Tatjana Schneider and Jeremy Till of the Universities of Sheffield and Westminster have been awarded the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) President's Award for Outstanding University-located Research for their Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) funded work ‘Spatial Agency’.

The project proposed alternative ways of approaching architecture. The research collected over 150 inspiring examples of how people have applied spatial intelligence beyond designing a building alone. The case studies ranged from activism to pedagogy, publications to networking, making stuff to making policy, showing that spatial agency can radically expand the normal boundaries of architecture.

This is the second time that Dr Schneider and Professor Till have won this award for an AHRC funded project, in 2007 they won for the project ‘Flexible Housing’, and the third time in five years Professor Till has won this award.

The 2011 RIBA President's Awards for Research reward and encourage outstanding research in architecture and is awarded annually for the single best university project from an RIBA accredited school (over 100 worldwide). The judges said of the ‘Spatial Agency’ project: ‘Describing a series of case-study projects that are marginal to the mainstream activities of the architectural profession, unofficial and informal practices, this is a timely study; it raises issues that are vital for the future.’  

Professor Till, Dean of the School of Architecture and the Built Environment at the University of Westminster, said: “The term ‘spatial agency’ which came out of the project has already been taken up in architectural circles, showing how ground-breaking research can have an impact on professional and cultural life, and confirming our view that the need to establish alternatives to mainstream practice has never been more pressing.”

Dr Schneider, Senior Lecturer at the School of Architecture at the University of Sheffield said that “The website which accompanies the project has come to be used internationally as a resource base and point of reference for students and practitioners alike. The immense interest in these 'other ways of doing architecture' is, for me, a clear indicator about the need for architectural practice to go beyond its present field of operation and to engage with the mechanisms, the politics, of the production of space”.  

The project has been documented in a book, ‘Spatial Agency’, published by Routledge and the project website, spatialagency.net, has received close to 200,000 unique visitors.

The awards will be presented to the winners at the annual RIBA President's Student Medals Awards ceremony on 7 December 2011, at the RIBA, 66 Portland Place, London W1B 1AD.

ENDS

AHRC Media contact: Jake Gilmore, Communications Manager, 01793 416021; j.gilmore@ahrc.ac.uk  

Notes to editors:

Spatial Agency Project: Tatjana Schneider and Jeremy Till -  http://www.spatialagency.net/
Spatial Agency is a project that presents a new way of looking at how buildings and space can be produced. Moving away from architecture's traditional focus on the look and making of buildings, Spatial Agency proposes a much more expansive field of opportunities in which architects and non-architects can operate. It suggests other ways of doing architecture.

The project started with the belief that a building is not necessarily the best solution to a spatial problem. The project attempts to uncover a second history of architecture, one that moves sharply away from the figure of the architect as individual hero, and replaces it with a much more collaborative approach in which agents act with, and on behalf of, others.  Although Spatial Agency started out as a critique of the conservative tendencies of mainstream practice, it ended up as a celebration of the bravery, canniness and optimism of an inspiring group of historical and contemporary figures

RIBA President's Awards for Research: the RIBA’s Research and Development Department launched the RIBA President's Awards for Research in 2005 to reward and encourage outstanding research in architecture carried out by PhD students, academics and practitioners. The awards promote and champion high-quality research and encourage its dissemination and incorporation into the knowledge base of the profession. The awards raise the profile of architects, practitioners and academics engaged in outstanding research, and raise awareness of the need for research across the profession that fosters innovation and strategic thinking.

The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC): Each year the AHRC provides approximately £100 million from the Government to support research and postgraduate study in the arts and humanities, from languages and law, archaeology and English literature to design and creative and performing arts. In any one year, the AHRC makes hundreds of research awards ranging from individual fellowships to major collaborative projects as well as over 1,100 studentship awards. Awards are made after a rigorous peer review process, to ensure that only applications of the highest quality are funded. The quality and range of research supported by this investment of public funds not only provides social and cultural benefits but also contributes to the economic success of the UK.