Material Cultures at the Barbican Centre, London

Image: Jess Gough

Join Material Cultures founders Paloma Gormley, Summer Islam and George Massoud for a discussion about their recent work, including the creation of an arts centre in a disused office building in Lewes and the reinvention of the former council plant nurseries at Wolves Lane, Haringey.

Rooted in a concern with the development of low-carbon and locally sourced construction techniques, Material Cultures’ field of operations include design, research and education projects.

Thursday 8 February
19:00 GMT

Auditorium 1 Level 4
Barbican Centre
Silk Street, London
EC2Y 8DS

Tickets available here

About Material Reform

This acclaimed and bestselling book by design and research practice Material Cultures brings together a series of short, incisive essays on the cultures, systems, and infrastructures that shape the architectural industry and the destructive ecologies it fosters. Texts centred around key topics including resources, maintenance, agriculture, land use, and value are interwoven with a visual essay capturing the impact of industrialisation on landscapes at different scales. The building practices dominating contemporary architecture are rooted in the exploitation of people and the degradation of our landscapes. Here, Paloma Gormley, Summer Islam, and George Massoud explore how this has come about and how alternative systems, with holistic approaches to the built environment, might be formulated.

Through text and visuals, concepts and practice, Material Reform explores how developing a direct relationship with materials can help us find new languages with the potential to supersede those we have inherited from a narrow lineage of authors. These discursive threads come together to form a vital sourcebook for rethinking our relationships to materials, land, and development, in all their crucial intersections. 

Find out more here