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FRONT

LEFT RESOLVE’s competition-winning design for Brixton’s bridge draws on community and culture

BELOW Making connection through workshops was central to Migrant’s Bureau’s presentation at LDF 2018

urbanism practice that surrounds disenfranchised and migrant communities. Formerly known as 3.09, its work blends technology, politics, and migration to address problems in contemporary society.

The practice is a diverse web of architects, designers and curators that construct interventions in cities, trans‑local environments and migratory communities. In the past, the team has worked with human geographers, artists and illustrators to address global matters such as migration and identity. Practice director Salih believes we need to look beyond architecture being a built form and start viewing it in terms of frameworks or impactful systems of change.

This concept is deeply rooted in the work of the firm as it aims to be a facilitator of social change. In 2018, for the London Design Festival, Migrant’s Bureau held its Gender Equity in Cities Conference at Marlborough Sports Garden in Southwark. Through workshops, panel discussions and immersive technology, it highlighted the challenges of modern-day society through the lens of gender. Despite having constructed a pavilion, the conversations and discussions the built structure facilitated were much more impactful than the physical form. This project highlighted what can be achieved when practitioners come together to discuss a particular matter.

Architectural practice is in the midst of a massive transformation and organisations such as RESOLVE and Migrant’s Bureau are at the forefront of this change. Architecture can no longer only be about constructing tangible structures; it must address wider matters such as social injustices and the climate crisis. Architects cannot afford to continuously romanticise individual designers and egotistical schemes as there are much larger issues to combat.

With everything that is at stake, practitioners will need to work collectively and use their spatial design skills to help fight global issues. It is clear that a building cannot solve a lot of our current problems, so perhaps in the future, we will see architects increasingly involved in policy change, framework development, and working in more diverse teams. Architects already work with a host of consultants, but it is time this net expanded past the remit of the built environment. By forming a multidisciplinary workforce made up of a range of talents and expertise, we can create a more sustainable and equitable future.

Architecture can no longer only be about constructing tangible structures; it must address wider matters

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