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WHAT WE DO HERE – TRAILER

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At long last we can reveal the trailer for our upcoming anthropology documentary film “WHAT WE DO HERE”

WHAT WE DO HERE explores how aspiring architects at Manchester School of Architecture approach various stages of modelmaking as they grapple with materials, methods and machines to ultimately reveal the ways in which the models inform their individual growth and understanding. In addition to this it examines the ways that staff integrate practical making into their requirements for student assignments and within their own research projects.

Premiere Screening and Debate June 29th

The film will premiere at in Venice at Biennale Sessions, Special programme for higher education institutions at La Biennale di Venezia’s 16th International Architecture Exhibition. The screening will take place at 15.00 at the Venice Arsenale Sale D’Armi followed by speakers and a debate on the subject of making in design. Speakers will be announced shortly.

TIME SPACE EXISTENCE June 30th – November 25th

The film will take up a 5 month residence at Palazzo Bembo as part of the TIME SPACE EXISTENCE Collateral Biennale exhibition. WWDH will be screened on repeat during all opening hours at Palazzo Bembo near the famous Rialto Bridge.

SimpsonHaugh B.15 Modelmaking Awards 2018 – The Winners

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Friday 8th of June saw the opening of this years annual show at Manchester School of Architecture.

During the hours preceding the opening, representatives of SimpsonHaugh Architects; Kristin Mishra, Kaia Williams and Nick Fleming joined MSA’s Professor Tom Jefferies, Dr Stephen Walker and B.15 Workshop’s Jim Backhouse and Scott Miller to Judge this years modelmaking awards.

The shortlist of 10 students from BA and 10 from MArch was whittled down from over 40 submissions from across the ateliers. Each submission was independently marked against a 3 point system and then totalled, combined with the other judges score and then ranked before the winners were revealed. The winners were as follows:

BA (Hons) Architecture

1st Prize: Nour Hamade

2nd Prize: Camila Fabara Von Lippke

3rd Prize: Lola Tartakover

MArch

1st Prize: Rebekah Parkinson & Karissa Tysklind

2nd Prize: Mike Ellis & Jack Poulton

3rd Prize: Emily Daye

On behalf of SimpsonHaugh we would like thank all who submitted their work for consideration and congratulate those who made the short and winning list. This is never a straight forward process so anyone who has been featured should be proud of their achievements in making this year.

The show, featuring the prize winning work and all shortlisted work will run until June 20th at the School of Art. Be sure to check it out whilst you can.

Well done all and good luck for the future!

Scott, Jim & Pip at B.15 Workshop

SimpsonHaugh B.15 Modelmaking Awards Shortlist 2018

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After whittling down over 40 long listed submissions we can announce the 20 students that have made it onto this years awards shortlist from 3rd year BA and MArch years 1 & 2. There will be 3 prizes for both groups.

In no particular order
BA Architecture
Julie Alvaer Teigen
Patricia Belcin
Lola Tartakover
Camila Fabara Von Lippke
Benjamin Norris
Hau Hui Min
Jumana Tarazi
Nour Hamade
Eleni Roka
Jhower Emanuel Sanchez-Pinela
MArch
Tom Smith & Jacob Graves
Mike Ellis & Jack Poulton
Rebekah Parkinson & Karissa Tysklind
Afshin Khalife
Trevor Stevenson & Conor King
Emily Daye
Krishna Patel
Jonathan Southgate
Jenny Bedford
Sam Walters & Matthew Wreglesworth

Thank you to all who made the effort to submit their work to be considered- there are many great projects in the show this year which were discounted here out of necessity. Well done to you all and good luck to those who have made this list. Judging will take place this Friday and the winners will be presented at the official show opening – be sure to attend as well as the practice preview event on Thursday where SimpsonHaugh will be looking to recruit both Part 1 & 2 Students.

The complete SH B.15 Awards 2018 document with project descriptions and images can be viewed here.

Good Luck everyone,

Jim, Scott, Pip and on behalf of SimpsonHaugh, Kristin Mishra, Kaia Williams and Nick Flemming

Submit your work for the SimpsonHaugh B.15 Modelmaking awards longlist 2018

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Dear 3rd, 5th and 6th year students

This years Modelmaking awards sponsored by SimpsonHaugh will be judged and awarded on June 8th at the end of year show opening.

We invite anyone who is eligible (3rd, 5th and 6th years – Individual or group projects are both valid) wishing to be considered for the awards to submit the following:

  • Project title followed by no more than 350 words explaining (A) Your project brief, location, purpose etc. (B) Your use of modelmaking, Scale, Materials and Processes you used and why.
  • 3-6 images of their work in its complete state along with 1-2 process images you might have. Only projects that will be displayed to be judged should be submitted
  • Please sent separate image and text files rather than PDF.

Submissions should be sent to scott.miller@manchester.ac.uk no later than Friday 25th May. 

Remember that the awards are judged on overall approach to making alongside the actual pieces and not necessarily for a single model. More information about the awards scheme can be found here.

We encourage anyone who has made models this year to submit their work for consideration and wish everyone best of luck.

Scott & Jim

WHAT WE DO HERE to Feature at “TIME SPACE EXISTENCE” Exhibition, Venice Biennale

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We are pleased to announce that following our June 29th Premiere and debate of WHAT WE DO HERE, the film will then take up a 5 month residence at Palazzo Bembo as part of the TIME SPACE EXISTENCE Collateral Biennale exhibition. WWDH will be screened on repeat during all opening hours at Palazzo Bembo between June 30th and November 25th 2018.

“The fourth edition of the biennial architecture exhibition “TIME SPACE EXISTENCE” presents a wide selection of works from architects, photographers, sculptors and universities from all over the world. In addition, projects realized in cooperation with institutions and museums. 

The participating architects and artists come from diverse cultural backgrounds and different career stages, i.e. established architects next to professionals whose works might be less known. What they have in common is their dedication to architecture in the broadest sense of their profession. The exhibition shows a vast spectrum of presentations (models, concepts, research outcomes, thoughts, dreams and ideas), placing classical architectural installations in dialogue with surprising artistic elements. 

The topic TIME SPACE EXISTENCE gives the possibility for each architect to focus on these fundamental existential questions, creating an extraordinary combination of projects and approaches. By combining projects from architecture studios with works of architecture photography and sculpture, the exhibition becomes a dialogue between current developments, ideas and thoughts in art and architecture, highlighting the philosophical concepts of Time, Space and Existence.” – http://www.palazzobembo.org/

One of the many contributions to the previous TIME SPACE EXISTENCE exhibition in 2016

PREMIERE SCREENING AND DEBATE

WWDH will premiere at the Biennale Arsenale Site on June 29th followed by a debate on the subject.

SimpsonHaugh Modelmaking Drop-in days

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As part of this years Modelmaking awards SimpsonHaugh will be sending Modelmaker Kristin Mishra to be on hand at B.15 in the lead up to your final exhibition. Kristin will be able to offer advice from her 10 years modelmaking for the practice which is well worth taking advantage of. Find out more about Modelmaking at SimpsonHaugh here.

Kristin will be around during our normal opening hours on the following days:

Tuesday 17th April

Thursday 3rd May

Thursday 10th May

Opening Dates between now and June

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Easter Break

Closed Friday 30th March – Reopening Monday 9th April

Events Weeks

Pre-Arranged Events groups only between 19th April – 2nd May (19th-20th we are open at half capacity due to events)

NOTE: This includes laser cutter bookings due to workshop capacity. Maximum 20 users at any one time.

Late Opening Dates

Between Monday 30th April and June 1st the workshop will remain open Monday -Thursday until 19.30 when students will be asked to clean up your workspace as normal in preparation for the following day.

These temporary opening times are as follows:

Monday 09.30 – 19.30

Tuesday 09.30 – 19.30

Wednesday 09.30 – 19.30

Thursday 09.30 – 19.30

Friday 09.30 – 16.30

 Jim, Scott & Pip

SimpsonHaugh B.15 Modelmaking Awards 2018

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We are very happy to announce this years student modelmaking awards will be sponsored by SimpsonHaugh. Following on from our previous successes with recognising modelmaking at MSA this year we hope to further push students to be confident of their ideas through modelmaking.

Awards are open to BA 3rd year and both 5th and 6th year of MArch and will be awarded as 1st, 2nd and 3rd prizes for BA & MArch MSA students.

Kristin Mishra, Model shop manager at SimpsonHaugh:

“We’re looking for students who demonstrate an understanding of the intrinsic link between drawings and models with appropriate use of scale and materials thus reflecting any architects need to think in both two and three dimensions.

Students should also address the factors that affect whether a model is made or not, build approach, time frame for delivery, and material costs.

At SimpsonHaugh we use physical models to explore and generate ideas, resolve and refine building proposals, communicate our design intent.  Models are especially useful in meetings and presentations. While sketch models quickly become obsolete, they document our design process – one approach didn’t work, so we tried another. We aim to help students understand that a model doesn’t have to be advanced to be of value. A simple model is as useful as a quick sketch, helping to understand three dimensional space in a way no other medium can.”

With this in mind students should be aware that these awards are not given for just one output but for an individuals application and or execution of a model or models in conjunction with their other design work.

Candidates will be notified of their nominations in the coming months before a final shortlist is chosen. All awards will be judged and presented by by MSA and SimpsonHaugh at this years end of year show opening on June 8th.

Awards Launch open office event

To mark the official launch of this years awards in collaboration with SimpsonHaugh there will be an introduction and open office event taking place on March 20th at 17.00. There will be a short presentation about this years awards scheme followed by a chance to, see the office/workshop, ask questions and network with SH staff.

>>>>>    Click here to register your place at the event.    <<<<<

Entry to this event is strictly limited and exclusive to MSA.

Sign up early to ensure your place!

SimpsonHaugh at B.15

Over the coming months there will be a number of dates where Kristin Mishra, Modelshop Manager at SH will be present at the workshop to offer advice and observe work in progress. This is a great opportunity to speak to a modelmaker who can offer a wealth of experience from her years of modelmaking in practice so is not to be missed. These dates will be confirmed soon and posted to Moodle so be sure to take advantage.

Find out more about SimpsonHaugh here: www.simpsonhaugh.com/

 

‘WHAT WE DO HERE’ documentary film project taster

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‘WHAT WE DO HERE’ is a documentary film project that follows the people, practice and process of learning through making at Manchester School of Architecture.

What place is there for physical hand-crafted models in the increasingly digital realm of modern architecture? How does challenging students to look beyond the screen and ‘get their hands dirty’ inform their understanding of and relationship with the structures they are conceiving?

This film aims to explore how these young architects tackle the various stages of model-making as they grapple with materials, moulds and machines and ultimately reveal the ways in which the models, in turn, inform their individual growth and understanding.

The theme of the 2018 Venice Architecture Biennale; ‘Free Space’ is presented clearly through ‘WHAT WE DO HERE’ giving a unique insight into a space where the next generation of architects are free to experiment, test, fail, learn and grow in their craft and knowledge.

Project Sponsorship

We are currently seeking sponsors to support the project and participate at the Venice Biennale 2018 and welcome any interested parties who might wish to be associated with this truly global architecture exhibition.
Please contact scott.miller@manchester.ac.uk for further information about partnering with us.

Atelier La Juntana Modelmaking Summer school 2018 – MSA Exclusive Week July 10-16

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Following the success of last years MSA exclusive week at Atelier La Juntana 2017 the team can confirm that there will be another MSA exclusive week taking place this July between 10th and 16th. This week long course in the North of Spain is highly recommended and will introduce you to a number of different making techniques along with outlining the theory behind their use.

A video summary of last years course shows it’s contents in more detail:

Students from BA Year 1/2 and MArch year 5 are elegible to apply. For full course information click here to download the full course brochure.

Please contact atelierlajuntana@gmail.com stating your interest and year of study for further information.

Sign up whilst you still can!

Scott & Jim