Architectural History

This miniseries of the Architectural History podcast has been produced to mark the SAHGB Conference 2023: 'Constructing Coloniality: British Imperialism and the Built Environment'. The conference takes as its theme the coloniality of architecture and heritage in relation to the British Empire, from the early years of expansionism and the escalation of the slave trade in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, through the physical and political force wielded in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and the development of racial capitalism, to the subsequent and ongoing struggles for independence, freedom and justice.
In this episode we spoke to Sonali Dhanpal about her research into a statue of Queen Victoria erected in Bangalore at the turn of the 20th century. The complex history of the statue speaks to the contested and anxious realities of imperial reification, all too often forgotten in contemporary debates about public statues and imperial legacies.
To support the work of the SAHGB, become a member: ⁠https://www.sahgb.org.uk/join-renew⁠
This podcast is produced by Front Ear Podcasts

This miniseries of the Architectural History podcast has been produced to mark the SAHGB Conference 2023: 'Constructing Coloniality: British Imperialism and the Built Environment'. The conference takes as its theme the coloniality of architecture and heritage in relation to the British Empire, from the early years of expansionism and the escalation of the slave trade in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, through the physical and political force wielded in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and the development of racial capitalism, to the subsequent and ongoing struggles for independence, freedom and justice.

In this episode we spoke to Mira Waits about her research on police stations in colonial India. Mira considers these buildings in the context of broader visual and material culture of policing and carcareal architecture in colonial histories. 

To support the work of the SAHGB, become a member: ⁠https://www.sahgb.org.uk/join-renew⁠

This podcast is produced by Front Ear Podcasts

This miniseries of the Architectural History podcast has been produced to mark the SAHGB Conference 2023: 'Constructing Coloniality: British Imperialism and the Built Environment'. The conference takes as its theme the coloniality of architecture and heritage in relation to the British Empire, from the early years of expansionism and the escalation of the slave trade in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, through the physical and political force wielded in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and the development of racial capitalism, to the subsequent and ongoing struggles for independence, freedom and justice.

In this episode we spoke to Ola Uduku about her work on the relationship between empire and the built environment in West Africa. We discussed how different forms of colonial and imperial government shape architectural production and the complex cultural manifestations of imperial architecture before, during and after formal colonisation.

To support the work of the SAHGB, become a member: https://www.sahgb.org.uk/join-renew

This podcast is produced by Front Ear Podcasts

This miniseries of the Architectural History podcast has been produced to mark the SAHGB Conference 2023: 'Constructing Coloniality: British Imperialism and the Built Environment'. The conference takes as its theme the coloniality of architecture and heritage in relation to the British Empire, from the early years of expansionism and the escalation of the slave trade in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, through the physical and political force wielded in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and the development of racial capitalism, to the subsequent and ongoing struggles for independence, freedom and justice.

In this episode we spoke to Mark Crinson about his reading of the architectural historian Anthony King, whose approach to architecture, coloniality and empire were formed through a complex relationship to different disciplinary traditions, and has much to tell us today about how to write architectural histories of empire.

To support the work of the SAHGB, become a member: https://www.sahgb.org.uk/join-renew

This podcast is produced by Front Ear Podcasts.

This miniseries of the Architectural History podcast has been produced to mark the SAHGB Conference 2023: 'Constructing Coloniality: British Imperialism and the Built Environment'. The conference is taking place from the 12th–14th May 2023, and tickets may still be available: https://www.sahgb.org.uk/whatson/annual-conference-constructing-coloniality.

The conference takes as its theme the coloniality of architecture and heritage in relation to the British Empire, from the early years of expansionism and the escalation of the slave trade in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, through the physical and political force wielded in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and the development of racial capitalism, to the subsequent and ongoing struggles for independence, freedom and justice.

In this episode we spoke to Julie Willis and Soon-Tzu Speechley about their paper 'Professional entanglements: British colonial networks of architecture', which considers the complex connections and hierarchies between architects working in south-east Asia during the colonial period.

This podcast is produced by Front Ear Podcasts.

https://www.sahgb.org.uk/

In this episode we discuss living in cities through examples of the different buildings and spaces built and occupied in London since the second world war. 

Our contributors are:

John Boughton is a social historian whose book Municipal Dreams: the Rise and Fall of Council Housing, drawn from his long-running blog Municipal Dreams that charts the history of council estates across the country, was published in 2018. His new book A History of Council Housing in 100 Estates will be published by RIBA Publishing in November. 

Alistair Cartwright is an architectural historian and recent postdoctoral fellow at the Paul Mellon centre working on a project titled The Architecture of the Rented World: 1945–65

Angharad Davies is an artist, writer and researcher, and member of critical design practice, public works. Recently she has worked as a researcher for feminist design collective Matrix, and a project manager and builder at Walworth Garden

In this episode we talk about the relationship between architecture and energy and how architectural history can reveal new perspectives on buildings,  energy use and the climate disaster.

Our contributors were:

Barnabas Calder is a historian of architecture specialising in the relationship between architecture and energy throughout human history. He is Senior Lecturer in Architecture at the University of Liverpool. He is the author of Architecture: from prehistory to climate emergency (2021). Find Barnabas on Twitter and Instagram @BarnabasCalder

Rihab Khalid is an interdisciplinary researcher in sustainable energy consumption. In particular, she is interested in the intersections of gender, energy infrastructure and space use in the Global South. Her work takes a multidisciplinary approach to understanding energy demand

Mary Shepperson is an archaeologist specialising in architecture and urbanism of the ancient Near East. She is lecturer in architectural and urban heritage at the University of Liverpool. Mary's research interests encompass the emergence of urbanism in Mesopotamia and climatic adaptation in early cities.

In this episode we discussed the role played by architecture and the built environment in relation to political protest movements. Whether at the Battle of Cable Street, Chartist demonstrations in the 19th century, protests against racist police violence in the 1980s or Extinction Rebellion, protests always take place in specific architectural environments that shape and determine the course of political action, however, we often underestimate the agency of these protest movements in shaping the built environment through their actions.

Contributors: 

Adam Elliott-Cooper is a researcher based at the University of Greenwich, who works on histories of racism and policing in Britain. His first monograph, Black Resistance to British Policing, was published by Manchester University Press in May 2021. He is also co-author of Empire’s Endgame: Racism and the British State (Pluto Press, 2021).

Katrina Navickas is a Reader in History at the University of Hertfordshire, researching and teaching the history of protest and collective action, especially in relation to contested spaces and places in Britain from the 18th century to today. Her book Protest and the Politics of Space and Place, 1789-1848 was published by Manchester University Press in 2015.

Hannah Awcock is a researcher based at the University of Edinburgh who is interested in the social, cultural, and historical geographies of resistance, publishing on subjects from the 1780 Gordon Riots to climate protests at COP26.

Morgan Trowland is a Civil Engineer and member of the protest group Extinction Rebellion.

Your hosts were Matthew Lloyd Roberts and Dr Jessica Kelly, and this project was devised with Neal Shasore. This podcast is produced by Front Ear Podcasts.

In this episode we talk about spaces for leisure and socialising. The pandemic has radically altered our experience of public spaces for socialising. Now we are out of lockdown and spaces for nightlife and indoor socialising are open again, they have taken on new meanings and significance. So we wanted to look at how spaces for leisure and socialising have always been shaped by the cultural values, social norms and fashions of a time.

The contributors to this episode are:

Dr James Nott is Lecturer in the School of History at the University of St Andrews. James is a social and cultural historian, his book Going to the Palais: a social and cultural history of dancing and dance halls in Britain 1918-1960 was published in 2015

Dr Catharine Rossi is Associate Professor in Design History at Kingston University. Catherine’s research interests range from craft to nightclubs and in 2018 she co- curated an exhibition titled Night Fever: Designing Club Culture 1960 to Today which opened at the Vitra Design Museum and toured various museums, most recently the V&A Dundee in May 2021.

Dr Alistair Fair who is Reader in Architectural History at The University of Edinburgh. Alistair is interested in the relationship between architecture and wider social and political history, his book Modern Playhouses: an Architectural History of Britain’s New Theatres, 1945-1985 was published in 2018

This podcast has been produced by the Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain - SAHGB. Established in 1956, we’re the leading subject association for architectural history in the United Kingdom. Our educational mission is to promote architectural history inclusively to diverse audiences. Our mantra is: ‘All places, all periods, all welcome.’

We promote knowledge, through learning education and research. We disseminate that knowledge through programming, content and publications. And we advocate for the discipline and our members. To find out more about our work and to support our educational mission please visit our website: sahgb.org.uk, or follow us @theSAHGB on Twitter, or on Facebook. We are open to all.

Credits:

This podcast series has been created by Jessica Kelly, Matthew Lloyd Roberts and Neal Shasore. The series is produced by Front Ear, to find out more about them visit frontearpodcasts.com.

In this episode we discussed the connection between Architecture and Faith, by talking to three historians, writers and heritage professionals about new approaches to considering the history of buildings used by communities of faith. Religious architecture has always been central to architectural history, because human societies have always been inspired to build beautiful and high status buildings as part of their religious practices. However in this conversation we addressed new ways of talking about religious architecture: examining what they might have meant to the communities that built them, exploring the avenues for adaptation and retention of religious buildings in a changing society and talking about how marginalised communities have created spaces for religious worship.

Contributors:

William Whyte is Professor of Social and Architectural History at St John's College, Oxford, writing about the architectural and material history of education, faith and society and serves as the Chair of the Oxford Preservation Trust.

Shahed Saleem is a practicing architect and design studio leader at the University of Westminster School of Architecture. He is also a Senior Research Fellow at the Bartlett School of Architecture and wrote an architectural and social history of the British Mosque for Historic England.

Rachel Morley is Director of Friends of Friendless Churches, an independent and non-denominational charity which cares for more than 50 former places of worship around Britain.