Abstract

Architecture is the inescapable art and language that surrounds us. It is assimilated and employed, often unconsciously, in everyday life. As a language it becomes a reservoir of and conduit for culture. Architects can put words to the subliminal messages which are felt and sensed, and through architecture, express and make recognisable moods, ideas and values which range from the pragmatic to the sublime, from the most personal and intimate to the extremities of philosophical abstraction. Our approach is selectively inclusive – interweaving historical and contemporary references in order to reclaim architecture’s capacity to speak directly to its most and least sophisticated users. The talk will trace the thought which has informed the work of the practice and how this has evolved or endured.