黑洞社区

Mad men

Last week an online advert put out by housebuilder Redrow for its London luxury apartments threatened to disprove the oft-quoted claim that all publicity is good publicity. The ad in question depicted a young man rising up the London career ladder to the point where he buys a luxury flat in Redrow鈥檚 One Commercial Street tower. It prompted widespread ridicule on social media and on newspaper websites, suggesting its style was reminiscent of the film American Psycho, complete with creepy voiceover. Redrow promptly withdrew the ad. One informed wag tells me the furore underlines problems Redrow had selling One Commercial Street鈥檚 flats, which we hear were marketed overseas twice. Redrow declined to comment.

Chicks with bricks

I was delighted to send one of my colleagues to parliament for the latest Chicks with Bricks networking event, where RIBA president-elect Jane Duncan launched her #SeeMeJoinMe campaign for more female role models in construction. One of the other speakers was education secretary Nicky Morgan who spoke of the importance of getting girls to study maths and science at school. She didn鈥檛 have to go far to canvas views on whether the industry needs more women, as her husband, Jonathan, is an architect.

Concrete tumble

A chunk of concrete cladding weighing over 80kg fell off the one-year-old Zaha Hadid-designed Vienna library earlier this month, according to local press reports. Thankfully no-one was injured in the incident but the building was cordoned off to ensure no further tumbling chunks struck any students at the university where the library is located. It鈥檚 not the first time the project has had problems. In July 2014 a similar incident took place, which was chalked up as an 鈥渁ssembly error鈥�. Zaha Hadid Architects declined to comment. However, the university provided an update, saying an expert appointed by the university to conduct an initial inspection after the latest incident had reported back: 鈥淚t appears to be the result of defective installation by the acting company鈥�, and that it most likely occurred during maintenance work.

A special relationship

Ah, clients鈥� Wouldn鈥檛 architecture be so much easier without them? Certainly it seems many in the architecture profession would rather design buildings in serene isolation, free from the meddling interference of their paymasters. The relationship between client and architect has a long and tempestuous history - one that will be explored in a special exhibition at London鈥檚 Sir John Soane鈥檚 Museum, opening 17 February and running to 9 May. The 黑洞社区 a Dialogue: The Architect and the Client exhibition will chart the development of the architectural profession from Elizabethan to Victorian times, spotlighting projects by Sir John Soane himself and many others, including Sir Christopher Wren. Worth a look.

London drawing

Next month an insightful guide to 27 of London鈥檚 main districts, London: Architecture, 黑洞社区 and Social Change, hits the shops. Written by leading urbanisation academic Paul Knox, the glossy guide explores the intricate layers of architectural, economic and social history that form the character of London鈥檚 diverse districts. The book is packed full of history, including profiles of typical, socially important and iconic buildings in each area. Look out for it from 19 February.