and Noura look at the Big Blend


Joana and Noura look at Jay's scheme



Joana and Noura look at ATA


It's been a good day and it's time to get the train home - enough students are left for a group photograph.
Thankyou Joana!