News
Listen to Office Talk UK E11, with Dave Sharpe and Alison Brooks
07.2024
1. The challenges of participating in design competitions, and how the need to produce so much more and satisfy stringent criteria compared to the early days, creates barriers for emerging practices.
2. The important role competitions play in their business, and how they think strategically about selecting the right competitions to invest time and resources in.
3. The challenges she faced establishing her practice as a Canadian in the UK, and how she was able to develop new client relationships without relying on an existing network.
4. Why Alison believes higher education projects offer some of the best opportunities for architects, because the clients are highly motivated to be at the forefront of design, technology and sustainability.
5. The value of developing an ability to write as a way to articulate your ideas as an architect, and why Alison often finds herself spending more time writing than designing.
Listen now wherever you get your podcasts:
Alison Brooks and Rasmus Astrup of SLA: Transforming Urban Landscapes at the Festival of Place 2024
07.2024
On July 4, 2024, Alison Brooks and Rasmus Astrup of SLA teamed up for a keynote presentation at the Festival of Place in Boxpark Wembley.
The duo showcased three innovative Toronto projects that reimagine the city’s post-industrial waterfront and brutalist legacies.
Their presentation, centred around the theme “Transforming Urban Landscapes,” highlighted the integration of natural elements into the regeneration of Toronto in Canada. Christine Murray, Editor-in-Chief and Director of The Developer and Festival of Place, chaired the double-act.
Alison Brooks and Rasmus Astrup showcased three innovative Toronto projects that reimagine the city’s post-industrial waterfront and brutalist legacies:
- Waterfront Toronto – A bold vision for sustainable urban development featuring an ensemble of mid- and high-rise buildings stitched together by a community forest.
- Bissell Building, University of Toronto – A revitalization of the Brutalist Claude T. Bissell Building, home to the Faculty of Information in downtown Toronto.
- David Crombie Park – A revitalization of a historic 1970s landscape designed to meet the needs of the local urban community.
Their keynote emphasized sustainability, community, and the seamless blend of architecture with natural surroundings, offering valuable insights into the future of urban design and the potential for nature to reshape our cities.
You can watch their conversation here.
Alison Brooks Appointed to AA Council
06.2024
We are excited to announce our Creative Director Alison Brooks’ appointment as one of four members to the esteemed Architectural Association Council.
Joining PQ Choi, Cindy Walters and Steven Ware on the council is a significant achievement which will allow her to have a hand in shaping the next generation of bright young talents at the oldest private school of architecture in the UK. As practicing architects, all four new members of Council will draw on their experience and knowledge to help shape the AA’s future as part of a five-year strategy developed by AA Director Ingrid Schroder.
The new Council members were elected following a vote by AA Members, including current students and staff, in April 2024 and begin their three-year appointment on 15 July.
Alison Brooks Architects Wins Architizer A+ Best Medium Firm
06.2024
Receiving entries from over 80 countries, Alison Brooks Architects has won Best Medium Firm in the Architizer A+ Awards.
This achievement recognizes the value of aesthetics, performance, and impact in the act of building – a perfect culture fit with our design ethos.
We’re grateful to all Alison Brooks Architects staff past and present for their contributions.
“Stewards of the Forest”: Alison Brooks in Pennsylvania
06.2024
In the latest feature by the American Hardwood Export Council, Alison Brooks takes us on a captivating journey through the sustainable natural landscape that produces her favorite timber.
Tracing the provenance of the American black cherry tree, frequently specified Alison’s projects for its rich, dark grain, Alison shares a conversation with journalist Fred Pearce amidst the cathedral-like environment of the Allegheny National Forest in western Pennsylvania.
”Stewards of The Forest: Stories of the people behind the diverse naturally regenerated hardwood forests of the eastern United States” by Fred Pearce.
Alison Brooks and Carlos Chauca Galicia Lead Workshop for Master of Advanced Studies in Collective Housing
06.2024
This June, Alison Brooks alongside Carlos Chauca Galicia, led a studio in the Master of Advanced Studies in Collective Housing – a collaborative postgraduate program for qualified architects offered by Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM) and ETH Zürich.
This program focuses on housing, city, and energy studies, combining practice-oriented design synthesis with integrated disciplines and theoretical issues of dwelling and housing.
In Praise of Shadows: Towers of Madrid Nuevo Norte
In the workshop, the task is to re-imagine the residential tower so that it is liveable, generous, and welcoming of shade and darkness and attuned to the climate of Madrid. The seven tower schemes will evolve the qualities of the city’s finest ‘street architecture’ to find new form and expression, giving darkness and light equal consideration.
Using the text “In Praise of Shadows” by Japanese writer Junichiro Tanizaki, the workshop also addressed the increasing reliance on tower typologies in urban development to fund economic models in Europe’s metropolitan centres. High-density residential developments reflect the costs associated with land purchase, decontamination, infrastructure installation, and the funding of social, economic, cultural, and ecological infrastructure in new neighbourhoods. Tall buildings are thus a prerequisite for new metropolitan neighbourhoods. This principle is evident in the planned regeneration of Madrid Nuevo Norte, where the central urban gesture – a new park over the rail lands – is lined with tall buildings.
Site:
The Madrid Nuevo Norte project, also known as the Chamartín project, aims to transform the northern part of Madrid into a modern, sustainable, and connected district. Covering approximately 2.3 million square meters (3.3 million including the railway tracks), it stands as one of the largest urban regeneration initiatives in Europe.
The development encompasses a new financial district along with extensive residential, commercial, and green areas. It will feature 1 million square meters of residential space, including 10,500 new housing units, 20% of which will be affordable. Additionally, there will be 1.6 million square meters of office space and 400,000 square meters dedicated to green spaces and parks.
MCH Students:
Anwar Abbassi, Kailey Akins, Derrick Christensen, Thomas Christensen, Edgardo Cruz, Viktoriia Denisova, Jose Eduardo Delgado, Julio Ferré, Pedro Gaxiola, Rafailia Mandi, Eduardo Maldonado, Karla Madrigal, Diego Martínez, Ximena Real, Elizaveta Nikolskaia, Ayush Patel, Betul Sahin, Kunal Sonawane, Sofia de Luca, Milagros Ucha, Antoine Voruz, Mariam Yasser.