Studios.
Our MArch course spans two years, with each cohort beginning in a combined vertical studio. From this starting point, the two studios then take on parallel briefs to explore differing topics and typologies each year.
Year 01:
ACROPETAL UPRISING
Introduction:
The Barbican Estate is reimagined as a living, evolving urban structure rather than a static monument. Drawing on the metaphor of a ship continuously repaired while in motion, the project frames architecture as an adaptive process shaped by time, use, and collective engagement. In response to planned renewal works, it questions whether restoration alone is sufficient, proposing instead an extension that supports future environmental and social needs. By introducing a timber “mast” as a vertical commons, the project explores how architecture can foster community, ecological responsiveness, and shared urban life, positioning the Barbican as a dynamic participant in the city’s ongoing transformation.
The Project:
The project reimagines the Barbican Estate as an evolving urban system, proposing an extension that responds to contemporary environmental and social challenges rather than simply preserving its historic form. Set within the context of the City of London’s commitment to invest approximately £240 million in a major renewal programme between 2027 and 2030, the project questions the limits of restoration and explores how the Barbican can grow through the addition of a new architectural element. This intervention takes the form of a timber tower, conceived metaphorically as a “mast” attached to an existing “ship,” reinforcing the idea of the estate as a structure in continuous transformation.
Rather than designing an iconic skyscraper, the project focuses on creating a “vertical commons” that supports collective urban life. The tower is envisioned as a socially driven and environmentally responsive extension, incorporating shared spaces such as workshops, communal terraces, and winter gardens. These programmes aim to strengthen community interaction and provide essential urban infrastructure, shifting away from the exclusivity often associated with high-rise developments.
Technically, the project explores the use of renewable materials, particularly mass timber and hybrid timber–steel systems, to reduce environmental impact while enabling adaptability and prefabrication. The tower is conceived as a climatic device, integrating planted systems, natural ventilation, and shading strategies to respond to ecological conditions. Influenced by contemporary discourse, including ideas from the Venice Architecture Biennale, the design embraces collaboration between natural and built systems.
Ultimately, the project establishes a dialogue between the Barbican’s Brutalist concrete architecture and new bio-based construction methods, proposing a future where heritage and innovation coexist through sustainable and socially engaged design.
Studio Tutors
Simon Beames
Marisela Mendoza Ramos
Daniel Thompson
Year 02:
INSTITUTION: Music Rooms
Introduction:
The Marach Year 2 studio explored how education can move beyond traditional classrooms to become part of the civic fabric, positioning educational institutions as catalysts of urban life where knowledge production and public engagement intersected. The projects reimagined an Educational Institute for Music as a piece of urban infrastructure capable of shaping its surroundings, rejecting contemporary tendencies toward monumentality and instead seeking a model appropriate for UK cities that thrive on adaptation and the re‑appropriation of existing building stock.
The Project:
The design project and research questioned whether the pursuit of iconicity remained relevant or if a modest, contextually embedded building contributed more meaningfully to the city. Each proposal followed strict programmatic requirements while introducing a researched line of questioning into the architectural presence of music in the public realm. We developed proposals for 5,500m² cultural buildings in dense urban settings across Nottingham, Derby, Leicester, and London, interrogating whether mixed use could be integrated while respecting rigorous technical and acoustic demands.
The resulting designs established a continuous and porous relationship with the city, where these institutes act as cultural hinges between everyday life and specialised artistic education. Spatially, this prompted a rethinking of thresholds and circulation, with façades mediating between the institution and the street, acting as screens and instruments. Public foyers and internal streets blurred the line between learning environments and the urban realm, offering spaces for informal gathering and impromptu performance. The work was grounded in a critical understanding of performance typologies, from 19th‑century conservatoires to modern black-box studios, while students explored a stylistic dialogue between architecture and society, placing history and ornament at the centre of the conversation. Digital production methods compensated for the loss of traditional craft, helping to create technically resolved and aesthetically considered proposals, and by engaging with specific musical traditions and communities, the projects revealed new architectural possibilities for the institute as an adaptable, socially embedded part of the contemporary city fabric.
Studio Tutors
Kenneth Fraser
Michael Brundle