Practice-based research in focus at European exhibition

The event was held at the University of Westminster’s Ambika P3 and supported by RMIT’s School of Architecture and Design, School of Media and Communication, RMIT Europe and the Architecture, Design and Art Practice Training Research (ADAPT-r) program, which is funded through the European Union.

The exhibition brought together practitioners from around the globe and highlighted the different stages of discovery within the research process, according to Professor Richard Blythe, Dean of RMIT's School of Architecture and Design as well as author and a lead chief investigator of the ADAPT-r program grant.

“Across the themed display areas, visitors took a behind-the-scenes glimpse into what it’s like to be a creative practitioner undertaking a practice-based PhD,” he said.

“The exhibition allowed for sharing of impressive work-in-progress displays as well as completed research works and outcomes including publications and books.

“For example, this year’s event saw the book launch of Designing from the Room to the City: Expanding Disciplinarity in Architectural Practice by Tom Holbrook, which was a publication of his practice-based PhD published by Routledge,” Blythe said.

The exhibition also featured the RMIT Practice Research Symposium (PRS). The PRS is held twice a year, bringing together all PhD candidates completing practice-based research to provide an update of their progress or to deliver their examination presentation and exhibition.

This year’s PRS saw three RMIT PhD candidates and one from the Aarhus School of Art successfully defend their work to an international panel and audience in a public examination.

The newest PhD awardees included:

• Sam Kebbell of Kebbell Daish (RMIT)
  
  • The New Zealand-based architect and researcher explored the everydayness culture and materiality and their rarefaction in architectural language.
    
• John Brown of John Brown Architect Ltd (RMIT)
  
  • The Canadian-based architect and RMIT researcher focused on the future adaptive building for the ageing population to be able to age-in-place. 
    
• Steve Larkin of Steve Larkin Architects (RMIT)
  
  • The Dublin-based architect, musician and RMIT researcher explored the connection between traditional Irish music and architecture.
• Siv Helene Stangeland of Helen & Hard (Aarhus School of Art)
  • The Norway-based architect presented a preliminary assessment of her research work 'Wilding and Weaving - a relational design practice'.

The ADAPT-r program is partly funded through the European Union’s Seventh Programme for Research, Technological Development and Demonstration under Grant Agreement No 317325.

Story: Cecilia De Marinis