city|speculations

venice: island territories

marseille: irrigations

florence: curating the city

warszawa: projects for the post socialist city

saltcity: cádiz field+work

 

fieldwork

tracking the city

zonzo

Marseille: Irrigations

Suzanne Ewing

 

This is the fourth book in the city|speculations series which documents work produced in the two year framework of the Master of Architecture (MArch) programme at the University of Edinburgh. The work in this volume showcases both an architectural pedagogy and selected exceptional design and research work which has resulted from the 2009-2011 Integrated Pathway studio led by Suzanne Ewing with Victoria Clare Bernie. The book incorporates a new text on Marseille by William Firebrace (University of Westminster, London). Through presented design thesis projects, the volume offers some critical questions for the city which have emerged from an uncovering of its potential through structured design and research inquiry. Explorations of architectural and urban strategies of Irrigations are proposed as critical alternatives to unitary masterplans and grand projects, pertinent to the contemporary Southern European city.

 

55 students from the Master of Architecture and MSc Advanced Architectural Design programmes engaged with the complexities of the city of Marseille between 2009 and 2011. Selected design work and research exploration emerging from the studio have been exhibited in the Gallery Store, Chambers Street (Inside Out City, Edinburgh Art Festival, August 2010), Inspace (Between the Material and the Virtual, June 2011), the Matthew Gallery, Edinburgh (Irrigations: city models Edinburgh Festival, August 2011), Project Context (London, Edinburgh, November 2011), featured on the RIBA Presidents’ Medals website, and selected for the Royal Scottish Academy New Contemporaries exhibition (March 2012) and Royal Academy Summer Exhibition, London (June 2012). Selected work will travel to Marseille during the Marseille-Provence European Capital of Culture year 2013.