There have been a great range of Architecture school shows this past month some of which we have been able to visit to see what the rest of the world is offering in architectural education. This has proved very interesting and in some ways reassuring in our approach to making at MSA.

The graduate show at Westminster gave a really good balance of processes and materials in their model work.

Over at the Architectural Association the projects were heavily focussed on exploring CAD driven potential in their designs. There were a great selection of structural studies and organic forms. It was good to see such a wide variety of processes being used to develop the projects here with things often being made out of everyday and seemingly unorthodox materials such as scouring pads and liquorice!

At The Bartlett show each graduate display was vast. The mix of graphic and making media on show here was immense. Despite the scale of it all I felt that there was a lot of money misused here with huge sets of models produced entirely using 3D printing on an industrial scale.

The show was stunning but overall I felt it was much more a case of money over well considered decisions in terms of making and being waste conscious. That said I’d recommend anyone go to visit these shows in future to see the range of things produced and consider your own approach to getting the results you want. The quality of a display can look crisp, enticing and impressive but the real value of it for you as a student should be in the quality of your design and your ability to effectively convey it.

You don’t need an excess of money to do this. It takes planning and careful consideration of your aims.

Scott